The spiny pocket mouse (''Chaetodipus spinatus'') is a species of

rodent Rodents (from Latin , 'to gnaw') are mammals of the Order (biology), order Rodentia ( ), which are characterized by a single pair of continuously growing incisors in each of the upper and Mandible, lower jaws. About 40% of all mammal specie ...

in the family

Heteromyidae Heteromyidae is a family of rodents consisting of kangaroo rats, kangaroo mice, pocket mice and spiny pocket mice. Most heteromyids live in complex burrows within the deserts and grasslands of western North America, though species within the ...

and order

Rodent Rodents (from Latin , 'to gnaw') are mammals of the Order (biology), order Rodentia ( ), which are characterized by a single pair of continuously growing incisors in each of the upper and Mandible, lower jaws. About 40% of all mammal specie ...

ia. It is found in

Baja California Baja California, officially the Free and Sovereign State of Baja California, is a state in Mexico. It is the northwesternmost of the 32 federal entities of Mexico. Before becoming a state in 1952, the area was known as the North Territory of B ...

Mexico Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...

and in

Arizona Arizona is a U.S. state, state in the Southwestern United States, Southwestern region of the United States, sharing the Four Corners region of the western United States with Colorado, New Mexico, and Utah. It also borders Nevada to the nort ...

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 ...

and

Nevada Nevada ( ; ) is a landlocked state in the Western United States. It borders Oregon to the northwest, Idaho to the northeast, California to the west, Arizona to the southeast, and Utah to the east. Nevada is the seventh-most extensive, th ...

Description

The spiny pocket mouse is characterized by long, flexible hairs and spines on its back.These spines differentiates ''C. spinatus'' from pocket mice in other genera.Original publication
Their ears are small and round. They have long tails that are 126% of the length of their head and body. Their coat colors vary among islands but are generally brown on the tops of their bodies and tan on their sides. A spiny pocket mouse weighs about . Their body length ranges from .

Distribution and habitat

Spiny pocket mice are found in Southern

, and in the islands of the

Gulf of California The Gulf of California (), also known as the Sea of Cortés (''Mar de Cortés'') or Sea of Cortez, or less commonly as the Vermilion Sea (''Mar Vermejo''), is a marginal sea of the Pacific Ocean that separates the Baja California peninsula from ...

at elevations up to . They also range from southeast California to the south by the cape of Baja California Peninsula (Mexico), where they are native. Because of its wide distribution and absence in agricultural areas, the spiny pocket mouse population faces little risk of extinction.

Diet

This mouse's diet varies according to the habitat it lives in. Their diet probably consists of

seed In botany, a seed is a plant structure containing an embryo and stored nutrients in a protective coat called a ''testa''. More generally, the term "seed" means anything that can be Sowing, sown, which may include seed and husk or tuber. Seeds ...

s and green vegetation at times of rainfall. Since water is scarce in its habitat, it likely obtains most of its water from food.

Ecology

The spiny pocket mouse is

nocturnal Nocturnality is a ethology, behavior in some non-human animals characterized by being active during the night and sleeping during the day. The common adjective is "nocturnal", versus diurnality, diurnal meaning the opposite. Nocturnal creatur ...

. This characteristic allows the spiny pocket mouse to live in rough, rocky desert landscapes by taking refuge during the hot days. "They sleep, breed, and raise their young in burrows." Their main predator are feral cats.

Description

Distribution and habitat

Diet

Ecology

References

Further reading