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Richardson's ground squirrel (Urocitellus richardsonii), also known as the dakrat or flickertail, is a North American ground squirrel in the genus Urocitellus.Like a number of other ground squirrels, they are sometimes called prairie dogs or gophers, though the latter name belongs more strictly to the pocket gophers of family Geomyidae, and the former to members of the genus Cynomys.
Gophers have small eyes and a short, hairy tail, which they use to feel around tunnels when they walk backwards. Pocket gophers have often been found to carry external parasites including, most commonly, lice, but also ticks, fleas, and mites. [8] Common predators of the gopher include weasels, snakes, and hawks. [10]
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The reproductive activity of yellow-faced pocket gophers start in November and increases to a peak in March and/or April [8] During mating and copulation, the males emits low guttural squeaks throughout exploratory activities, then the male bites the female when body contact is made. [5]
Plains pocket gophers show no seasonal change in activity, except for an increased level of activity during mating season. They do show a bimodal pattern of activity during the day with increased activity occurring from 1300–1700 and then again from 2200–0600. [ 7 ]
Botta's pocket gopher (Thomomys bottae) is a pocket gopher native to western North America. It is also known in some areas as valley pocket gopher , particularly in California. Both the specific and common names of this species honor Paul-Émile Botta , a naturalist and archaeologist who collected mammals in California in 1827 and 1828.
The gophers exhibit asocial behaviors except during the gestation and mating season. Mating is believed to be polygamous. Gestation lasts around 18 days, with each litter averaging 3 or 4 young. Females will usually have one litter per year between March and June. [9] Pocket gophers form an angled tunnel in the ground as they dig for roots to eat.
Northern pocket gophers rarely appear above ground; when they do, they rarely venture more than 2.5 feet (0.76 m) from a burrow entrance. Underground, however, they often have tunnels that extend hundreds of feet where they live, store food, and give birth to their young.