This list of mammals of Minnesota includes the mammals native to Minnesota. It also shows their status in the wild. There are 81 native and 5 introduced mammal species found in the state. American bison, caribou, and wolverines were extirpated from the state. Minnesota does not have a state mammal but several have been proposed: The northern white tailed deer was proposed eight times, the eastern wolf was proposed six times, the American black bear and thirteen-lined ground squirrel were each proposed once.
The following tags are used to highlight each species' conservation status as assessed by the International Union for Conservation of Nature; those on the left are used here, those in the second column in some other articles:
EX Extinct No reasonable doubt that the last individual has died. EW Extinct in the wild Known only to survive in captivity or as a naturalized population well outside its historic range. CR Critically endangered The species is in imminent danger of extinction in the wild. EN Endangered The species is facing a very high risk of extinction in the wild. VU Vulnerable The species is facing a high risk of extinction in the wild. NT Near threatened The species does not qualify as being at high risk of extinction but is likely to do so in the future. LC Least concern The species is not currently at risk of extinction in the wild. DD Data deficient There is inadequate information to assess the risk of extinction for this species. NE Not evaluated The conservation status of the species has not been studied.
Didelphimorphs
Opossums Virginia opossum, Didelphis virginiana
Rodents
Squirrels Northern flying squirrel, Glaucomys sabrinus Southern flying squirrel, Glaucomys volans Woodchuck, Marmota monax Least chipmunk, Neotamias minimus Eastern gray squirrel, Sciurus carolinensis Fox squirrel, Sciurus niger Franklin's ground squirrel, Poliocitellus franklinii Richardson's ground squirrel, Urocitellus richardsonii Thirteen-lined ground squirrel, Ictidomys tridecemlineatus Eastern chipmunk, Tamias striatus American red squirrel, Tamiasciurus hudsonicus Black-tailed prairie dog, Cynomys ludovicianus introduced
Beavers American beaver, Castor canadensis
Gophers Plains pocket gopher, Geomys bursarius Northern pocket gopher, Thomomys talpoides
Pocket mice Plains pocket mouse, Perognathus flavescens
Cricetids Eastern deer mouse, Peromyscus maniculatus White-footed mouse, Peromyscus leucopus Western deer mouse, Peromyscus sonoriensis Western harvest mouse, Reithrodontomys megalotis Northern grasshopper mouse, Onychomys leucogaster Northern bog lemming, Synaptomys borealis Southern bog lemming, Synaptomys cooperi Rock vole, Microtus chrotorrhinus Prairie vole, Microtus ochrogaster Woodland vole, Microtus pinetorum Meadow vole, Microtus pennsylvanicus Eastern heather vole, Phenacomys ungava Southern red-backed vole, Myodes gapperi Muskrat, Ondatra zibethicus
Murids House mouse, Mus musculus introduced Brown rat, Rattus norvegicus introduced
Jumping mice Meadow jumping mouse, Zapus hudsonius Woodland jumping mouse, Napaeozapus insignis
Porcupines North American porcupine, Erethizon dorsatum
Lagomorphs
Hares Snowshoe hare, Lepus americanus White-tailed jackrabbit, Lepus townsendii
Cottontail rabbits Eastern cottontail, Sylvilagus floridanus
Eulipotyphlans
Shrews Northern short-tailed shrew, Blarina brevicauda North American least shrew, Cryptotis parva Arctic shrew, Sorex arcticus Masked shrew, Sorex cinereus American pygmy shrew, Sorex hoyi American water shrew, Sorex palustris
Moles Star-nosed mole, Condylura cristata Eastern mole, Scalopus aquaticus
Bats
Evening bats Big brown bat, Eptesicus fuscus Silver-haired bat, Lasionycteris noctivagans Hoary bat, Lasiurus cinereus Eastern red bat, Lasiurus borealis Little brown bat, Myotis lucifugus Northern long-eared myotis, Myotis septentrionalis Eastern pipistrelle, Pipistrellus subflavus
Carnivorans
Procyonids Common raccoon, Procyon lotor
Mustelids Wolverine, Gulo gulo vagrant Northern river otter, Lontra canadensis American marten, Martes americana Least weasel, Mustela nivalis American ermine, Mustela richardsonii Western Great Lakes stoat, M. r. bangsi Long-tailed weasel, Neogale frenata Stoat, Mustela erminea American mink, Neogale vison Fisher, Pekania pennanti American badger, Taxidea taxus
Skunks Striped skunk, Mephitis mephitis Eastern spotted skunk, Spilogale putorius possibly extirpated
Canines Coyote, Canis latrans Gray wolf, Canis lupus Eastern wolf, Canis lycaon Minnesota wolf, C. lupus nubilus × C. lycaon Gray fox, Urocyon cinereoargenteus Swift fox, Vulpes velox vagrant Red fox, Vulpes vulpes American red fox, V. v. fulva Northern plains fox, V. v. regalis
Felines Canada lynx, Lynx canadensis Bobcat, Lynx rufus Cougar, Puma concolor vagrant
Bears American black bear, Ursus americanus Brown bear, Ursus arctos extirpated
Artiodactyls
Deer Moose, Alces alces Elk, Cervus canadensis White-tailed deer, Odocoileus virginianus Northern white-tailed deer, O. v. borealis Dakota white-tailed deer, O. v. dacotensis Kansas white-tailed deer, O. v. macrourus Caribou, Rangifer tarandus extirpated Woodland caribou, R. t. caribou extirpated Mule deer, Odocoileus hemionus
Pronghorn Pronghorn, Antilocapra americana extirpated, now vagrant
Bovids American bison, Bison bison extirpated Plains bison, B. b. bison extirpated
Pigs Wild boar, Sus scrofa introduced, extirpated
References
Burt, W. H., and R. P. Grossenheider (1976). Field Guide to the Mammals: North America North of Mexico. Third edition. Houghton Mifflin Company, Boston, Massachusetts, US. Gunderson, H. L., and J. R. Beer (1953). "Mammals of Minnesota". Occasional Papers, Minnesota Museum of Natural History, University of Minnesota. 6: 1-190. Hazard, E. B. 1982. Mammals of Minnesota. University of Minnesota Press, Minneapolis, Minnesota. Heany, L. R., and E. C. Birney (1975). "Comments on the distribution and natural history of some mammals in Minnesota". Canadian Field-Naturalist. 89 (1): 29-34. Wiche, J. M. and J. F. Cassel (1978). "Checklist of North Dakota mammals. (Revised)". The Prairie Naturalist 10 (3): 81-88. Wilson, D. E., and F. R. Cole (2000). Common Names of the Mammals of the World. Smithsonian Institution Press, Washington, D.C., US.