One of the significant features of the flood-plains, so far as the mammals are concerned, is the flooding to which these areas are subjected during the spring high-water. At that time the flood-plain for a number of days or weeks may be covered with several feet of water.
During the period between July 29 and August 28 a total of one hundred and seventy mouse traps set in the flood-plain forests along the Galien River took for the first nights' trapping, twenty-two northern white-footed mice and one house mouse. Short-tailed shrews, more white-footed mice, pine voles, and a jumping mouse were secured on nights after the first. Larger traps took during the whole period one raccoon, one New York weasel, and two woodchucks. Several other woodchucks and a number of red squirrels were seen. Ridges of moles were numerous, but no specimens were secured. Tooth marks on an old, partly fallen linden were probably made, perhaps a number of years ago, by a porcupine.
Throughout the woods there are a number of small ravines. These ravines are forested with trees mostly of the flood-plain type, and there is evidence in many of the ravines, at least in their lower parts, that flooding occurs in the ravine bottom during the spring.
Fifty mouse traps set August 26 in a large ravine north of the county road took on the first day five northern white-footed mice and one house mouse. Short-tailed shrews, more white-footed mice, and pine voles were trapped on following days. Here also red squirrels and a cottontail were seen, and tracks of raccoon noted. Evidently the fauna is the same as that of the flood-plain, with which it is here included.
Beech-maple forest habitat:
Blarina brevicauda talpoides. Short-tailed shrew. 7.
Procyon lotor lotor. Raccoon. Tracks.
Peromyscus leucopus noveboracensis. Northern white-footed mouse. 86.
Microtus pinetorum scalopsoides. Northern pine vole. 5.
Zapus hudsonius hudsonius. Hudson Bay jumping mouse. 1.