Nests of _P. truei_ usually were associated with juniper trees. Dead
branches and trunks of juniper trees decay from the inside, and the
resulting hollows are favored sites for the nests. Pinyon pine trees
tend to decay from the outside and were not used as nesting sites by _P.
truei_. Nests of _P. truei_ were found in hollow trunks and branches of
otherwise healthy juniper trees, and in hollow logs lying on the ground.
The heartwood apparently rots rapidly in juniper trees, but the sapwood
remains intact for many years--even after the tree is lying on the
ground. For example, a part of the pinyon-juniper woodland on the
southern end of Chapin Mesa was burned in 1858, and the hollow trunks of
junipers were still standing in 1966. Almost all of the pinyon pine
trees that were killed by that fire have since decayed; their former
presence is verified only by the crumbling remnants of their trunks that
lie on the ground throughout the burned area.
The following accounts illustrate the preferences of the two species of
mice in selection of nesting sites:
No. 105, _P. truei_, adult. On July 22, 1964, after being released from
a trap, this female ran to a serviceberry bush 10 feet south of station
I4d, preened herself, ate a berry from the bush, and disappeared under a
large rock at the base of the bush. Subsequent excavation revealed a
large nest composed of grasses (_Poa fendleriana_, _Sitanion hystrix_,
_Agropyron smithii_, _Koeleria cristata_), and a few leaves of
serviceberry. There were three entrances to the nest, one on each side
of the rock.
This mouse was captured again on August 12, 1964, released and followed
to a hollow juniper log 15 feet south of station C7b, and 245 feet from
the above nest. This log was dismantled, but no nest was found. A large
number of chewed juniper seeds around the log indicated that this mouse,
or others, had frequented the area.
On August 20, 1964, this female was followed to a large juniper log 20
feet northeast of station I4b. A small nest of shredded juniper bark was
found inside the log, and there were numerous nuts of pinyon pine and
seeds of Utah juniper that had been gnawed open. This site was about 320
feet from that at C7b, and about 240 feet from station I4d (Fig. 15).
No. 118, _P. truei_, young. On August 29, 1963, this male ran into a
hollow branch of a partly dead juniper tree 15 feet south of station
C5d. Part of this branch had been sawed off at some earlier time, and a
hole about one-and-a-half inches in diameter was present in the center
of the remaining part. The branch was not dissected, but probing
revealed that the hole extended far into the branch and enlarged as it
approached the trunk.
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