  Simple random walk considerations are used to interpret rodent population
data collected in Hantavirus-related investigations in Panama regarding the
short-tailed cane mouse, \emph{Zygodontomys brevicauda}. The diffusion constant
of mice is evaluated to be of the order of (and larger than) 200 meters squared
per day. The investigation also shows that the rodent mean square displacement
saturates in time, indicating the existence of a spatial scale which could, in
principle, be the home range of the rodents. This home range is concluded to be
of the order of 70 meters. Theoretical analysis is provided for interpreting
animal movement data in terms of an interplay of the home ranges, the diffusion
constant, and the size of the grid used to monitor the movement. The study
gives impetus to a substantial modification of existing theory of the spread of
the Hantavirus epidemic which has been based on simple diffusive motion of the
rodents, and additionally emphasizes the importance for developing more
accurate techniques for the measurement of rodent movement.

Populations and Evolution;Other Quantitative Biology