| Common and abundant within its limited range in Texas, Attwater's Pocket Gopher requires habitats with vegetation dominated by grasses, which it feeds on both aboveground and belowground. Built to burrow, Attwater's Pocket Gopher is cylindrically shaped but stouter in the front. It is armed with long, strong claws, has tiny ears and eyes, and its incisors protrude beyond the lips. Its burrow systems are remarkably complex, as they have multiple loops and convolutions, rather than the simple lines and branches constructed by most pocket gophers. The average life span of this species is only 12.5 months.
Sexual Dimorphism:
Males are larger than females.
Length:
Average:
216.5 mm
Range:
192-235 mm
Weight:
Average:
163 g males; 131 g females
References:
Merriam, C.H., 1895. Monographic revision of the pocket gophers, family Geomidae (exclusive of the species of Thomomys,) p.135. North American Fauna, 8:1-258.
Links:
Mammal Species of the World
Click here for The American Society of Mammalogists species account
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