When I first stumbled across this little guy (I almost stepped on it), I assumed it was a coyote scat from which most of the poop had been washed away by the rain and/or decomposed, and that's when I came up with the title of this post. On closer examination, I think the furry fellow may have died or been dropped where he was, as the only fur seemed to be his, and he was mostly still articulated and nearly complete (even down to tiny claws). On the other hand, though such tiny bones wouldn't seem likely to survive a coyote's digestive system, I suppose they might survive in an owl pellet. Except this was out in the open and not under a tree. So it's a mystery.
Also a mystery, but not for too much longer, is the exact species. I said "mouse" in title, because it's about that size and has a long tail (so maybe a field mouse), but we have a variety of little mousy rodents in this area. Now, if only I had a microscope I could get a good look at those little foot bones . . .
