The Beach Vole is a species of rodent

Rodent

Rodentia is an order of mammals also known as rodents, characterised by two continuously growing incisors in the upper and lower jaws which must be kept short by gnawing....

 in the family Cricetidae

Cricetidae

The Cricetidae are a family of rodents in the large and complex superfamily Muroidea. It includes true hamsters, voles, lemmings, and New World rats and mice...

. It is found only in the United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

, and its natural habitat

Habitat

* Habitat , a place where a species lives and grows*Human habitat, a place where humans live, work or play** Space habitat, a space station intended as a permanent settlement...

 is temperate grassland

Grassland

Grasslands are areas where the vegetation is dominated by grasses and other herbaceous plants . However, sedge and rush families can also be found. Grasslands occur naturally on all continents except Antarctica...

.

Muskeget Island

Muskeget

Muskeget Island is a low sandy island to the west of Tuckernuck Island and Nantucket, in the town of Nantucket, Massachusetts.-Geography:Muskeget Island is part of the terminal moraine marking the maximum extent of the last glacial ice sheet to reach the northeastern coast. It has an area of . The...

, between Nantucket, Massachusetts

Massachusetts

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...

 and Marthas Vineyard is the only known home of the beach vole known as the Muskeget vole. There is a question whether the Muskeget vole is a unique species or a sub-species of the meadow vole

Meadow Vole

The Meadow Vole , sometimes called the Field Mouse or Meadow Mouse, is a North American vole found across Canada, Alaska and the northern United States. Its range extends further south along the Atlantic coast. One subspecies, the Florida Salt Marsh Vole , is found in Florida, and is classified as...

(M. pennsylvanicus). This vole may soon be listed as an endangered species.

External links

• http://training.fws.gov/library/pubs5/necas/web_link/39_muskeget.htm