Pallid beach mouse

Pallid beach mouse
Conservation status
Presumed Extinct (1959)  (NatureServe)[1]
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Mammalia
Order:	Rodentia
Family:	Cricetidae
Subfamily:	Neotominae
Genus:	Peromyscus
Species:	P. polionotus
Subspecies:	†P. p. decoloratus
Trinomial name
†Peromyscus polionotus decoloratus A.H. Howell, 1939

The pallid beach mouse or Ponce de Leon beach mouse (Peromyscus polionotus decoloratus), is an extinct subspecies of the oldfield mouse that was endemic to Florida in the United States.

Distribution

It was known from two locations in Florida: Ponce Park, Volusia County and Bulow, Flagler County.

Description

The average pallid beach mouse was 4 to 8 centimetres (1.6 to 3.1 in) in length. This subspecies burrowed into dunes for protection.

Extinction

The exact cause of extinction is unknown, but it is presumed to have been from a combination of habitat destruction due to property development, competition with invasive rodents, and predation from feral cats.

References

1. "NatureServe Explorer 2.0". explorer.natureserve.org. Retrieved 21 March 2023.