Roadless Areas
Home/Species/ Creeping Vole

Microtus oregoni

(Bachman, 1839)

Creeping Vole

G5Secure Found in 2 roadless areas NatureServe Explorer →
G5SecureGlobal Rank
Least concernIUCN
Identity
Unique IDELEMENT_GLOBAL.2.106060
Element CodeAMAFF11110
Record TypeSPECIES
ClassificationSpecies
Classification StatusStandard
Name CategoryVertebrate Animal
IUCNLeast concern
Endemicoccurs (regularly, as a native taxon) in multiple nations
KingdomAnimalia
PhylumCraniata
ClassMammalia
OrderRodentia
FamilyCricetidae
GenusMicrotus
Other Common Names
Campagnol d'Oregon (FR) creeping vole (EN)
Concept Reference
Wilson, D. E., and D. M. Reeder (editors). 1993. Mammal species of the world: a taxonomic and geographic reference. Second edition. Smithsonian Institution Press, Washington, DC. xviii + 1206 pp. Available online at: http://www.nmnh.si.edu/msw/.
Conservation Status
Rank MethodExpertise without calculation
Review Date2016-04-04
Change Date1996-11-13
Range Extent Comments
Southwestern British Columbia south through western Washington and western Oregon to northwestern California.
Threat Impact Comments
In coastal British Columbia, apparently was unaffected by herbicide treatment of Douglas-fir plantation (Sullivan 1990).
Ecology & Habitat

Habitat

Moist forests of Pacific coast, brushy, grassy areas. Most abundant in more xeric sites, especially those supporting stands of short grass, but may favor riparian areas in some localities. More abundant in clearcuts than in virgin forest. Occupies shallow burrows and low cover. Young are born in nests dry grasses placed in cavities under logs or in similar protected sites.

Reproduction

Breeds mainly Mar.-Sept. in OR and British Columbia. Gestation ca. 23 days. Females estimated to produce maximum of 4 or 5 litters/yr., with approximately 3-4 young/litter.
Terrestrial Habitats
Forest - ConiferWoodland - ConiferShrubland/chaparralGrassland/herbaceous
Palustrine Habitats
Riparian
Other Nations (2)
CanadaN4
ProvinceRankNative
British ColumbiaS4Yes
United StatesN5
ProvinceRankNative
WashingtonS4Yes
OregonS5Yes
CaliforniaSNRYes
Roadless Areas (2)
Oregon (1)
AreaForestAcres
TenmileSiuslaw National Forest10,818
Washington (1)
AreaForestAcres
Bear CreekGifford Pinchot National Forest7,980
References (28)
  1. American Society of Mammalogists (ASM). 2025. Mammal Diversity Database (Version 1.13) [Data set]. Zenodo. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.10595931. Online. Available: https://www.mammaldiversity.org/
  2. Banfield, A. W. F. 1974. The mammals of Canada. University of Toronto Press, Toronto, Canada. 438 pp.
  3. Banks, E. M., R. J. Brooks, and J. Schnell. 1975. A radiotracking study of home range and activity of the brown lemming (<i>Lemmus trimucronatus</i>). Journal of Mammalogy 56:888-901.
  4. Bowman, J. C., M. Edwards, L. S. Sheppard, and G. J. Forbes. 1999. Record distance for a non-homing movement by a deer mouse, <i>Peromyscus maniculatus</i>. Canadian Field-Naturalist 113:292-293.
  5. Brooks, R. J., and E. M. Banks. 1971. Radio-tracking study of lemming home range. Communications in Behavioral Biology 6:1-5.
  6. Carraway, L.N. and B.J. Verts. 1985. <i>Microtus oregoni</i>. Mammalian Species, 233:1-6.
  7. Castleberry, S., B., T. L. King, P. B. Wood, and W. M. Ford. 2002. Microsatellite DNA analysis of population structure in Allegheny woodrats (<i>Neotoma magister</i>). Journal of Mammalogy 83:1058-1070.
  8. Conroy, C. J., and J. A. Cook. 2000. Molecular systematics of a Holarctic rodent (<i>Microtus</i>: Muridae). Journal of Mammalogy 81:344-359.
  9. Douglass, R. J. 1977. Population dynamics, home ranges, and habitat associations of the yellow-cheeked vole, <i>Microtus xanthognathus</i>, in the Northwest Territories. Canadian Field-Naturalist 91:237-47.
  10. Garland, T., Jr. and W. G. Bradley. 1984. Effects of a highway on Mojave Desert rodent populations. American Midland Naturalist 111:47-56.
  11. Ingles, L. G. 1965. Mammals of the Pacific States. Stanford University Press, Stanford, California.
  12. Jike, L., G. O. Batzli, L. L. Geta. 1988. Home ranges of prairie voles as determined by radiotracking and by powdertracking. Journal of Mammalogy 69:183-186.
  13. Jones, J. K., Jr., R. S. Hoffman, D. W. Rice, C. Jones, R. J. Baker, and M. D. Engstrom. 1992a. Revised checklist of North American mammals north of Mexico, 1991. Occasional Papers, The Museum, Texas Tech University, 146:1-23.
  14. Krohne, D. T., and G. A. Hoch. 1999. Demography of <i>Peromyscus leucopus</i> populations on habitat patches: the role of dispersal. Canadian Journal of Zoology 77:1247-1253.
  15. MacMillen, R. E. 1964. Population ecology, water relations and social behavior of a southern California semidesert rodent fauna. University of California Publications in Zoology 71:1-59.
  16. Maier, T. J. 2002. Long-distance movements by female white-footed mice, <i>Peromyscus leucopus</i>, in extensive mixed-wood forest. Canadian Field-Naturalist 116:108-111.
  17. Maser, C., B. R. Mate, J. F. Franklin, and C. T. Dyrness. 1981. Natural history of Oregon coast mammals. Pacific Northwest Forest and Range Expt. Sta., USDA, Forest Service, Gen Tech. Rep. PNW-133:1-496.
  18. Moore, D. W., and L. L. Janecek. 1990. Genic relationships among North American <i>Microtus </i>(Mammalia: Rodentia). Ann. Carnegie Mus. 59:249-259.
  19. Oxley, D. J., M. B. Fenton and G. R. Carmody. 1974. The effects of roads on populations of small mammals. Journal of Applied Ecology 11: 51-59.
  20. Plante, Y., P. T. Boag, and B. N. White. 1989. Macrogeographic variation in mitochondrial DNA of meadow voles (<i>Microtus pennsylvanicus</i>). Can. J. Zool. 67:158-167.
  21. Rehmeier, R. L., G. A. Kaufman, and D. W. Kaufman. 2004. Long-distance movements of the deer mouse in tallgrass prairie. Journal of Mammalogy 85:562-568.
  22. Smith, M. H. 1965. Dispersal capacity of the dusky-footed wood rat, <i>Neotoma fuscipes</i>. American Midland Naturalist 74:457-463.
  23. Storer, T. I., F. C. Evans, and F. G. Palmer. 1944. Some rodent populations in the Sierra Nevada of California. Ecological Monographs 14:166-192.
  24. Sullivan, T. P. 1990. Demographic responses of small mammal populations to a herbicide application in coastal coniferous forest: population density and resiliency. Can. J. Zool. 68:874-883.
  25. Tamarin, R. H., editor. 1985. Biology of New World <i>Microtus</i>. American Soc. Mamm. Special Publication (8):1-893.
  26. Wilkins, K. T. 1982. Highways as barriers to rodent dispersal. Southwestern Naturalist 27: 459-460.
  27. Wilson, D. E., and D. M. Reeder (editors). 1993. Mammal species of the world: a taxonomic and geographic reference. Second edition. Smithsonian Institution Press, Washington, DC. xviii + 1206 pp. Available online at: http://www.nmnh.si.edu/msw/.
  28. Wilson, D. E., and D. M. Reeder (editors). 2005. Mammal species of the world: a taxonomic and geographic reference. Third edition. The Johns Hopkins University Press, Baltimore. Two volumes. 2,142 pp. [As modified by ASM the Mammal Diversity Database (MDD) at https://www.mammaldiversity.org/index.html]