Kashmir field mouse

The Kashmir field mouse, Apodemus rusiges, is a species of rodent in the family Muridae found in India, Nepal and Pakistan. It is nocturnal, terrestrial and an excellent climber, and it makes grass-lined nests inside burrows dug beneath tree roots, where it rests by day and cares for its young; several mice may share a burrow, but the female does not let the males enter it. It is herbivorous, feeding mainly on seeds and berries, and it stores food for the winter. The species looks very like the Himalayan mouse, Apodemus pallipes, but is larger, with a larger skull and a longer two-coloured tail that is 80 to 114 percent of the head and body length. The back is dark brownish grey, sometimes with a median dorsal stripe, and some individuals have a yellow hairline on the chest and throat. It breeds in spring and summer, with four or five litters a year of five to six young after a gestation of 25 to 26 days.