Roadless Areas
Home/Species/ California Pocket Mouse

Chaetodipus californicus

Merriam, 1889

California Pocket Mouse

G5Secure Found in 4 roadless areas NatureServe Explorer →
G5SecureGlobal Rank
Least concernIUCN
Identity
Unique IDELEMENT_GLOBAL.2.100888
Element CodeAMAFD05020
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
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). In a phylogeny based on molecular data, Riddle (1995) found support for the monophyly of Chaetodipus, including C. formosus, relative to Perognathus.
Conservation Status
Review Date1996-11-08
Change Date1996-11-08
Range Extent Comments
California (on the coast it occurs south from San Fancisco Bay and in the interior it occurs west of the Sierra Nevada) south to north-central Baja California, Mexico.
Ecology & Habitat

Habitat

Primarily on slopes with chaparral growth. From the Lower Sonoran into the Transition life zones. Nests are in underground burrows.

Ecology

Solitary.

Reproduction

Annually produces one litter of 2-5 young, March-June; sometimes produces a second litter.
Terrestrial Habitats
Shrubland/chaparral
Other Nations (1)
United StatesN5
ProvinceRankNative
CaliforniaSNRYes
Threat Assessments
ThreatScopeSeverityTiming
1 - Residential & commercial development——High (continuing)
1.1 - Housing & urban areas——High (continuing)
2 - Agriculture & aquaculture——High (continuing)
2.3 - Livestock farming & ranching——High (continuing)
7 - Natural system modifications——High (continuing)
7.1 - Fire & fire suppression——High (continuing)

—

Roadless Areas (4)
California (4)
AreaForestAcres
Domeland Add.Sequoia National Forest3,046
Mill CreekSequoia National Forest27,643
North MountainStanislaus National Forest7,856
Sespe - FrazierAngeles National Forest4,254
References (30)
  1. American Society of Mammalogists (ASM). 2025. Mammal Diversity Database (Version 1.13) [Data set]. Zenodo. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.10595931. Online. Available: https://www.mammaldiversity.org/
  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. Fitch, H. S. 1948. Habits and economic relationships of the Tulare kangaroo rat. Journal of Mammalogy 29:5-35.
  8. Garland, T., Jr. and W. G. Bradley. 1984. Effects of a highway on Mojave Desert rodent populations. American Midland Naturalist 111:47-56.
  9. Genoways, H. H., and J. H. Brown, editors. 1993. Biology of the Heteromyidae. American Society of Mammalogists Special Publication No. 10. 719 pp.
  10. Ghiselin, J. 1970. Edaphic control of habitat selection by kangaroo mice (<i>Microdipodops</i>) in three Nevada populations. Oecologia 4:248-261.
  11. Grinnell, J. 1933. Review of the recent mammal fauna of California. University of California Publications in Zoology 40:71-234.
  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. Ingles, L. G. 1965. Mammals of the Pacific States. Stanford University Press, Stanford, California.
  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. 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.
  28. Wilkins, K. T. 1982. Highways as barriers to rodent dispersal. Southwestern Naturalist 27: 459-460.
  29. 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/.
  30. 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]