CreatureData

Eastern meadow vole

Microtus pennsylvanicus (Ord, 1815)

LCLeast Concernrodents

The eastern meadow vole (Microtus pennsylvanicus) is a species in the family Cricetidae, order Rodentia. Recorded adults weigh 36.8 g to 38.6 g and live up to 1.33 years. Its IUCN Red List status is Least Concern.

Eastern meadow vole (Microtus pennsylvanicus)
Photo: NPS · Public domain · Wikimedia Commons

Quick facts about the eastern meadow vole

Weight
36.8 g – 38.6 gsrc for Weight
Length
Not recorded
Lifespan
1.33 yearssrc for Lifespan
Diet
Herbivoresrc for Diet
Longest recorded lifespan
2.91 years
Main food
Not recorded
Habitat
Not recorded
Gestation
21.3 dayssrc for Gestation
Young per litter or clutch
5.06src for Young per litter or clutch
Age at maturity
30.2 dayssrc for Age at maturity
Litters or clutches a year
2.64src for Litters or clutches a year
Active
Day and night (cathemeral)src for Active
Lifestyle
Terrestrialsrc for Lifestyle
Conservation status
Least Concern (IUCN)src for Conservation status
Countries on record
Not recorded

Photos of the eastern meadow vole

Only freely licensed photos are shown. Each carries its creator and licence.

Eastern meadow vole (Microtus pennsylvanicus)
U.S. National Park Service, Acadia National Park. · Public domain · Wikimedia Commons

Where does the eastern meadow vole live?

Not recorded

What is the eastern meadow vole?

Quoted from WikipediaCC BY-SA 4.0

The eastern meadow vole (Microtus pennsylvanicus), sometimes called the field mouse or meadow mouse, is a North American vole found in eastern Canada and the United States. Its range extends farther south along the Atlantic coast.

The western meadow vole, Florida salt marsh vole, and beach vole were formerly considered regional variants or subspecies of M. pennsylvanicus, but have all since been designated as distinct species.

The eastern meadow vole is active year-round, usually at night. It also digs burrows, where it stores food for the winter and females give birth to their young. Although these animals tend to live close together, they are aggressive towards one another. This is particularly evident in males during the breeding season. They can cause damage to fruit trees, garden plants, and commercial grain crops.

From the Wikipedia article “Eastern meadow vole” (en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Eastern_meadow_vole&oldid=1347283021), by Wikipedia contributors, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0 (creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0). This block is kept separate from our own text.

Is the eastern meadow vole endangered?

The eastern meadow vole is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List: it is not currently at risk of extinction.

  1. LCLeast Concern
  2. NTNear Threatened
  3. VUVulnerable
  4. ENEndangered
  5. CRCritically Endangered
  6. EWExtinct in the Wild
  7. EXExtinct

Category via Wikidata (CC0). Find the full assessment on the IUCN Red List. See all Least Concern species. What the categories mean.

How is the eastern meadow vole classified?

  1. kingdomAnimalia
  2. phylumChordata
  3. classMammalia
  4. orderRodentia
  5. familyCricetidae
  6. genusMicrotus
  7. SpeciesMicrotus pennsylvanicus (Ord, 1815)

Synonyms Arvicola alborufescens, Arvicola dekayi, Arvicola drummondii, Arvicola fulva, Arvicola hirsutus, Arvicola insperatus, Arvicola nasuta, Arvicola oneida, Arvicola palustris, Arvicola riparia longipilis, Arvicola riparius, Arvicola rufescens, Arvicola rufidorsum, Arvicola terraenovae, Lemmus noveboracensis, Microtus admiraltiae, Microtus aphorodemus, Microtus enixus, Microtus fontigenus, Microtus insularis, Microtus montanus kincaidi, Microtus nesophilus, Microtus pennsilvanicus shattucki, Microtus pennsylvanicus acadicus, Microtus pennsylvanicus alcorni, Microtus pennsylvanicus arcticus, Microtus pennsylvanicus chihuahuensis, Microtus pennsylvanicus copelandi, Microtus pennsylvanicus dukecampbelli, Microtus pennsylvanicus finitus, Microtus pennsylvanicus funebris, Microtus pennsylvanicus kincaidi, Microtus pennsylvanicus labradorius, Microtus pennsylvanicus magdalenensis, Microtus pennsylvanicus pennsylvanicus, Microtus pennsylvanicus provectus, Microtus pennsylvanicus pullatus, Microtus pennsylvanicus rubidus, Microtus pennsylvanicus shattucki, Microtus pennsylvanicus tananaensis, Microtus pennsylvanicus uligocola, Microtus pennsylvanicus wahema, Microtus provectus, Mus pennsylvanicus, Mynomes pratensis

Other names and names in other languages (32)
  • Beach voleEnglish
  • Chihuahua voleEnglish
  • Chihuahua voleEnglish
  • Eatsern meadow voleEnglish
  • Gray mouseEnglish
  • Meadow voleEnglish
  • Meadow voleEnglish
  • Meadow voleEnglish
  • Meadow voleEnglish
  • Muskeget voleEnglish
  • hraboš BrewerůvCzech
  • hraboš pensylvánskýCzech
  • WiesenwühlmausGerman
  • Σκαπτοποντικός των λιβαδιώνGreek
  • Meteoro de pradoSpanish
  • Metorito de praderaSpanish
  • amerikanpeltomyyräFinnish
  • muskegetinruohomyyräFinnish
  • Campagnol des présFrench
  • campagnol des champsFrench
  • アメリカハタネズミJapanese
  • 해변밭쥐Korean
  • StrandmusNorwegian Bokmål
  • AmerikaengmusNorwegian Bokmål
  • StrandwoelmuisDutch
  • GraslandwoelmuisDutch
  • WaawaabiganoojiinhOjibwa
  • Nornik łąkowyPolish
  • Campanhol-da-praiaPortuguese
  • Campanhol-do-pradoPortuguese
  • Луговая полёвкаRussian
  • Островная полёвкаRussian

Catalogue of LifeWikipediaiNaturalistTAXREFWikidataWoRMSIUCN Red List

Relatives of the eastern meadow vole

Other species in the same genus Microtus.

LC, Least Concern
Tundra vole (Microtus oeconomus)

Tundra vole

Microtus oeconomus

Cricetidae

LC, Least Concern
Social vole (Microtus socialis)

Social vole

Microtus socialis

Cricetidae

CompareEastern meadow vole vs Common voleEastern meadow vole vs Short-tailed field voleEastern meadow vole vs Tundra voleEastern meadow vole vs European pine vole

Common questions

Answered only where our data holds the answer.

How big is the eastern meadow vole?

An adult eastern meadow vole weighs 36.8 g – 38.6 g, according to values recorded on Wikidata.

Is the eastern meadow vole endangered?

The eastern meadow vole is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List, meaning it is not currently at risk of extinction.

How long does the eastern meadow vole live?

The eastern meadow vole has a recorded lifespan of 1.33 years.

How long is the eastern meadow vole pregnant?

The recorded gestation period is 21.3 days.

What kind of animal is the eastern meadow vole?

The eastern meadow vole (Microtus pennsylvanicus) belongs to the family Cricetidae in the order Rodentia.

Sources and how to cite this page

Data as of 2026-11-11. How this page is put together.

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APA

CreatureData. (2026). Eastern meadow vole (Microtus pennsylvanicus). Retrieved from https://creaturedata.com/animals/eastern-meadow-vole

MLA

“Eastern meadow vole (Microtus pennsylvanicus).” CreatureData, 2026, https://creaturedata.com/animals/eastern-meadow-vole.

BibTeX
@misc{eastern_meadow_vole_2026,
  title = {Eastern meadow vole (Microtus pennsylvanicus)},
  author = {{CreatureData}},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://creaturedata.com/animals/eastern-meadow-vole},
  note = {Data as of 2026-11-11}
}