Mice Male and Female
Mice Male and Female
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Juvenile Males
Adult female bank vole (pregnant) Adult female bank vole (heavily pregnant)
Copyright © 2014 H.Langridge www.ilexaquifoliumuk.wordpress.com
Adult female wood mouse Adult female bank vole (showing perforate state)
Non-breeding: (also sometimes called imperforate) where a thin layer of skin forms over the
vagina,
Perforate: where the vagina is open
Pregnant: indicated by a clearly distended abdomen
Has bred: Milk production indicates recent litter. Hairless halos around nipple mean she’s
suckled a litter at some point (but not necessarily recently).
Juvenile female
Juvenile bank vole Adult wood mouse, displaying less even fur
Copyright © 2014 H.Langridge www.ilexaquifoliumuk.wordpress.com
Variation
I have put together this guide to help those new to small mammal trapping, but there is no
substitute for experience. Try to get out as much as possible and make the most of any guidance
offered by more experienced trappers. That said, even after handling thousands of individuals, it is
still as much of an art as a science due firstly to juveniles of both sexes presenting similarly, but also
because of the massive natural variation in individuals which mean size and colour are not
particularly good indicators of sex.
All photos and wording by Holly Langridge. Intended as a guide only. Permitted for personal and non-
commercial use only. Please contact me if you would like to reproduce all or part of this work for courses,
classes or voluntary projects.