Eastern harvest mice favor dense grass and wet field edges in the Piney Woods, and Texas’s records cluster accordingly around Big Thicket National Preserve, Davy Crockett National Forest, and Sabine National Forest, the state’s easternmost forests where that cover persists. This species sits at the western edge of its range here, mostly confined to a handful of southeastern counties.
Spring drives the record count: February through April together account for well over half of the state’s 24 documented sightings, likely tracking both increased mouse activity and easier detection once these secretive rodents start moving through low cover after winter, with the latest logged 2026-04-11. NatureServe rates the species S4, Apparently Secure, in Texas, a healthier read than its rare-bucket ranking among the state’s mammals might suggest on its own.
Full species profile
