The Pacific Pocket Mouse
(Perognatus longimembres pacificus)
Description & Ecology
The Pacific Pocket Mouse are part of the Heteromiyidae, who are organisms to which survive off of seeds and grains alone. They are one of eight recognized subspecies of the pocket mouse.Their entire bodies are
Picture from the LA Times
lined in a silky brown fur and fur lined cheek pouches on the outside of their bodies. The color of the Pacific pocket mouse resembles their habitat as a light brown.The soles of their hind feet are hairy, which act as a distinguishing mark from other pocket mice, along with two patches of hair that are lighter on their ear. Pacific pocket mice range from 4.25 inches to 5.2 inches in length from the nose to the tip of the tail. The tail of the pocket mouse is about 2inches. The height of the pocket mouse is .625 inches. The pocket mice weigh usually from 0.25 oz. to 0.33 oz.
Geographic & Population Changes
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The Pacific pocket mice occur on fine-grain, sandy or gravelly areas in the vicinity of the Pacific Ocean and haven't been found more than 2.5 miles away from the ocean. They have been known to be located in coastal southern California, from Marina del Rey and El Segundo in Los Angeles County, south to the vicinity of the Mexican border in San Diego County. The majority of records are within 1 mile of the coast, at less than 600 ft in elevation. Currently, populations are known at three locations: the Dana Point Headlands, San Mateo Creek, and near the Santa Margarita River in Camp Pendleton.
Listing Date ,Causes/Types of Listings & Threats
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The Pacific Pocket Mouse was said to have been extinct almost over 20 years ago but was then rediscovered in 1993. It was then listed as federally endangered in 1994. It was listed on September 28th 1998 where a recovery plan was set in place. Based on the number and small sizes of the three known populations, the sedentary nature of the Pacific pocket mouse the biggest threats are habitat destruction, fragmentation and degradation. All of these threats are because of different land development such as urban,agricultural, residential and recreational. Because of their very small population they are more supceptual to extinction because of these habitat threats. The loss of groundwater and or blow-sand necessary for habitat maintenance is significant to this species' survival. Because they are an invasive species, factors such as illegal trash dumping, domestic animal predators, road kill, and inadequate regulatory mechanisms affect the species' well being.
Recovery Plan
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Right Now it is estimated that only 150 Pacific pocket mice are left in existence. In a order to attempt to conserve the Pacific pocket mouse, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is focusing its efforts on stabilizing current populations, searching for new populations, and establishing additional populations by means of the release of captive-bred individuals. The ultimate goal is to protect the Pacific pocket mouse until it is no longer necessary. In the attempts to save the limited population the Dana Point City Council voted in support of a proposition that gave the pacific pocket mouse 700 acres of land which would be privately owned in order for the last of the subspecies to survive and reproduce without the disruption and threat to their habitat. In 2010 at Camp Pendleton detection dogs were able to locate Pacific Pocket Mouse and found a 2.5x
increase in that habitat. The recovery plan states that its goal is to move the subspecies down to threatened by 2023. Although some progress has been seen, there is a lot progress to make and work to be done.
Links to Learn More!
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