Plains pocket gopher

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Plains pocket gopher
Geomys bursarius.jpg
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Mammalia
Order: Rodentia
Family: Geomyidae
Genus: Geomys
Species:
G. bursarius
Binomial name
Geomys bursarius
(Shaw, 1800)
Subspecies

See text

Geomys bursarius range.png
Range of the plains pocket gopher

The plains pocket gopher (Geomys bursarius) is one of 35 species of pocket gophers, so named in reference to their externally located, fur-lined cheek pouches. They are burrowing animals, found in grasslands and agricultural land across the Great Plains of North America, from Manitoba to Texas. Pocket gophers are the most highly fossorial rodents found in North America. [2]

Distribution

Plains pocket gophers are found throughout the Great Plains of North America, ranging from southern Manitoba (Canada), and eastern North Dakota south to New Mexico and Texas in the United States, and as far east as the extreme western parts of Indiana. Eight subspecies are currently recognised, although some former subspecies have since been considered to be species in their own right, and are no longer included: [3]

Fossil remains have been found as far south as Tennessee, indicating a late Pleistocene, early Holocene population. This would support the hypothesis that drier environmental conditions with extensive prairies extended further south during the Late Wisconsinan glacial period, supporting populations of Geomys and other prairie species such as thirteen-lined ground squirrels and prairie chickens. [4]

Description

G. bursarius has short fur with brown to black coloration over the upper body and lighter brown or tan fur on the underparts. Whitish hairs cover the tops of the feet, while the short, tapered tail is nearly naked. Fossorial adaptations include small eyes, short, naked ears, and large fore feet with heavy claws. Zygomatic arches are widely flared, providing ample room for muscle attachment, [5] although, unlike other pocket gophers, this species does not use the curved incisors to assist the feet in digging. [3] The external cheek pouches, which distinguish this family from other mammals, can be turned inside-out for grooming purposes. They are used for carrying food up to 7 cm (2.8 in) in length and have a forward opening. [6]

Other adaptations to a fossorial lifestyle include a low resting metabolic rate of 0.946 ml O2/g/h, [3] and high conductance, a tolerance for low oxygen levels and high carbon dioxide levels, and a decreased water intake. [7]

Males are significantly larger than females, with a total body length of 25 to 35 cm (9.8 to 13.8 in), compared with 21 to 32 cm (8.3 to 12.6 in) in females. The tail is short and hairless, reaching 5 to 11 cm (2.0 to 4.3 in) in length, and only marginally longer in males. Adults males weigh from 230 to 473 g (8.1 to 16.7 oz) and females 128 to 380 g (4.5 to 13.4 oz). [3]

Ecology

Plains pocket gophers prefer deep, sandy, friable soils to facilitate their burrowing lifestyle and their herbivorous diet of plant roots. The local vegetation is less significant than the nature of the soil, and the gophers are found in prairie grasslands, agricultural land, and even urban areas. [8]

A long-term controlled study of tunnel excavation by plains pocket gophers found that the rate of tunnel construction ranges from a high of 2,059 cm/week of new tunnels to a low of none over several weeks during the summer. About 30 to 50 m (98 to 164 ft) of tunnels were open at any one time. Factors affecting the size of the tunnel system appeared to be influenced more by the amount of energy needed to maintain and patrol it rather than the amount of vegetation present. [9] Tunnels include nests, located about 50 cm (20 in) under ground, and lined with grass and other plant material, as well as food caches containing grasses, roots, and tubers. [3]

The gophers share their tunnels with numerous species of insects, including flies, scarab [10] and carrion beetles, [11] and cave crickets. [12] Known predators include rattlesnakes, prairie kingsnakes, gopher snakes, feral cats, coyotes, foxes, badgers, hawks, and owls. [3]

Behavior

Plains pocket gophers show no seasonal change in activity, except for an increased level of activity during mating season. They do show a bimodal pattern of activity during the day with increased activity occurring from 1300–1700 and then again from 2200–0600. [7] For a fossorial animal with a metabolically expensive lifestyle (360–3400 times as much as terrestrial creatures), planning daily activity around burrow temperature, where lack of air flow and high humidity lead to a decrease in evaporative and convective cooling, is likely to be important. [2]

The gophers spend 72% of their time in their nests, coming above ground to search for food or mates, and for young animals to establish new burrows. Territorial and aggressive, especially in male-to-male interaction, these rodents appear to use their greatly increased sensitivity to soil vibration to maintain their solitary lifestyle. They rarely explore burrows inhabited by other gophers, although they sometimes investigate those that have been previously abandoned. [3]

Reproduction

Plains pocket gophers typically breed only once a year, although they may sometimes breed twice in good years or warmer climates. The breeding season varies with latitude, ranging from April to May in Wisconsin to as long as January to September in Texas. Females give birth to one to six young after a gestation period around 30 days. [3] However, pregnancies lasting up to 51 days have been recorded, and this variation may indicate some form of delayed fertilization, delayed implantation, or delayed zygote development.[ citation needed ]

The young are born hairless and blind, and initially weigh about 5 g (0.18 oz). They begin to develop fur at 10 days, open their eyes at three weeks, and are weaned by five weeks of age. Although they initially move around in their mother's burrow, after weaning, they quickly leave to establish burrows of their own, and reach the full adult size after about three months. [3]

Conservation

Due to the widespread distribution of this species, its adaptability to suitable habitat, the lack of any major threats, and an apparently stable population, G. bursarius has a conservation status of Least Concern. [1] Though pocket gophers are considered to be no more than pests by farmers and suburban lawn owners, they play active roles in soil aeration, flood control via improved drainage, and soil and plant diversity. [5] [13]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gopher</span> Family of burrowing rodents

Pocket gophers, commonly referred to simply as gophers, are burrowing rodents of the family Geomyidae. The roughly 41 species are all endemic to North and Central America. They are commonly known for their extensive tunneling activities and their ability to destroy farms and gardens.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Smooth-toothed pocket gopher</span> Genus of mammals

The smooth-toothed pocket gophers, genus Thomomys, are so called because they are among the only pocket gophers without grooves on their incisors. They are also called the western pocket gophers because they are distributed in western North America. They are considered distinct enough from other pocket gophers to be recognized as a separate subfamily or tribe.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Botta's pocket gopher</span> Species of mammal

Botta's pocket gopher is a pocket gopher native to western North America. It is also known in some areas as valley pocket gopher, particularly in California. Both the specific and common names of this species honor Paul-Émile Botta, a naturalist and archaeologist who collected mammals in California in 1827 and 1828.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Yellow-faced pocket gopher</span> Species of rodent

The yellow-faced pocket gopher is a species of pocket gopher that is native to shortgrass prairies in the south-western United States and northern Mexico. It is the species that lives north of the Southern Coahuila Filter-Barrier (SCFB). Among the different species, the yellow-faced pocket gopher has a small to medium-sized skull. The fossil of this genus was recorded from the pre-Pleistocene Benson Beds of Arizona.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Southeastern pocket gopher</span> Species of rodent

The southeastern pocket gopher is a species of pocket gopher that is native to the southeastern United States. It occurs in Alabama, Georgia, and Florida, where it is the only pocket gopher.

<i>Geomys</i> Genus of rodents

The genus Geomys contains 12 species of pocket gophers often collectively referred to as the eastern pocket gophers. Like all pocket gophers, members of this genus are fossorial herbivores.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Desert pocket gopher</span> Species of rodent

The desert pocket gopher is a species of rodent in the family Geomyidae. It is found in the state of Chihuahua in Mexico and in Texas and New Mexico in the United States.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Texas pocket gopher</span> Species of rodent

The Texas pocket gopher is a species of rodent in the family Geomyidae. It is found in Tamaulipas in Mexico and in Texas in the United States.

The central Texas pocket gopher or Llano pocket gopher is a species of rodent in the family Geomyidae. It is endemic to central Texas in the United States.

Buller's pocket gopher is a species of gopher that is endemic to Mexico.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Camas pocket gopher</span> Small species of burrowing rodent from Oregon

The camas pocket gopher, also known as the camas rat or Willamette Valley gopher, is a rodent, the largest member in the genus Thomomys, of the family Geomyidae. First described in 1829, it is endemic to the Willamette Valley of northwestern Oregon in the United States. The herbivorous gopher forages for vegetable and plant matter, which it collects in large, fur-lined, external cheek pouches. Surplus food is hoarded in an extensive system of tunnels. The dull-brown-to-lead-gray coat changes color and texture over the year. The mammal's characteristically large, protuberant incisors are well adapted for use in tunnel construction, particularly in the hard clay soils of the Willamette Valley. The gophers make chattering sounds with their teeth; males and females make purring sounds when they are together, and the young make twittering sounds. Born toothless, blind and hairless, the young grow rapidly before being weaned at about six weeks of age.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wyoming pocket gopher</span> Species of mammal

The Wyoming pocket gopher is a species of gopher that is endemic to the United States. Between 1915 and 1979, it was generally considered to be a subspecies of the northern pocket gopher.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Idaho pocket gopher</span> Species of rodent in the family Geomyidae

The Idaho pocket gopher is a species of rodent in the family Geomyidae. It is rather small, with a lightly built skull. Its fur color varies through the body and between individuals. Found in the western United States, it inhabits savannas, shrubland, and grasslands. Individuals live alone in burrows, staying active year-round. Many aspects of its behavior and biology are not well understood. The species is classified as being of least-concern by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mountain pocket gopher</span> Species of mammal

The mountain pocket gopher is a species of rodent in the family Geomyidae. It is endemic to California and Nevada. The Sierra Nevada are part of its range.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Townsend's pocket gopher</span> Species of pocket gopher endemic to the northwestern United States

Townsend's pocket gopher is a species of pocket gopher endemic to the northwestern United States.

The Michoacan pocket gopher is a species of rodent in the family Geomyidae. It is monotypic within the genus Zygogeomys. It is endemic to Mexico where its natural habitat is temperate, high-altitude forests. Its numbers are declining and it is listed by the IUCN as "endangered".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Baird's pocket gopher</span> Species of rodent

Baird's pocket gopher or the Louisiana pocket gopher is a species of pocket gopher that is native to the southern United States. In total, there are three almost identical species of eastern pocket gopher; Geomys attwateri, G. bursarius, and G. breviceps. G. breviceps is larger in size, G. attwateri is medium-sized and G. bursarius is a bit smaller. Other than by size variation they are not identifiable by external features. Baird's pocket gophers are small rodents with most of their weight on the top half of their bodies.

Knox Jones's pocket gopher is a species of pocket gopher found in Texas and New Mexico. This species is named for Dr. J. Knox Jones Jr. (1929–1992), a prolific mammalogist at Texas Tech University.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Oriental Basin pocket gopher</span> Species of rodent

The Oriental Basin pocket gopher is a species of pocket gopher which is endemic to Mexico. It was first described in 1895 by Clinton Hart Merriam. It was considered to be a subspecies of Merriam's pocket gopher in the late 20th and early 21st century but has been reinstated as its own species. The IUCN Red List has evaluated it to be of least concern.

Geomys jugossicularis, also known as Hall's pocket gopher and Colorado pocket gopher, is a species of pocket gopher native to the western United States. Little is known of its behavior or ecology aside from typical behaviors of the other pocket gophers.

References

  1. 1 2 Cassola, F. (2017) [errata version of 2016 assessment]. "Geomys bursarius". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2016: e.T42588A115192675. doi: 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-3.RLTS.T42588A22217794.en . Retrieved 17 May 2023. Database entry includes a brief justification of why this species is of least concern
  2. 1 2 Vaughan, Terry A. et al. (2000) Mammalogy, 4th Edition. Thomson Learning, Inc.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Connior, M.B. (2011). "Geomys bursarius (Rodentia: Geomyidae)". Mammalian Species. 43 (1): 104–117. doi: 10.1644/879.1 .
  4. ↑ Sullivan, R. M. (1981). "A late Pleistocene population of the pocket gopher, Geomys cf. bursarius, in the Nashville Basin, Tennessee". Journal of Mammalogy. 62 (4): 831–835. doi:10.2307/1380607. JSTOR   1380607.
  5. 1 2 Teeter, K. (2000) Geomys bursarius. Animal Diversity Web.
  6. ↑ Kurta, Allen (1995). Mammals of the Great Lakes Region, Revised Edition. The University of Michigan Press.
  7. 1 2 Benedix Jr., J. H. (1994). "A predictable pattern of daily activity by pocket gopher Geomys bursarius". Animal Behaviour. 48 (3): 501–509. doi:10.1006/anbe.1994.1271. S2CID   54429471.
  8. ↑ Pitts, R.M. & Choate, J.R. (1007). "Reproduction of the plains pocket gopher (Geomys bursarius) in Missouri". Southwestern Naturalist. 42 (2): 238–240. JSTOR   30055269.
  9. ↑ Thorne, D.H. & Andersen, D.C. (1990). "Long-term soil-disturbance pattern by a pocket gopher, Geomys bursarius". Journal of Mammalogy. 71 (1): 84–89. doi:10.2307/1381322. JSTOR   1381322.
  10. ↑ Gordon, R. D. and Skelley, P. E. (2007). "A monograph of the Aphodiini inhabiting the United States and Canada (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae: Aphodiinae)". Memoirs of the American Entomological Institute, Vol. 79. The American Entomological Institute, Gainesville, Florida.
  11. ↑ Peck. S.B. & Skelley, P.E. (2001). "Small carrion beetles (Coleoptera: Leiodidae: Cholevinae) from burrows of Geomys and Thomomys pocket gophers (Rodentia: Geomyidae) in the United States". Insecta Mundi. 15 (3): 139–148. Archived from the original on 2017-07-30. Retrieved 2011-08-21.
  12. ↑ Kavorik, P.; et al. (2001). "Insects inhabiting the burrows of the Ozark pocket gopher in Arkansas" (PDF). Journal of the Arkansas Academy of Science. 62: 75–78.
  13. ↑ Reichman, O.J.; et al. (2002). "The role of pocket gophers as subterranean ecosystem engineers". Trends in Ecology and Evolution. 17: 44–49. doi:10.1016/s0169-5347(01)02329-1.
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