South Dakota mammals

North American Deermouse in South Dakota

Peromyscus maniculatus

Native to South Dakota S5 Secure in South Dakota

Not listed as nonindigenous in South Dakota by USGS NAS; native to its South Dakota 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.

Deer Mouse (Peromyscus maniculatus) (9310532204)DiGangi-DeermousePeromyscus maniculatusDeer mouse peering out from a lichen-covered tree crook beside a green leafDeer mouse braced on a bark-stripped log, ears forward and alert
Photo: Seney Natural History Association · CC BY-SA 2.0Deer Mouse (Peromyscus maniculatus) (9310532204)Photo: 6th Happiness · CC BY-SA 3.0DiGangi-DeermousePhoto: (Picture courtesy of the CDC and the Partnership, Inc.) · CC BY 2.5Peromyscus maniculatusPhoto: USFWS Mountain-Prairie · CC BY-SA 4.0Deer mouse peering out from a lichen-covered tree crook beside a green leafPhoto: Gregory "Slobirdr" Smith · CC BY-SA 2.0Deer mouse braced on a bark-stripped log, ears forward and alert

North American Deermouse in South Dakota, by the numbers

Common in South Dakota 5th most recorded of 100 mammals logged in South Dakota

1,407 occurrence records

Records from 2000–2026.

1,407 total records count every South Dakota occurrence from GBIF and iNaturalist; the map plots a georeferenced sample of 300; the monthly chart covers the 1,400 records with a full observation date.

When to look for the North American Deermouse in South Dakota

Most sightings fall in June to July.

1,400 South Dakota occurrence records (iNaturalist and GBIF) by month of year, 2000–2026. Shows when the species is recorded, not a guarantee of presence.

Monthly South Dakota records (table)
MonthRecords
January3
February2
March2
April31
May42
June573
July443
August183
September60
October44
November11
December6

Monthly north american deermouse occurrence records (iNaturalist and GBIF) in South Dakota, 2000–2026.

Seasonality

Year-round in South Dakota, with recorded sightings peaking in June–July.

Occurrence map

Where North American Deermouse has been recorded in South Dakota

300 records mapped · zoom and drag to explore

300 South Dakota records mapped

Notable places to look

Park, forest, or monumentiNaturalist records
Jewel Cave National Monument 87
Wind Cave National Park 61
Black Elk Wilderness 27
Black Hills National Forest 25
Buffalo Gap National Grassland 15
Badlands National Park 15
State Lands 10
Union Grove 6

Protected places with the most north american deermouse 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 South Dakota

CountyRecords
Harding County 219
Custer County 218
Pennington County 216
Fall River County 136
Jackson County 120
Bennett County 117
Lawrence County 77
Tripp County 45
Brown County 40
Clay County 29
Day County 22
Meade County 20
25 other counties 148

The complete county distribution, spread across 37 South Dakota counties. Every occurrence record falls in one county, so these sum to the total. Counties from GBIF and US Census boundaries.

North American deermouse is South Dakota’s most habitat-flexible small rodent, and its 99 logged records along Lake Oahe, Lake Sharpe, and the Missouri National Recreational River are among the strongest showings for any mouse-sized mammal in the state. NatureServe ranks it S5, Secure, statewide.

Records climb sharply through summer and peak at 45 in August, tracking the season when multiple litters born earlier in the year reach trapping-detectable size. The river-bottom habitat here suits a species equally comfortable in grassland, woodland, and disturbed ground.

Deer Mouse (Peromyscus maniculatus) (9310532204)
Full species profile North American Deermouse Peromyscus maniculatus Size 8–10 cm3.1–3.9 in Weight 21 g0.7 oz Lifespan Up to 8.3 yr View the full profile

More mammals in South Dakota 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"