white-footed mouse

[ hwahyt-foot-id, wahyt- ]

noun

1. any of several North American woodland mice of the genus Peromyscus, especially P. leucopus, having white feet and undersides.

white-footed mouse

noun

1. any of various mice of the genus Peromyscus, esp P. leucopus, of North and Central America, having brownish fur with white underparts: family Cricetidae See also deer mouse

Word History and Origins

Origin of white-footed mouse¹

An Americanism dating back to 1855–60

Example Sentences

If a tick feeds on an infected white-footed mouse, the tick has a 90 percent chance of picking up the bacterium that causes Lyme disease, says Felicia Keesing, a Bard College disease ecologist.

From Scientific American

The white-footed mouse, which has historically proliferated from the Tennessee Valley through the northern Atlantic Coast, has already expanded its northern limit into Québec, Hoffman said.

From Seattle Times

This arachnid picks up the bug while feeding on a white-footed mouse and delivers it to the next mammal it bites.

From New York Times

In the northeast, black-legged ticks latch onto small mammals like the white-footed mouse, which are notorious for transmitting the Lyme disease bacteria to the bugs.

From Science Magazine

For instance, he added, “A bear cub playing with a potato chip bag. A raccoon chewing a red Solo cup. A dead white-footed mouse, trapped in the neck of a beer bottle.”

From Washington Times