Plains pocket gopher facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Plains pocket gopher |
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Geomys
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bursarius
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The plains pocket gopher (Geomys bursarius) is a type of pocket gopher. These animals are named for the special fur-lined pouches they have on the outside of their cheeks! They are expert diggers and live underground in grasslands and farms across the Great Plains in North America. You can find them from Canada all the way down to Texas. Pocket gophers are some of the best burrowing rodents in North America.
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Where Plains Pocket Gophers Live
Plains pocket gophers live all over the Great Plains in North America. Their home stretches from southern Manitoba in Canada, through eastern North Dakota, and south to New Mexico and Texas in the United States. They can even be found as far east as western Indiana.
Scientists currently recognize eight different types, or subspecies, of plains pocket gophers:
- Geomys bursarius bursarius – Found in Canada, the Dakotas, and Minnesota
- Geomys bursarius illinoensis – Lives in Illinois
- Geomys bursarius industrius – Found in southwestern Kansas
- Geomys bursarius major – Lives in Texas, Oklahoma, and eastern New Mexico
- Geomys bursarius majusculus – Found in Iowa, eastern Nebraska and Kansas, and northern Missouri
- Geomys bursarius missouriensis – Lives in eastern Missouri
- Geomys bursarius ozarkensis – Found in Arkansas
- Geomys bursarius wisconsinensis – Lives in western Wisconsin
What Plains Pocket Gophers Look Like
Plains pocket gophers have short fur. Their fur is usually brown to black on their upper body and lighter brown or tan underneath. Their feet have whitish hairs, and their short, thin tail is almost bare.
These gophers have special features that help them live underground. They have small eyes and short, bare ears. Their front feet are large with strong claws, perfect for digging. Unlike some other gophers, they don't use their front teeth to help them dig.
The special cheek pouches that give them their name are on the outside of their cheeks. They are lined with fur and can be turned inside out for cleaning. These pouches are used to carry food, like roots, that can be up to 7 centimeters (about 3 inches) long.
Because they live underground, these gophers are good at handling low oxygen and high carbon dioxide levels. They also don't need much water.
Male gophers are bigger than females. Males are usually 25 to 35 cm (10 to 14 inches) long, while females are 21 to 32 cm (8 to 13 inches) long. Their tails are short, about 5 to 11 cm (2 to 4 inches) long. Adult males weigh from 230 to 473 grams (about 0.5 to 1 pound), and females weigh from 128 to 380 grams (about 0.3 to 0.8 pounds).
How Plains Pocket Gophers Live
Plains pocket gophers like deep, sandy soil that is easy to dig through. This helps them create their tunnels. They mostly eat plant roots, which is why they are called herbivores. The type of plants growing above ground is less important than the soil itself. You can find these gophers in grasslands, farm fields, and even in some towns.
These gophers build long tunnel systems. A single gopher might have 30 to 50 meters (about 100 to 165 feet) of tunnels open at one time. Their tunnels include nests, which are about 50 cm (20 inches) underground and lined with grass. They also have special rooms to store food like roots and tubers.
Many insects share the gophers' tunnels, including flies, scarab beetles, and cave crickets. Many animals hunt plains pocket gophers, such as rattlesnakes, prairie kingsnakes, gopher snakes, wild cats, coyotes, foxes, badgers, hawks, and owls.
Plains Pocket Gopher Behavior
Plains pocket gophers are active all year round, but they are especially busy during mating season. During the day, they are most active in the late afternoon (1 PM to 5 PM) and again at night (10 PM to 6 AM). Living underground can be hard work and uses a lot of energy. Planning their daily activities around the temperature of their burrows is important, as there isn't much airflow underground.
Gophers spend most of their time (about 72%) in their nests. They come above ground to find food or mates. Young gophers also come above ground to find new places to dig their own burrows.
These rodents are very territorial and can be aggressive, especially male gophers toward other males. They seem to use their excellent sense of soil vibrations to keep other gophers away. They rarely go into tunnels that another gopher lives in, but they might check out tunnels that have been left empty.
Reproduction and Life Cycle
Plains pocket gophers usually have babies once a year. Sometimes, if the weather is good or in warmer places, they might have babies twice. The breeding season changes depending on where they live. In Wisconsin, it's from April to May, but in Texas, it can be from January to September.
After about 30 days of pregnancy, a female gopher gives birth to one to six babies. The babies are born without fur and cannot see. They weigh about 5 grams (less than an ounce). Their fur starts to grow at 10 days old, and they open their eyes at three weeks. They stop drinking their mother's milk (are weaned) by five weeks old.
Young gophers stay in their mother's burrow at first. But after they are weaned, they quickly leave to dig their own burrows. They reach their full adult size after about three months.
Conservation Status
The plains pocket gopher is listed as a species of "Least Concern" for conservation. This means their population is stable, and they are not currently in danger of disappearing. They are found in many places and can adapt to different habitats.
Even though farmers and people with lawns sometimes see pocket gophers as pests, these animals are actually very helpful! They help air out the soil, improve drainage (which helps with flood control), and increase the variety of plants and soil types in their environment.
See also
In Spanish: Tuza de bolsillo para niños
