the Schermaus is the second-biggest European vole-type after the muskrat at home become meanwhile with us.
Shape This vole reminds of a clumsy and thick field-mouse, becomes significantly bigger and heavier with 12-19 cm of length and 7-12,5 cm of tail-length with a weight of 60-180 g, however. Caused by its size, the here and there frequent appearance and also through the damage, that it prepares occasionally, hears it to the most known native rodents. Also its many testify to it, according to region different, popular names like water-rat, minor-mouse, Wühlratte Reutmaus hamster-mouse, hamster-rat u. a.
The coloring of the Schermaus precipitates properly differently. We find usually dark-gray in the populations, but also tan until brown animals. Above all in the north of the spread-area, Schwärzlinge occur also regularly. Unterseits is this dense and shiny hair-dress yellow-gray.
Habitat Especially often, we meet the Schermaus at meadows and at the water where the showy Erdhaufen clearly betray us its Wühltätigkeit in shore-proximity. The Schermaus is to be found only in these habitats however in no way but lives on fields (not however on grain-fields), in gardens, in fruit-installations, in nurseries and at forest-edges, equally. In the mountains, it goes until in 2000 m of height.
Way of life The Schermaus swims and dives marked, what it to the probably the most popularly under all its name, "water-rat" helped. Mancherorts is called however also the also swimming-joyful traveling-rat water-rat. Although we usually find the Schermaus in larger colonies, it actually is not social. its activity-time is more limited on the day; at night, it is on the way much fewer.
The rich-branched walk-systems can gain a considerable expansion. Usually, the walks are only very flat, less as 30 cm deep. Often, they proceed so densely under the surface that they clearly stand out through the aufgewölbte walk-blanket at the ground. Individual walk-parts however also go until in 1 m of depth. The entire construction contains a big storeroom and a nest-chamber. The loose-dug earth is created from the construction and is tossed up to pile. These piles remind of molehills, is flatter, however, and usually from the high-pressed and loose-dug plant-blanket pushes through. The walks are approximately in the cross-section in contrast to the more crosswise-oval mole-walks until high-oval. The small nest in the nest-chamber is erected out of soft plant-material without big diligence.
At water-edges, the walks usually proceed exactly parallel to the shore. At the water, the Schermaus occasionally also builds its nest above ground in the reed or at the Spülsaum. Occasionally, it covers also abandoned waterfowl-nests.
Food The Schermaus lives very versatilely. Primarily, it eats above ground plant-parts, beside it however also roots, that it gnaws off underground. This way, it can prepare considerable damage in gardens and fruit-installations at field-fruits, clover, grapevines and apple trees through root-grub. Losses are also created if it forces her way into flower beds and corrodes (particularly in Netherlands) valuable onions of tulips and other lily-plants.
Offside of the culture-country is content it with herbs and grass, at waters particularly with bulrushes, reed and Weidenröschen. In addition, it consumes also insects, mussels and other invertebrates.
Reproduction Like most voles, also the Schermaus can multiply quickly so that in huge numbers appearance occurs occasionally. Like like with field-mice goes out again these populations, however, without one knowing something more exact about the arrival and going of these mass-occurrences until now.
The reproductive-period extends from March to October, therefore over the entire warmer season. Before the combination, if the animals are extremely emotional, special secretion-being eliminated flank-glands enter into function. This will wipe suppurating secretion the flanks from both hind legs on that occasion like with the Flankenputzen alternate and is stamped with the feet of the ground. The females also should prefer them before other males angepaarten males in later copulations once. A similar personal relationship was observed also with the field-mouse.
In the average, the females 4-once bring to the world boy after a Tragzeit of 21 days in the year 5-6. The newborns open the eyes with 9 days and already are so independent with 14 days that they can survive also without mother. After 8-9 weeks, the boys become sexually mature. Schermäuse become approximately 2-4 years old.
Carriers Schermäuse became known as a carrier of the Nagerpest (Tularämie). It is therefore recommended to bury dead found Schermäuse deeply or to burn.
Subtypes As it is not to be expected differently at the big spread-area, the type splits into numerous subtypes. In our area 3 subtypes let themselves delimit of each other: Arvicola terrestris terrestris from the North German lowland, A. t. Sherman from south and Middle Germany and the smaller Alpen-Schermaus, A. t. exitus, from the Alps, that never is in contrast to the other forms at the water.
Westschermaus (Arvicola sapidus)) Another, in Western Europe becomes living form as own type today from A. terrestris delimited, with what the latter then is called also Ostschermaus because of the better differentiation. Both types differ in the Chromosomenzahl (Westschermaus 40n, Ostschermaus 36).
The Westschermaus becomes somewhat bigger than the Ostschermaus, it reaches 22 cm of length, 14,5 cm of tail-length and up to 300 g substances. However, the similarity of both types is very big; only the muzzle of the Westschermaus is negligibly more pointed. This type is stronger tied at the water as the Ostschermaus. In contrast to the usually colony-wisely appearing Ostschermaus, the Westschermaus is little sociably and also little loud-joyful. Otherwise, however, we find extensive agreement with the way of life.
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