Land Mammals of Massachusetts

Bella Pedranti
 Wolverine

Common Names: glutton, carcajou, skunk bear, or quickhatch

Scientific Name: Gulo gulo

Family: Mustelidae
Wolverine
Physical Appearance: The wolverine's head is Is This Species Endangered?
broad and rounded with small dark eyes, a dark brown No, Least Concern (Population
rostrum, brownish-black rhinarium, and short ears decreasing)
rounded obtusely. Its legs are of moderate length, with
five toes on each foot. The posture of the front feet is
plantigrade. The adult wolverine is about the size of a
medium dog, with a length usually ranging from 65–107
cm (26–42 in), a tail of 17–26 cm (6 1⁄2–10 in), and a
weight of 5.5–25 kg (12–55 lb), though exceptionally
large males can weigh up to 32 kg (71 lb)

Range: Wolverine populations are currently known in

the North Cascades Range in Washington; the Northern Lifespan: 5-13 years
Rockies of Montana, Idaho, Wyoming; and a small
portion of Oregon (Wallowa Range). The wolverine also
resides in Alaska, Canada, and Russia. The wolverine
ranges widely, up to 15 miles a day, and needs lots of Social or Solitary?: Solitary
habitat

Diet: Rabbits, rodents, caribou, and

carrion
Cinereus (Masked) Shrew

Common Names: Common Shrew

Scientific Name: Sorex cinereus

Family: Soricidae (Shrews)

Cinereus (Masked) Shrew

Physical Appearance: The masked shrew has an

arched brow and a rounded forehead. The upper parts Is This Species Endangered?
are an ashy to cinnamon color in summer, darker brown Least Concern (Population Stable)
in winter. The lower portions of the body are a lighter
shade of the dorsal color. The relatively long tail is
brown above and a paler buff below, the tip darker.
Range mass 2.5 to 4.0 g 0.09 to 0.14 oz · Average
length 99.0 mm 3.90 in

Range: The masked shrew has the largest range of

any North American shrew, and occurs throughout
Alaska, Canada, the northern third of the U.S., as well Lifespan: 14 months
as portions of the Great Basin, Rockies, and
Appalachians.
Diet: Insects comprise 65% of the diet,
which also includes centipedes, spiders, Social or Solitary?: Solitary
earthworms, and carrion. Occasionally,
masked shrews kill and consume small
animals such as salamanders and
nestling birds. Small, soft seeds may form
part of the winter diet.
Eastern Mole

Common Names: Eastern Mole

Scientific Name: Scalopus aquaticus

Family: Talpidae (Moles and Shrew-Moles)

Eastern Mole
Is This Species Endangered?
Physical Appearance: Tail length ranges from 18 toLeast Concern (Population Stable)
36mm. This size variation occurs on a gradient with the
largest animals in the northeast and the smallest in the
southwest. The robust body is covered with a thick
velvety fur of a color that varies from silver to black to
copper. On average, moles grow to 4.4 to 6.25 inches
(11.3 to 15.9). They typically weigh 2.5 to 4.5 ounces (72
to 128 grams).

Range: The eastern mole occurs in suitable habitat

throughout much of the eastern United States. It ranges Lifespan: 6 years
from southern Ontario, southeastern Wyoming,
Minnesota, Michigan, and Massachusetts south to
southern Florida, the Gulf Coast, and West to western
Texas and northern Mexico. Social or Solitary?: Solitary
Diet: Earthworms are the most important component of the
mole's diet; an 80g mole needs 50g of earthworms per day.
Moles also eat many insect larvae particularly in the summer,
though earthworms dominate the winter diet. Moles
sometimes collect and store their food (earthworms) alive in
special chambers.
Little Brown Bat

Common Names: Little Brown Bat

Scientific Name: Myotis lucifugus

Family: Vespertilionidae (Vesper Bats)

Little Brown Bat
Is This Species Endangered?
Physical Appearance: It is very small with Yes, this species is considered as an
an overall body size that is from 2.5 inches to 4 endangered species.
inches. They also weigh no more than half an
ounce. The span of their wings when
outstretched can be up to 11 inches. They are
brown in color and they have ears which are
short and round. On average, little brown bats
weigh less than half an ounce and have a
wingspan of 8 to 11 inches (20 to 28 Lifespan: 6.5 years
centimeters). Females are typically larger than
males.

Range: The little brown bat is found in abundance Social or Solitary?: The
throughout the northern United States into Canada. little brown bat is promiscuous
and colonial

Diet: The little brown bat mainly eats

aquatic insects such as midges, mayflies
and caddisflies. It also eat gnats, beetles,
wasps, moths and crane flies.
 Canadian Lynx

Common Names: “Short-Tailed Cat”

Scientific Name: Lynx canadensis

Family: Felidae (Cats)

Canadian Lynx
Physical Appearance: The Canada lynx has a
short body, small tail and long legs. In winter, it Is This Species Endangered?
sports a fur coat that is usually thick, long and grey. Yes, they are considered to be a
In summer, the coats are short, thin and light threatened species.
brown. Canada lynx look like they have wide faces,
thanks to long patches of fur that grow like beards
along their cheeks. The weight of an adult ranges
from 8.0 to 17.3 kg (about 18 to 38 pounds), and its
length ranges from 67 to 107 cm (about 26 to 42 Lifespan: 14 years
inches). On average its height at the shoulder is 61
cm (24 inches)

Range: In the United States, the Canada lynx occurs in Social or Solitary?: Solitary
the Blue Mountains, the Cascade Range and the
southern Rocky Mountains, the Great Lakes region and
New England

Diet: Mice, squirrels, and birds, but

prefer the snowshoe hare
 Bobcat

Common Names: “Wildcat”, “Bay Lynx” & “Lynx Cat”

Scientific Name: Lynx rufus

Family: Felidae (Cats)

Bobcat
Is This Species Endangered?
Physical Appearance: Roughly twice the This species is listed as Least Concern,
size of an average house cat, bobcats have a this species’ population is stable
layered coat that usually features an array of
haphazard stripes and spots. The tawny brown
sheen of their fur makes excellent camouflage
for the secluded rocky environments they prefer
to take shelter in. Unlike most felids, bobcats
Lifespan: 10-12 years
have short bob tails, hence their name. Head
and body: 26 to 41 inches; tail: 4 to 7 inches.
Weigh 11-30 pounds.

Range: Bobcats have adapted to many regions of Social or Solitary?: Solitary

North America with similar climates. They can be found
in mountainous regions, heavy forests, dry deserts,
swamps and even in suburban areas near undeveloped
land.

Diet: Rabbits, birds, mice, squirrels, and

other smaller game
North American Porcupine

Common Names: “Quill Pig”, “Canadian

Porcupine” & “Common Porcupine”

Scientific Name: Erethizon dorsatum

Family: Erethizontidae

(New World Porcupines)

North American Porcupine
Physical Appearance: The North American
porcupine is a rodent with black to brownish-yellow
fur and quills all over its round body, except for its Is This Species Endangered?
stomach. It has strong short legs and it has hairless Globally, the North American porcupine
soles on its feet that help it climb trees. It has a is listed as a species of least concern
round body, small ears and a small head. Average
weights for males are 5.5 kg (12 lb.) and 4.5 kg (9.9
lb) for females, but individuals have been known to
weigh up to 18 kg (39 lb.). Individuals range in length
from 24 to 36 inches

Range: The North American porcupine can be found in Lifespan: 18 years

most of Canada and the western United States south to
Mexico

Social or Solitary?: Solitary

Diet: In the winter, they primarily eat
evergreen needles and the inner bark of
trees, In the spring and summer,
porcupines shift to eating berries, seeds,
grasses, leaves, roots and stems.
 Woodchuck

Common Names: “Groundhog”,

“Whistle Pig”, “Marmot”, “Grass Rat”, &
“Earth Pig”

Scientific Name: Marmota monax

Family: Sciuridae
 Woodchuck
Physical Appearance: The short-legged
woodchuck is a large, stocky rodent with a broad, Is This Species Endangered?
Least Concern (Population Stable)
flattened head, a blunt nose, and a medium-length
tail. Whitish areas are present on the sides of the
face, nose, lips, and chin. The feet are dark brown to
black. From head to rump, groundhogs are 17.75 to
24 inches (45 to 61 centimeters) long, according to
National Geographic. They weigh around 13 lbs. (6
kilograms), which is about twice the average weight Lifespan: 4-5 years
of a newborn human baby

Range: Groundhogs are widely distributed across

North America, ranging as far south as Alabama and as Social or Solitary?: Solitary
far north as Alaska

Diet: Mainly vegetarians, woodchucks

feed on a variety of grasses and
chickweeds, clover, plantains, and many
varieties of wild and cultivated flowers.
They eat blackberries, raspberries,
cherries, and other fruits, along with the
bark of hickory and maple trees.
Northern Flying Squirrel

Common Names: “Flying Squirrel”

Scientific Name: Glaucomys sabrinus

Family: Sciuridae
Northern Flying Squirrel
Physical Appearance: Weighs between 75 and 140 Is This Species Endangered?
grams, and ranges from 275 to 342 mm in length. It has Least Concern (Population Stable)
silky grey and cinnamon brown fur, with white tipped and
grey based belly hairs. Northern flying squirrels have a
furred patagium (fleshy membrane) that extends from
the wrist of the foreleg to the ankles of the hind leg. The
tail is furred, flattened, rounded at the end, and long Lifespan: Less than 4 years
(80% of the length of the head and body). Glaucomys
sabrinus has large black eyes, which it uses for
nighttime activity.
Social or Solitary?: Social

Range: ranges from the treeline in Alaska and Canada

southward in the west to northern California and
Colorado, in the middle of the continent to central
Michigan and Wisconsin, and in the east to northern Diet: Nuts, acorns, fungi, and lichens,
North Carolina and Tennessee. Island populations exist supplemented by fruits, buds, sap and
in areas of high elevation in other parts of the United the occasional insect and bird egg.
States, including the southern Appalachian Mountains,
the Black Hills, and the Sierra Nevada.
Virginia Opossum

Common Names: “North American Opossum”

Scientific Name: Didelphis virginiana

Family: Didelphidae (New World Opossums)

Virginia Opossum
Physical Appearance: Are medium-sized
marsupials with a long and largely hairless, prehensile
Is This Species Endangered?
tail; large, hairless ears; and short, stumpy legs with five The Virginia opossum is a species of least
toes that include an opposable thumb on both the front concern with growing and stable
and hind feet. Opossums possess a white face, wool-type populations.
fur with a whitish undercoat, and guard hairs of varied
color. Opossums grow to about 25 to 40 inches in length
and weigh 4 to 14 pounds.

Range: Wide range throughout Central and North

Lifespan: 4 years
American, which continues to expand. Currently, Virginia
opossums can be found from Costa Rica to southern
Ontario, Canada
Social or Solitary?: Solitary

Diet: They eat mostly insects and dead

animals, but will also eat just about
anything else, including fruits, seeds,
snakes, mice, frogs and garbage.