Notes and Blood Data on Some Small Mammals of Durham County, North Carolina

Abstract

These data were gathered during the investigation of another problem (Foreman, J. Cell, and Comp. Physiol. 44: 421–430,1954). The trapping was conducted with the sole aim of collecting, alive, specimens of as many of the indigenous species of small mammals as possible. The rodents were of primary interest, and the author sought as many different habitat types as he could find in the area. Those trap sites that happened to yield a species poorly represented in the area were trapped repeatedly. Each trap was set where it was thought to be most likely to catch the desired species, and no effort was made to take random samples or otherwise measure relative or absolute population densities. The traps were made of 3/16” wire mesh, and the doors and rocking type treadles were made of thin galvanized iron. The traps were 3.5” × 3.5” × 12”. The bait used was a mixture of rolled oats and peanut butter; occasionally a little beef suet was added. Most of the trapping was done in the Duke University Forests, but some sites were selected at other places in the county. The trapping …