Minnesota’s deer mouse records concentrate in the north woods, where Cook County in the Arrowhead and Cass and Itasca counties around Chippewa National Forest lead the state, though the species turns up in dry woodland edges and brushy cover across the entire state, including the Twin Cities metro. It’s one of the few Minnesota mammals equally at home in a north woods hollow log and a suburban woodpile.
A deer mouse needs little more than a hidden nest site, a hollow log, rock crevice, or old bird nest, within a short dash of food and enough cover to break a hawk’s line of sight. It forages mostly after dark for seeds, insects, and fruit, and caches food near the nest to get through Minnesota’s long winters.
Because this small nocturnal mouse is usually documented through trapping surveys rather than casual sightings, most Minnesota records come from GBIF specimen data rather than iNaturalist photos. Reports peak from June through August with a second rise in October, tracking survey activity and the animal’s summer breeding season more than any seasonal absence.
Full species profile
