The Texas pocket gopher (''Geomys personatus'') is a species of rodent in the family Geomyidae. It is found in

Tamaulipas Tamaulipas (), officially the Free and Sovereign State of Tamaulipas ( es, Estado Libre y Soberano de Tamaulipas), is a state in the northeast region of Mexico; one of the 31 states which, along with Mexico City, comprise the 32 Federal Entiti ...

in Mexico and in Texas in the United States.

Description

Males grow to a length of about including a tail of about . Females are slightly smaller and both sexes weigh about . The dorsal surface is a dull greyish-brown and the ventral surface is whitish with darker patches. There is very little hair on the tail especially near the tip. The upper incisors have a pair of grooves.

Distribution

The Texas pocket gopher is found in southern Texas as far north as

Val Verde County Val Verde County is a county located on the southern Edwards Plateau in the U.S. state of Texas. The 2020 population is 47,586. Its county seat is Del Rio. In 1936, Val Verde County received Recorded Texas Historic Landmark number 5625 to ...

and San Patricio County, and the state of

, the most north-easterly part of Mexico. It is common in the sand drifts on

Mustang The mustang is a free-roaming horse of the Western United States, descended from horses brought to the Americas by the Spanish. Mustangs are often referred to as wild horses, but because they are descended from once-domesticated animals, the ...

and

Padre __NOTOC__ Padre means father in many Romance languages, and it may also refer to: Music * "Padre" (song) People * A military chaplain * A Latin Catholic priest * A member of the San Diego Padres baseball team Places * Padre Island, a barrier i ...

islands in the Gulf of Mexico.

Behavior

A single Texas pocket gopher occupies a burrow system that may have short side branches and about of passages. It defends its burrow against intruders, emitting a wheezy call and gnashing its teeth. It mainly stays underground and plugs the surface entrances with soil. The spoil heap of excavated soil can be across and high. The Texas pocket gopher feeds on the roots of grasses such as

paspalum ''Paspalum'' is a genus of plants in the grass family. The group is widespread across much of Asia, Africa, Australia, and the Americas. Commonly known as paspalum, bahiagrasses, crowngrasses or dallis grasses, many of the species are tall per ...

(''Paspalum''),

Bermuda grass ''Cynodon dactylon'', commonly known as Bermuda grass, is a grass found worldwide. It is native to Europe, Africa, Australia and much of Asia. It has been introduced to the Americas. Although it is not native to Bermuda, it is an abundant invasiv ...

(''Cynodon''), and

sandbur ''Cenchrus'' is a widespread genus of plants in the grass family. Its species are native to many countries in Asia, Africa, Australia, the Americas, and various oceanic islands. Common names include buffelgrasses, sandburs, and sand spur “st ...

(''Cenchrus'') and consumes all parts of a composite plant in the sunflower genus ''

Helianthus ''Helianthus'' () is a genus comprising about 70 species of annual and perennial flowering plants in the daisy family Asteraceae commonly known as sunflowers. Except for three South American species, the species of ''Helianthus'' are native t ...

''. It avoids emerging onto the surface of the ground, where it is at risk from predators, by seizing the roots of the plant and pulling it down into its burrow. It also practices

coprophagy Coprophagia () or coprophagy () is the consumption of feces. The word is derived from the grc, κόπρος , "feces" and , "to eat". Coprophagy refers to many kinds of feces-eating, including eating feces of other species (heterospecifics), o ...

, eating some of its own fecal pellets: it takes the pellets with its teeth directly from its anus, manipulates them with its fore-feet, and examines them carefully. It then consumes some and rejects others; however, the basis for its choice is unclear. Little is known about the reproductive behavior of this species but it appears to breed at any time of year. Litters of from one to five young have been recorded and there are believed to be up to two litters in the year.

Status

The Texas pocket gopher has a wide range and is common in at least part of that range, with a patchy distribution attributable to its requirement for loose, sandy soils in which to burrow. The IUCN lists its conservation status as being of "

least concern A least-concern species is a species that has been categorized by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) as evaluated as not being a focus of species conservation because the specific species is still plentiful in the wild. T ...

" because, although the population trend is unknown, it is unlikely to be declining at such a rate as to warrant listing it in a more threatened category.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q1769184

Texas Pocket Gopher The Texas pocket gopher (''Geomys personatus'') is a species of rodent in the family Geomyidae. It is found in Tamaulipas in Mexico and in Texas in the United States. Description Males grow to a length of about including a tail of about . Fem ...

Mammals of Mexico Mammals of the United States Rodents of North America

Mammals described in 1889 Least concern biota of North America Least concern biota of the United States Taxonomy articles created by Polbot