Golden mouse
| Golden mouse Temporal range: Late Pleistocene to Recent | |
|---|---|
| Scientific classification | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Mammalia |
| Order: | Rodentia |
| Family: | Cricetidae |
| Subfamily: | Neotominae |
| Tribe: | Ochrotomyini Musser and Carleton, 2005 |
| Genus: | Ochrotomys Osgood, 1909 |
| Species: | O. nuttalli |
| Binomial name | |
| Ochrotomys nuttalli (Harlan, 1832) | |
The golden mouse (Ochrotomys nuttalli) is a species of New World mouse. It is usually 5–8 inches (12–25 cm) in body length, and has a soft pelage that ranges from golden-brownish to burnt orange in color. The genus name comes from the Greek words, ochra, meaning "ocher", a yellow or brown earth pigment; oto- (from ous), meaning "ear"; and mys, meaning "mouse".