Mammals
Botta's Pocket Gopher
Thomomys bottae · also called Botta pocket gopher
A fresh mound of loose soil appears on a lawn overnight, the only sign of a Botta’s pocket gopher that spends almost its entire life digging in the dark.
Overview
Botta’s pocket gopher, Thomomys bottae, is a Least Concern burrowing rodent found across much of the western United States and northern Mexico. Its cheek pockets, lip-sealed teeth, and tunnel-digging claws make it one of the most widespread and capable diggers among North American mammals.
An engineer under the soil
By tunnelling constantly, pocket gophers turn and mix the soil, changing the plants that grow above them.
Status
Least Concern, widespread and common across suitable habitat.
Botta's Pocket Gopher: common questions
Why is it called a pocket gopher?
It has external, fur-lined cheek pouches, or pockets, that open outside the mouth and are used to carry food.
How does it dig without swallowing dirt?
It can close its lips behind its front teeth, so it can gnaw through soil with its mouth closed to dirt.
Does Botta's pocket gopher live above ground?
Rarely; it spends nearly all its life in tunnels it digs itself, pushing excess soil up into mounds.
Where is Botta's pocket gopher found?
It lives across much of the western United States and northern Mexico.