Skip to main content
Glite Dictionary
Peromyscus leucopus

Peromyscus leucopus

9.9
A small North American forest mouse with white feet and a light belly
  • proper noun
  • Specialized
translation icon : Peromyscus leucopus
  • The Peromyscus leucopus is often found in deciduous forests.

Examples

  • Lyme disease is commonly associated with populations of Peromyscus leucopus in certain regions.

  • Researchers studied the habitat preferences of Peromyscus leucopus in different forest types.

  • The Peromyscus leucopus quickly adapted to changes in the woodland environment.

  • Have you ever seen a Peromyscus leucopus in the wild?

  • Researchers studied the habitat preferences of Peromyscus leucopus in different forest types.

  • The Peromyscus leucopus quickly adapted to changes in the woodland environment.

  • Have you ever seen a Peromyscus leucopus in the wild?

Synonyms

white-footed mouse
vsPeromyscus leucopus
  • US
7.2

A small North American forest mouse with white feet and belly

is the formal scientific name for the same small woodland North American rodent

Surface Forms

Peromyscus leucopus main

Morphology

Peromyscus + leucopus

This Latin binomial is fully compositional: 'Peromyscus' identifies the taxonomic genus and 'leucopus' denotes 'white- or pale-footed', so a learner who knows those constituent meanings can infer it refers to the Peromyscus species with white feet (the white-footed mouse). Binomial scientific names follow a standard cross-linguistic naming convention, making the meaning directly derivable from the parts.

Etymology

Peromyscus leucopus is a scientific name made from Greek words for a small mouse, and the second part, leucopus, literally means 'white foot'. So the name gives a clear image: a small woodland mouse with white feet, which is why we call it the 'white-footed mouse'.