When you hear the word "mouse", what do you picture? You might picture a regular, everyday field mouse. Many people know about a regular, everyday field mouse. But have you ever heard about the California Pocket Mouse? You probably haven't. It's a very small rodent and it's found in California, from San Francisco Bay to the borders of Mexico.

This tiny rodent is only 85.1 mm long! That's probably half the size of an average pen! Being small is a huge advantage for this rodent. Its fur is brownish gray. This rodent actually resembles large cotton balls because of its thick and fuzzy fur. This fur helps keep it warm during the winter. It actually reminds me of those cute little mice at pet stores.

Did you know this animal can use self defense? Even though the California Pocket Mouse is tiny, you could still get hurt by it. It could scratch or bite you. If you could attack and hide from your predators, you could survive extremely well. This rodent also uses its claws to help dig holes to live in and to keep it cool during hot and humid summer days. This rodent is very solitary. It hides in its burrow all day and goes outside only at night to hunt. That's why they survive in their habitat so well.

Even though the population of the California Pocket Mouse is unknown, we know that their population is not decreasing. When they reproduce, their litter may contain up to eight baby rodents! One California Pocket Mouse can give birth to about one hundred and forty-four mice a year! There are a lot of California Pocket Mice and their population is not decreasing, but increasing! Since there is a large amount of this species of rodent, their predators will have more than enough food.

As tiny as this mouse is, it makes a huge impact on the food web. Other mice, bobcats, coyotes, hawks, foxes, snakes, and owls wouldn't have any food without them. These animals would be extinct because they would die of hunger. You would expect a mouse to eat cheese, but a California Pocket Mouse doesn't! It eats seeds and vegetables. That's also what rabbits eat. That's why rabbits are their number one competition for food.

Bobcats, coyotes, hawks, foxes, snakes, and owls call the California Pocket Mouse food. But this tiny rodent escapes being eaten by hiding in small spaces, climbing up trees, or hiding in bushes. They don't always get away safely, though. Sometimes, they're too slow to hide and they get captured by predators.

Not many mice are good climbers like this rodent. Did you also know that its tail is actually longer than its body? Its tail is 127.4 mm long! That's almost twice as long as its body. The California Pocket Mouse lives up to eight years, too! Its life span is pretty long for a rodent. Clearly, this rodent is a tiny, interesting, adorable animal.

Author: Julianne A.

Date Published: 2/16/11

 

Sources:
http://www.co.san-bernardino.ca.us/museum/exhibits/etiwandafan/pocket_mouse_cal.htm

http://animaldiversity.ummz.umich.edu/site/accounts/information/Chaetodipus_californicus.html

http://www.sibr.com/mammals/M095.html

Stefoff, Rebecca. The Rodent Order. New York: Marshall Cavendish Benchmark, 2009

Picture Credit:
http://www.enature.com/fieldguides/detail.asp?source=&parkid=&searchText=&allSpecies=&shapeID=0&lshapeID=0&curAbbr=&lastView=
default&lastGroup=5&lastRegion=&lastFilter=4&lastShapeName=&trackType=&curRegionID=
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