Stats

Lifespan: 3-5 yrs
Size: Medium
Diet: Herbivore
Activity: Cathemeral
Social: Solitary
Biome: Temperate grassland
Range: North America
Movement: Burrowing
Breeding: Live birth
Defense: Burrowing
Status: Uncommon

About

A burrowing rodent of western North America named for Paul-Émile Botta, recognized by its large external cheek pouches used to carry food and nesting material. It spends nearly its entire life underground, pushing up the small volcano-shaped dirt mounds that give pocket gophers their name.

Life cycle

1.
newborn pup
A blind, hairless pup nurses in the nest and is unable to regulate its own warmth.
2.
juvenile
A weaned juvenile is fully furred, leaves the nest, and begins foraging on solid food.
3.
adult
Fully grown and self-sufficient.

Learn more

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Taxonomy

Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Mammalia
Order: Rodentia
Family: Geomyidae
Genus: Megascapheus
Species: Megascapheus bottae