Chinese jumping mouse facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Chinese jumping mouse Temporal range: Late Miocene - Recent
Conservation status
Least Concern (IUCN 3.1)
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Mammalia
Order:	Rodentia
Family:	Zapodidae
Genus:	Eozapus Preble, 1899
Species:	E. setchuanus
Binomial name
Eozapus setchuanus (Pousargues, 1896)
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The Chinese jumping mouse (Eozapus setchuanus) is a small rodent that belongs to the Dipodidae family. It's the only species in its group, called Eozapus. This special mouse lives only in China. It makes its home in cool temperate forests, open grasslands (steppes), and meadows found in mountains. Even if its home changes a bit, this mouse can usually adapt. Because of this, experts say it's a "least concern" animal, meaning it's not currently in danger.

What Does the Chinese Jumping Mouse Look Like?

The Chinese jumping mouse is a small creature. Its body, from head to tail base, is about 70 to 100 mm (2.8 to 3.9 in) long. That's about the length of a small cell phone! Its tail is even longer, measuring 115 to 144 mm (4.5 to 5.7 in).

Its fur on its back is mostly reddish-brown or yellowish-brown. A dark brown stripe runs down its spine. The sides of its body are a lighter reddish-brown, and its belly is white. Some of these mice have a thin brown stripe on their white belly, while others have a completely white belly.

This mouse has very long back legs compared to its front legs. This helps it move around by crawling or taking short hops. Its long tail has only a few short hairs. The tip of the tail is white, and the rest is grayish-brown on top and white underneath.

Where Does the Chinese Jumping Mouse Live?

The Chinese jumping mouse lives only in central China. You can find it in provinces like Qinghai, Sichuan, Yunnan, Gansu, Ningxia, and Shaanxi. It's a mountain animal, living at high altitudes. It can be found between about 3,000 and 4,000 m (10,000 and 13,000 ft) above sea level.

It lives in different places like forests, bushy grasslands, and high mountain meadows. It often prefers cool, wooded areas close to streams. You might also find it in places where trees have been cut down, but new plants have grown. This mouse mainly eats green plants.

How Is the Chinese Jumping Mouse Doing?

The Chinese jumping mouse lives across a wide area. Scientists believe there are many of these mice in total. We don't know if their numbers are growing or shrinking. However, experts haven't found any major threats to this animal.

It also lives in several protected areas, which helps keep it safe. The mouse can handle some changes to its habitat. Any drop in its total population is likely to be small. Because of all these reasons, the International Union for Conservation of Nature says this mouse is a "least concern" species. This means it's not currently at risk of disappearing.