| Great Basin pocket mouse | |
|---|---|
Scientific classification  | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Mammalia |
| Order: | Rodentia |
| Family: | Heteromyidae |
| Genus: | Perognathus |
| Species: | P. parvus |
| Binomial name | |
| Perognathus parvus (Peale, 1848) | |
 | |
| Synonyms | |
Perognathus xanthanotus [1] | |
The Great Basin pocket mouse (Perognathus parvus) is a species of rodent in the family Heteromyidae. [2] [3] [4] [5] It is found in British Columbia in Canada and the western United States. [1]
There are several subspecies of P. parvus. Sulentich [6] and Genoways and Brown [2] classify the yellow-eared pocket mouse as P. p. xanthonus Grinell, a subspecies of the Great Basin pocket mouse. However, Jones and others [4] classify the yellow-eared pocket mouse as a distinct species, P. xanthonotus (Grinnell).
The Great Basin pocket mouse occurs in the Columbia River Basin and the Great Basin and adjacent lands. It is distributed from south-central British Columbia and eastern Washington south to southeastern California, Nevada and northern Arizona, and east to southeastern Montana and Wyoming. [7] [8] Distribution of subspecies is: [2] [3]
The yellow-eared pocket mouse occurs on the eastern slope of the Tehachapi Mountains in Kern County, California. [3] [8] It is not certain whether its distribution is disjunct or joins that of P. parvus olivaceus. [2]
The Great Basin pocket mouse occupies steppes and open, arid shrublands and woodlands. It most commonly occurs in sagebrush (Artemisia spp.), shadscale (Atriplex confertifolia), and other desert shrublands, and in pinyon-juniper (Pinus-Juniperus spp.) woodland. On the eastern slope of the Cascade Range and the Sierra Nevada, it occurs in ponderosa pine (P. ponderosa) and Jeffrey pine (P. jefferyi) woodlands. [2] Riparian zones may have larger concentrations of Great Basin pocket mice than upland areas. [9] [10]
In late fall and winter, Great Basin pocket mice remain in their burrows in a state of torpor. [11] [12] They emerge from their burrows and mate in early spring. [8] [11] [12] Males emerge slightly before females. In south-central Washington, Great Basin pocket mice emerged from March to April. [13] Prebreeding enlargement of ovaries and testes begins in winter in the complete darkness of the burrow. Following emergence from the burrow, the lengthening photoperiod of spring apparently triggers final enlargement and development of gonads for breeding. [14] Access to succulent green vegetation in spring may enhance reproductive success of females. Captive female Great Basin pocket mice from eastern Washington fed lettuce and seeds had significantly larger ovaries than control females fed only seeds. Great Basin pocket mice remain reproductively active through summer. Females produce one or two litters per year. Most first litters are delivered in May and second litters in August. [8] [15] Reports of average litter size have ranged from 3.9 in south-central Washington [15] to 5.6 in Nevada. [16] First-litter subadults first leave the natal burrow in early summer; subadults from the second litter first emerge in fall. In a 2-year study in south-central Washington, first-litter subadults first emerged in June, and second-litter subadults first emerged in October (1974) and November (1975). [13]
As it signals the beginning of the breeding season, photoperiod may often signal its end. In the laboratory, an artificial short day-long night summer photoperiod caused gonadal shrinkage in Great Basin pocket mice. A favorable diet apparently overrides this effect, however, extending the breeding season. In nature, Great Basin pocket mice remain reproductively active through fall in years of favorable plant production. Juveniles typically breed in their second year, but first-litter individuals may first reach breeding condition before winter when plant productivity is high. [14]
Great Basin pocket mice occupy open, arid terrain. They seek friable soil of a variety of textures for burrowing. [17] [18] [19]
Home ranges of 7,060 to 9,630 square feet (656–895 sq m) have been reported for Great Basin pocket mice in British Columbia. Males may have larger home ranges than females. Average home ranges reported from south-central Washington are 23,030 square feet (2,140 sq m) and 33,640 square feet (3,125 sq m) for adult males and 15,564 square feet (1,446 sq m) for adult females. [15] In big sagebrush habitat on the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge, Oregon, home ranges of adult males were significantly greater (p < 0.001) than home ranges of females. Reproductively active adult males had significantly (p < 0.05) larger home ranges than adult males with unenlarged testes. In black greasewood (Sarcobatus vermiculatus) habitat, however, there were no significant differences between male and female home ranges or between home ranges of reproductive and nonreproductive adult males. [20]
Great Basin pocket mice are nocturnal and use burrows for daytime cover. They also use burrows during periods of winter and summer torpor. [8] [15] [21] [22] The winter burrow consists of a 3- to 6-foot- (0.9–1.8 m-) deep tunnel leading to a chamber lined with dry vegetation. The summer burrow is shallow. Except for mothers with young, the burrow is occupied by a single individual. [8]
Great Basin pocket mice consume primarily seeds, but eat some green vegetation. [11] [12] Prior to production of seeds, they also consume insects. [23] Great Basin pocket mice do not use free water, [24] they metabolize water from food. [8] Pocket mice (Perognathus spp.) and other heteromyids are scatterhoarders, caching seeds in shallow depressions and covering the seeds with soil. The seeds are primarily those of grass species, and some preferred forb species. Indian ricegrass (Oryzopsis hymenoides), [25] cheatgrass (Bromus tectorum), Russian-thistle (Salsola kali), [15] antelope bitterbrush (Purshia tridentata), pigweed (Amaranthus spp.), and mustard (Brassica spp.) [8] seeds are important Great Basin pocket mouse food items. In productive years, cheatgrass seeds formed a major portion of the diet of Great Basin pocket mice in southeastern Washington. [15]
Seeds of medusahead (Taeniatherum caput-medusae) were not used by Great Basin pocket mice in Lassen County, California, and areas with heavy medusahead invasion were avoided. [25]
Estimated seed intake of a Great Basin pocket mouse is from 4% to 10% of total body weight daily. Assuming a wholly cheatgrass diet, an individual requires 870 to 1,000 seeds per day in spring and summer, and about 750 seeds per day in fall. Estimated daily maintenance energy requirement ranges from a winter low of 2.4 kilocalories (males) and 2.6 kilocalories (females) to a high of 7.0 kilocalories (males) and 6.6 kilocalories (females) in spring. A total of about 1.8 to 2.1 ounces (50–60 g) of seed must be cached to meet the winter energy requirement. [15] To conserve energy when food is scarce in summer, Great Basin pocket mice often enter a state of torpor that lasts a few hours. [13] [15]
Great Basin pocket mice are fairly successful at finding buried seed caches, even those buried by other individuals. In a laboratory experiment, Great Basin pocket mice found Indian ricegrass seeds 17.5% of the time when researchers cached seeds 1.3 centimeters below ground; 42.5% of the time when seeds were cached 0.6 centimeter below ground; and 100% of the time when seeds were scattered on the soil surface. [26]
Owls (Tytonidae and Strigidae), [8] including northern saw-whet owls (Aegolius acadicus) [9] and burrowing owls (Speotyto cunicularia) [27] hawks (Accipitridae), [8] coyotes (Canis latrans), [28] [29] foxes ( Vulpes and Urocyon spp.), weasels and skunks (Mustelidae), and snakes [8] prey on Great Basin pocket mice.
Heteromyidae is a family of rodents consisting of kangaroo rats, kangaroo mice, pocket mice and spiny pocket mice. Most heteromyids live in complex burrows within the deserts and grasslands of western North America, though species within the genus Heteromys are also found in forests and their range extends as far south as northern South America. They feed mostly on seeds and other plant parts, which they carry in their fur-lined cheek pouches to their burrows.
The eastern meadow vole, 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.
Peromyscus maniculatus is a rodent native to eastern North America. It is most commonly called the eastern deer mouse; when formerly grouped with the western deer mouse, it was referred to as the North American deermouse and is fairly widespread across most of North America east of the Mississippi River, with the major exception being the lowland southeastern United States.
Perognathus is a genus of pocket mouse. Like other members of their family they are more closely related to pocket gophers than to true mice.
Perognathinae is a subfamily of rodents consisting of two genera of pocket mice. Most species live in complex burrows within the deserts and grasslands of western North America, They feed mostly on seeds and other plant parts, which they carry in their fur-lined cheek pouches to their burrows.
Ord's kangaroo rat is a kangaroo rat native to western North America, specifically the Great Plains and the Great Basin, with its range extending from extreme southern Canada to central Mexico.
The hispid pocket mouse is a large pocket mouse native to the Great Plains region of North America. It is a member of the genus Chaetodipus.
The southern grasshopper mouse or scorpion mouse is a species of predatory rodent in the family Cricetidae, native to Mexico and the states of Arizona, California, Nevada, New Mexico, and Utah in the United States. Notable for its resistance to venom, it routinely preys on the highly venomous Arizona bark scorpion.
The brush mouse is a species of rodent in the family Cricetidae. It is found in mountainous areas of Mexico and the western United States at altitudes over 2,000 m (6,600 ft).
The tiny fat mouse is a species of rodent in the family Nesomyidae. It is found in Angola, Botswana, Ethiopia, Kenya, Mozambique, Namibia, South Sudan, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia, and Zimbabwe. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical dry shrubland and subtropical or tropical dry lowland grassland.
Bailey's pocket mouse is a species of rodent of the subfamily Perognathinae, family Heteromyidae. It is found in Baja California, Sinaloa and Sonora in Mexico and in California, Arizona and New Mexico in the United States.
The San Diego pocket mouse is a rodent species in the family Heteromyidae. It occupies the northern region of Baja California near San Diego extending into Mexico.
The painted spiny pocket mouse is a species of rodent in the family Heteromyidae. It is found in Mexico and the northern tip of Guatemala. It was formerly placed in the genus Liomys, which is now recognized to be paraphyletic and has been subsumed into Heteromys.
Salvin's spiny pocket mouse is a small to medium-sized rodent in the family Heteromyidae. It was formerly placed in the genus Liomys, which is now recognized to be paraphyletic and has been subsumed into Heteromys.
The olive-backed pocket mouse is a species of rodent in the family Heteromyidae. It is found in the central Great Plains of Canada and the United States where it is widespread and relatively common; the IUCN considers it to be of "least concern".
The silky pocket mouse is a species of rodent in the family Heteromyidae. It is found in northern and central Mexico and the southwest region of the United States. It is a species of least concern, according to the IUCN, with no known major threats. The silky pocket mouse eats seeds, succulent parts of plants and nuts, and carries food in its cheek pouches. It lives in low valley bottoms with soft soils, among weeds and shrubs, where it burrows in the sand to bury seed caches. The species is more tolerant of harsh habitat conditions than other pocket mice.
The San Joaquin pocket mouse or Salinas pocket mouse is a species of rodent in the family Heteromyidae. It is endemic to California in the United States where it lives in desert or semi-desert habitats.
The little pocket mouse is a species of rodent in the family Heteromyidae. It is found in Baja California and Sonora in Mexico and in Arizona, California, Idaho, Nevada, Oregon and Utah in the United States. Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical dry lowland grassland. It is a common species and faces no particular threats and the IUCN has listed it as being of "least concern".
The northern grasshopper mouse is a North American carnivorous rodent of the family Cricetidae. It ranges over much of the western part of the continent, from southern Saskatchewan and central Washington to Tamaulipas in northeast Mexico.
The western deermouse or western deer mouse is a rodent native to North America. It is widespread throughout the western half of the continent, mainly in areas west of the Mississippi River.
This article incorporates public domain material from Perognathus parvus. United States Department of Agriculture.
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