''Perognathus'' is a genus of pocket mouse. Like other members of their family they are more closely related to

pocket gopher Pocket gophers, commonly referred to simply as gophers, are burrowing rodents of the family Geomyidae. The roughly 41 speciesSearch results for "Geomyidae" on thASM Mammal Diversity Database are all endemic to North and Central America. They ar ...

s than to true

mice A mouse (: mice) is a small rodent. Characteristically, mice are known to have a pointed snout, small rounded ears, a body-length scaly tail, and a high breeding rate. The best known mouse species is the common house mouse (''Mus musculus' ...

Characteristics

The silky pocket mice are small animals with soft

pelage A fur is a soft, thick growth of hair that covers the skin of almost all mammals. It consists of a combination of oily guard hair on top and thick underfur beneath. The guard hair keeps moisture from reaching the skin; the underfur acts as an ...

, long tails, and small feet compared to other heteromyids. They have long claws which are used for digging burrows and sifting sandy substrates for seeds. They have also been found to steal seeds from

kangaroo rat Kangaroo rats, small mostly nocturnal rodents of genus ''Dipodomys'', are native to arid areas of western North America. The common name derives from their bipedal form. They hop in a manner similar to the much larger kangaroo, but developed thi ...

s' dens. They store these seeds in large hairy external

cheek pouch Cheek pouches are pockets on both sides of the head of some mammals between the jaw and the cheek. They can be found on mammals including the platypus, some rodents, and most monkeys, as well as the marsupial koala. The cheek pouches of chipmunk ...

es. They are nocturnal and are found in arid habitats. They are not true hibernators, but will go into

torpor Torpor is a state of decreased physiological activity in an animal, usually marked by a reduced body temperature and metabolic rate. Torpor enables animals to survive periods of reduced food availability. The term "torpor" can refer to the ti ...

and stay in their burrows for extended periods of time.

Species

*'' Perognathus alticola'' — White-eared pocket mouse *'' Perognathus amplus'' — Arizona pocket mouse *'' Perognathus fasciatus'' — Olive-backed pocket mouse *'' Perognathus flavescens'' — Plains pocket mouse *'' Perognathus flavus'' — Silky pocket mouse *'' Perognathus inornatus'' — San Joaquin pocket mouse,

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found only in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also foun ...

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

. *'' Perognathus longimembris'' — Little pocket mouse, native to Northwestern Mexico,

, and the

Southwestern United States The Southwestern United States, also known as the American Southwest or simply the Southwest, is a geographic and cultural list of regions of the United States, region of the United States that includes Arizona and New Mexico, along with adjacen ...

. **'' Perognathus longimembris pacificus'' — Pacific pocket mouse, an

endangered species An endangered species is a species that is very likely to become extinct in the near future, either worldwide or in a particular political jurisdiction. Endangered species may be at risk due to factors such as habitat loss, poaching, inv ...

to coastal

Southern California Southern California (commonly shortened to SoCal) is a geographic and Cultural area, cultural List of regions of California, region that generally comprises the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. Its densely populated coastal reg ...

. *'' Perognathus merriami'' — Merriam's pocket mouse *'' Perognathus parvus'' — Great Basin pocket mouse, native to the

Great Basin The Great Basin () is the largest area of contiguous endorheic watersheds, those with no outlets to the ocean, in North America. It spans nearly all of Nevada, much of Utah, and portions of California, Idaho, Oregon, Wyoming, and Baja Californi ...

region. Sometimes members of the genus ''

Chaetodipus ''Chaetodipus'' is a genus of pocket mice containing 17 species endemic to the United States and Mexico. Like other members of their family such as pocket mice in the genus '' Perognathus'', they are more closely related to pocket gophers than ...

'' are placed in ''Perognathus''.

Footnotes

References

*Duff, A. and A. Lawson. 2004. ''Mammals of the World A Checklist''. New Haven, Yale University Press. *Nowak, Ronald M. 1999. ''Walker's Mammals of the World'', 6th edition. Johns Hopkins University Press, 1936 pp. {{Authority control Rodent genera Rodents of North America Mammals described in 1839 Taxa named by Prince Maximilian of Wied-Neuwied