Limited Edition

 
The St. Andrew Beach Mouse, Florida, of which fewer than 6,000 are thought to exist. Photographed by Joel Sartore. One of these.

Comments

[Steve]

The rare one-eared plague rat?

[simplius]

What is so specific about this mouse? Because it's one-eared? ;-)

[David]

So far as I can tell, this particular species has no claim to fame beyond its scarcity (and good looks). Though the cuteness may depend on whether the creature is chewing on your cabling.

http://zipcodezoo.com/Animals/P/Peromyscus_polionotus_peninsularis/

Apparently it hasn’t mastered fire, foreign languages or time travel.

[Another Steve]

@Simplius: one eared with a talent. The creature in the picture has the unique ability to eat its own ear without distress. But they get rarer because they go on to eat other parts of themselves...

[Murgatroyd]

I can save the species! I guarantee that if someone were to introduce a single breeding pair into my basement, then within a year there would be at least twenty thousand of them.

Seriously, biologists know how to breed rodents. This "crisis" could be overcome quite simply: breed them, sell them in pet shops, and tell the buyers that they're helping to "save the planet." They do seem to be cute little critters.