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Southern Red-backed Vole

The Southern Red-backed Vole or Gapper's Red-backed Vole (Myodes gapperi) is a small slender vole found in Canada and the northern United States. It is closely related to the Western Red-backed Vole (Myodes californius), which lives to the south and west of its range and which is less red with a less sharply bicolored tail.

These voles have short slender bodies with a reddish band along the back and a short tail. The sides of the body and head are grey and the underparts are paler. There is a grey colour morph in the northeast part of their range. They are 12–16.5 cm (4.7–6.5 in) long with a 4 cm tail)[2] and weigh about 6–42 g; avg. 20.6 g (0.21–1.48 oz; avg. 0.72 oz).[3]

These animals are found in coniferous, deciduous, and mixed forests, often near wetlands. They use runways through the surface growth in warm weather and tunnel through the snow in winter. They are omnivorous feeding on green plants, underground fungi, seeds, nuts, roots, also insects, snails, and berries.[2] They store roots, bulbs, and nuts for later use.

Predators include hawks, owls, and mustelids.

Female voles have two to four litters of two to eight young in a year.[2]

They are active year-round, mostly at night. They use underground burrows created by other small animals.

References

  1. ^ Linzey, A.V. & NatureServe (Hammerson, G.) (2008). Myodes gapperi. In: IUCN 2008. IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Downloaded on 30 June 2009. Database entry includes a brief justification of why this species is of least concern.
  2. ^ a b c Southern Red-backed Vole, borealforest.org
  3. ^ Southern Red-backed Vole, Animal Diversity Web

External links

v · d · eExtant species of subfamily Arvicolinae

Kingdom: Animalia · Phylum: Chordata · Class: Mammalia · Infraclass: Eutheria · Superorder: Euarchontoglires · Order: Rodentia · Family: Cricetidae

Arvicolini

Arvicola
(Water voles)

Chionomys
(Snow voles)

Lemmiscus

Microtus
(Voles)

Subgenus Microtus

: Field Vole (M. agrestis) · Anatolian Vole (M. anatolicus) · Common Vole (M. arvalis) · Cabrera's Vole (M. cabrerae) · Doğramaci's Vole (M. dogramacii) · Günther's Vole (M. guentheri) · Tien Shan Vole (M. ilaeus) · Persian Vole (M. irani) · Southern Vole (M. levis) · Paradox Vole (M. paradoxus) · Qazvin Vole (M. qazvinensis) · Schidlovsky's Vole (M. schidlovskii) · Social Vole (M. socialis) · European Pine Vole (M. subterraneus) · Transcaspian Vole (M. transcaspicus)

Subgenus Terricola

: Bavarian Pine Vole (M. bavaricus) · Calabria Pine Vole (M. brachycercus) · Daghestan Pine Vole (M. daghestanicus) · Mediterranean Pine Vole (M. duodecimcostatus) · Felten's Vole (M. felteni) · Liechtenstein's Pine Vole (M. liechtensteini) · Lusitanian Pine Vole (M. lusitanicus) · Major's Pine Vole (M. majori) · Alpine Pine Vole (M. multiplex) · Savi's Pine Vole (M. savii) · Tatra Pine Vole (M. tatricus) · Thomas's Pine Vole (M. thomasi)

Subgenus Mynomes

: Beach Vole (M. breweri) · Gray-tailed Vole (M. canicaudus) · Montane Vole (M. montanus) · Creeping Vole (M. oregoni) · Meadow Vole (M. pennsylvanicus) · Townsend's Vole (M. townsendii)

Subgenus Alexandromys

: Clarke's Vole (M. clarkei) · Evorsk Vole (M. evoronensis) · Reed Vole (M. fortis) · Gerbe's Vole (M. gerbei) · Taiwan Vole (M. kikuchii) · Lacustrine Vole (M. limnophilus) · Maximowicz's Vole (M. maximowiczii) · Middendorf's Vole (M. middendorffi) · Mongolian Vole (M. mongolicus) · Japanese Grass Vole (M. montebelli) · Muisk Vole (M. mujanensis) · Tundra Vole (M. oeconomus) · Sakhalin Vole (M. sachalinensis)

Subgenus Stenocranius

: Narrow-headed Vole (M. gregalis)

Subgenus Pitymys

: Guatemalan Vole (M. guatemalensis) · Tarabundí Vole (M. oaxacensis) · Woodland Vole (M. pinetorum) · Jalapan Pine Vole (M. quasiater)

Subgenus Pedomys

: Prairie Vole (M. ochrogaster)

Subgenus Hyrcanicola

: Schelkovnikov's Pine Vole (M. schelkovnikovi)

incertae sedis

: Insular Vole (M. abbreviatus) · California Vole (M. californicus) · Rock Vole (M. chrotorrhinus) · Long-tailed Vole (M. longicaudus) · Mexican Vole (M. mexicanus) · Singing Vole (M. miurus) · Water Vole (M. richardsoni) · Zempoaltépec Vole (M. umbrosus) · Taiga Vole (M. xanthognathus)

Neodon
(Mountain voles)

Phaiomys

Dicrostonychini
(Collared lemmings)
Ellobiusini
(mole voles)

Ellobius
(Mole voles)

Lagurini
(Steppe lemmings)

Lagurus

Lemmini
(Lemmings)

Lemmus
(True lemmings)

Myopus

Synaptomys
(Bog lemmings)

Myodini

Alticola
(Voles from
Central Asia)

Caryomys

Eothenomys
(Voles from
East Asia)

Hyperacrius
(Voles from
Pakistan)

Myodes
(Red-backed
voles)

Neofibrini

Neofiber

Ondatrini

Ondatra

Pliomyini

Dinaromys

Prometheomyini

Prometheomys

incertae sedis

Arborimus
(Tree voles)

Phenacomys
(Heather voles)

v · Myodes (Red-backed vole)