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Chaetodipus intermedius

Merriam, 1889

Rock Pocket Mouse

G5Secure Found in 1 roadless area NatureServe Explorer →
G5SecureGlobal Rank
Least concernIUCN
Identity
Unique IDELEMENT_GLOBAL.2.103318
Element CodeAMAFD05060
Record TypeSPECIES
ClassificationSpecies
Classification StatusStandard
Name CategoryVertebrate Animal
IUCNLeast concern
Endemicoccurs (regularly, as a native taxon) in multiple nations
KingdomAnimalia
PhylumCraniata
ClassMammalia
OrderRodentia
FamilyHeteromyidae
GenusChaetodipus
Other Common Names
rock pocket mouse (EN)
Concept Reference
Wilson, D. E., and D. M. Reeder (editors). 1993. Mammal species of the world: a taxonomic and geographic reference. Second edition. Smithsonian Institution Press, Washington, DC. xviii + 1206 pp. Available online at: http://www.nmnh.si.edu/msw/.
Taxonomic Comments
This species formerly was included in the genus Perognathus. Subgenus Chaetodipus was elevated to full genus status by Hafner and Hafner (1983); this treatment was supported by a phylogenetic analysis of Heteromyidae based on myology (Ryan 1989).
Conservation Status
Review Date1996-11-08
Change Date1996-11-08
Range Extent Comments
Southwestern North America. From extreme south-central Utah south through Arizona and New Mexico to northern Mexico.
Ecology & Habitat

Habitat

Cliffs, canyons, rocky gulches, old lava flows. Zonally confined to lower grasslands and deserts. Commonly found in creosote-bush, mesquite, saltbush, and creosote-bush-lechuguilla areas. Sleeping and birthing occur in underground burrows.

Ecology

Population density was estimated at about 10-58 per ha in one area in Arizona (Hoffmeister 1986).

Reproduction

Breeding season begins in February or March and continues for several months. Pregnant females have been trapped March-July. Litter size is 1-7. See Schmidly (1977) and Hoffmeister (1986).
Terrestrial Habitats
Grassland/herbaceousDesertBare rock/talus/scree
Other Nations (1)
United StatesN5
ProvinceRankNative
UtahS1Yes
TexasS5Yes
Navajo NationS4Yes
New MexicoS4Yes
ArizonaS5Yes
Roadless Areas (1)
Arizona (1)
AreaForestAcres
WhetstoneCoronado National Forest20,728
References (32)
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  2. Bartholomew, G. A., and H. H. Caswell. 1951. Locomotion in kangaroo rats and its adaptive significance. Journal of Mammalogy 32:155-169.
  3. Blair, W. F. 1943. Populations of the deer mouse and associated small mammals in the mesquite associations of southern New Mexico. Contributions of the Laboratory of Vertebrate Biology, University of Michigan, No. 21. 40 pp.
  4. Bleich, V. C. 1977. <i>Dipodomys stephensi</i>. Mammalian Species No. 73:1-3.
  5. Bradford, D. F. 1976. Space utilization by rodents in <i>Adenostoma </i>chaparral. Journal of Mammalogy 57:576-579.
  6. Chew, R. M., and B. B. Butterworth. 1964. Ecology of rodents in Indian Cove (Mojave Desert), Joshua Tree National Monument, California. Journal of Mammalogy 45:203-225.
  7. Findley, J. S., A. H. Harris, D. E. Wilson, and C. Jones. 1975. Mammals of New Mexico. University of New Mexico Press, Albuquerque. 360 pp.
  8. Fitch, H. S. 1948. Habits and economic relationships of the Tulare kangaroo rat. Journal of Mammalogy 29:5-35.
  9. Garland, T., Jr. and W. G. Bradley. 1984. Effects of a highway on Mojave Desert rodent populations. American Midland Naturalist 111:47-56.
  10. Genoways, H. H., and J. H. Brown, editors. 1993. Biology of the Heteromyidae. American Society of Mammalogists Special Publication No. 10. 719 pp.
  11. Ghiselin, J. 1970. Edaphic control of habitat selection by kangaroo mice (<i>Microdipodops</i>) in three Nevada populations. Oecologia 4:248-261.
  12. Hafner, J. C., and M. S. Hafner. 1983. Evolutionary relationships of heteromyid rodents. Great Basin Mem. 7:3- 29.
  13. Hall, E. R. 1981a. The Mammals of North America, second edition. Vols. I &amp; II. John Wiley &amp; Sons, New York, New York. 1181 pp.
  14. Hoffmeister, D. F. 1986. Mammals of Arizona. University of Arizona Press and Arizona Game and Fish Department. 602 pp.
  15. Iverson, S. L. 1967. Adaptations to arid environments in <i>Perognathus parvus</i> (Peale). Ph.D. Thesis, Univ. British Columbia, Vancouver. 130pp.
  16. Jones, J. K., Jr., R. S. Hoffman, D. W. Rice, C. Jones, R. J. Baker, and M. D. Engstrom. 1992a. Revised checklist of North American mammals north of Mexico, 1991. Occasional Papers, The Museum, Texas Tech University, 146:1-23.
  17. Jorgensen, C. D., and C. L. Hayward. 1965. Mammals of the Nevada test site. Brigham Young University Science Bulletin, Biol. Ser. No. 7. 81pp.
  18. MacMillen, R. E. 1964. Population ecology, water relations and social behavior of a southern California semidesert rodent fauna. University of California Publications in Zoology 71:1-59.
  19. Maza, B. G., N. R. French, and A. P. Aschwanden. 1973. Home range dynamics in a population of heteromyid rodents. Journal of Mammalogy 54:405-425.
  20. O'Farrell, M. J. 1978. Home range dynamics of rodents in a sagebrush community. Journal of Mammalogy 59:657-68.
  21. O'Farrell, M.J. and A.R. Blaustein. 1974b. <i>Microdipodops megacephalus</i>. Mammalian Species 46:1-3.
  22. O'Farrell, T. P., R. J. Olson, R. O. Gilbert, and J. D. Hedlund. 1975. A population of Great Basin pocket mice, <i>Perognathus parvus</i>, in the shrub-steppe of south-central Washington. Ecological Monographs 45:1-28.
  23. Oxley, D. J., M. B. Fenton and G. R. Carmody. 1974. The effects of roads on populations of small mammals. Journal of Applied Ecology 11: 51-59.
  24. Reynolds, H. G., and H. S. Haskell. 1949. Life history notes on Price and Bailey pocket mice of southern Arizona. Journal of Mammalogy 30:150-156.
  25. Riddle, B. R. 1995. Molecular biogeography in the pocket mice (<i>Perognathus </i> and <i>Chaetodipus</i>) and grasshopper mice (<i>Onychomys</i>): the late Cenozoic development of a North American aridlands rodent guild. Journal of Mammalogy 76:283-301.
  26. Ryan, J. M. 1989. Comparative myology and phylogenetic systematics of the Heteromyidae (Mammalia, Rodentia). Univ. Michigan Museum Zoology Miscellaneous Publication (176):1-103.
  27. Schmidly, D. J. 1977. The mammals of Trans-Pecos Texas including Big Bend National Park and Guadalupe Mountains National Park. Texas A & M University Press, College Station.
  28. Thomas, J. R., Jr. 1975. Distribution, population densities, and home range requirements of the Stephens' kangaroo rat (<i>Dipodomys stephensi</i>). M.S. Thesis, California State Polytechnic University, Ponoma. 64pp.
  29. Weckerly, F. W., A. L. Gennaro, and T. L. Best. 1988. Description of a new rock pocket mouse, <i>Chaetodipus intermedius</i>, from New Mexico. Southwest. Nat. 33:100-102.
  30. Wilkins, K. T. 1982. Highways as barriers to rodent dispersal. Southwestern Naturalist 27: 459-460.
  31. Wilson, D. E., and D. M. Reeder (editors). 1993. Mammal species of the world: a taxonomic and geographic reference. Second edition. Smithsonian Institution Press, Washington, DC. xviii + 1206 pp. Available online at: http://www.nmnh.si.edu/msw/.
  32. Wilson, D. E., and D. M. Reeder (editors). 2005. Mammal species of the world: a taxonomic and geographic reference. Third edition. The Johns Hopkins University Press, Baltimore. Two volumes. 2,142 pp. [As modified by ASM the Mammal Diversity Database (MDD) at https://www.mammaldiversity.org/index.html]