Mississippi mammals

Hispid cotton rat in Mississippi

Sigmodon hispidus

Native to Mississippi S5 Secure in Mississippi

Not listed as nonindigenous in Mississippi by USGS NAS; native to its Mississippi range.

IUCN Red List status

  1. LC
  2. NT
  3. VU
  4. EN
  5. CR
  6. EW
  7. EX

LC – Least Concern

Widespread and abundant; not at risk.

Hispid cotton rat moving through short green grassHispid cotton rat crouched in leaf litter and grassHispid cotton rat feeding low in a lawnAdult hispid cotton rat with young at the edge of vegetationFront view of a hispid cotton rat holding food
Photo: Laura Mae · CC BY 4.0Hispid cotton rat moving through short green grassPhoto: Joshua Liverman · CC BY 4.0Hispid cotton rat crouched in leaf litter and grassPhoto: Cody Stricker · CC BY 4.0Hispid cotton rat feeding low in a lawnPhoto: tcantrell52 · CC BY 4.0Adult hispid cotton rat with young at the edge of vegetationPhoto: Terry Woodward · CC BY 4.0Front view of a hispid cotton rat holding food

Hispid cotton rat in Mississippi, by the numbers

Common in Mississippi 19th most recorded of 74 mammals logged in Mississippi

264 occurrence records
104 with iNaturalist photos
Jun 21, 2026 Last seen in Mississippi

Records from 2000–2026.

264 total records count every Mississippi occurrence from GBIF and iNaturalist; the map plots a georeferenced sample of 261; the monthly chart covers the 261 records with a full observation date.

When to look for the Hispid cotton rat in Mississippi

Most sightings fall in July.

261 Mississippi occurrence records (iNaturalist and GBIF) by month of year, 2000–2026. Shows when the species is recorded, not a guarantee of presence.

Monthly Mississippi records (table)
MonthRecords
January13
February48
March44
April11
May11
June28
July55
August13
September7
October8
November16
December7

Monthly hispid cotton rat occurrence records (iNaturalist and GBIF) in Mississippi, 2000–2026.

Seasonality

Year-round in Mississippi, with recorded sightings peaking in July, with a smaller rise in February–March.

Occurrence map

Where Hispid cotton rat has been recorded in Mississippi

261 records mapped · zoom and drag to explore

261 Mississippi records mapped

Notable places to look

Park, forest, or monumentiNaturalist records
Wall Doxey State Park 17
Leroy Percy Wildlife Management Area 9
Bienville National Forest 3
Holly Springs National Forest 2
Tishomingo State Park 2
Graveline Bay Coastal Reserve 1
Mississippi Sandhill Crane National Wildlife Refuge 1

Protected places with the most hispid cotton rat sightings, from the USGS Protected Areas Database plus named mountain ranges, good spots to look, not a full breakdown, so they don't sum to the total.

Where it's recorded in Mississippi

CountyRecords
Bolivar County 39
DeSoto County 35
Jackson County 34
Marshall County 23
Washington County 20
Franklin County 13
Oktibbeha County 8
Harrison County 7
Pearl River County 6
Claiborne County 6
Covington County 5
Newton County 4
32 other counties 64

The complete county distribution, spread across 44 Mississippi counties. Every occurrence record falls in one county, so these sum to the total. Counties from GBIF and US Census boundaries.

Hispid cotton rats live low in dense grass, weedy fields, marsh borders, and recently disturbed openings. Mississippi records at Sandhill Crane refuge and De Soto National Forest fit that ground-layer habitat, while Gulf Coast reports extend the pattern into grassy coastal sites.

Reports occur throughout the year and peak in June, when thick warm-season vegetation both supports the rodents and attracts field surveys. These are seldom casual-viewing mammals; most documentation comes from close-range fieldwork, owl-pellet study, or brief crossings in grass.

Occurrence data from iNaturalist and GBIF.

Hispid cotton rat moving through short green grass
Full species profile Hispid cotton rat Sigmodon hispidus Size 18.5 cm7.3 in Weight 160 g5.6 oz Lifespan Up to 5.2 yr View the full profile

More mammals in Mississippi in the atlas

Data & sources

The data and visualizations on this page draw on these open sources:

  • GBIFCC-BY 4.0occurrence records behind the range map, elevation, and record counts
  • iNaturalistCC0 / CC-BY / CC-BY-SAobservations, photos, and audio recordings
  • NatureServe ExplorerCC-BYthe state conservation rank
  • IUCN Red Listattributed factthe global conservation status
  • USGS NASpublic domainnative / introduced status
  • Natural Earthpublic domainthe relief basemap
  • USFSpublic domainnational-forest boundaries
  • USGS Protected Areas Databasepublic domainthe named parks, forests, and refuges behind "notable places to look"