Heterogeomys lanius
Creators: name: Don E. Wilson
name: Thomas E. Lacher, Jr
name: Russell A. Mittermeier
Publisher: name: Lynx Edicions
Year: 2016
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Chordata
Mammalia
Rodentia
Geomyidae
Heterogeomys
Heterogeomys lanius

description: 28.
Big Pocket Gopher
Heterogeomys lanius
French: Gaufre de Xuchil / German: Wollige Taschenratte / Spanish: Tuza grande
Taxonomy. Heterogeomys lanius Elliot, 1905,
“Xuchil, Vera Cruz, Mexico.” Restricted by M. S. Hafner and colleagues in 2014 to “El Xuchitl in west-central Veracruz.”
Placed into subgenus Heterogeomys. Heterogeomys considered a subgenus of Orthogeomys by J. L. Patton in 2005 but was resurrected to genus status by T. A. Spradling and colleagues in 2016. Molecular studies suggest that H. lanius is sister to H. hispidus. Monotypic.
Distribution. Known only from two localities in WC Veracruz, Mexico.
Descriptive notes. Head-body 250-290 mm,tail 90-95 mm; weight 850-900 g. Dorsal pelage of the Big Pocket Gopheris thick and woolly; pelage is black dorsally and slightly lighter ventrally. It has a fusiform body shape typical of all pocket gophers, and it possesses fur-lined cheek pouches that open external to the mouth. Anterior surface of each upper incisor has a single groove offset slightly toward the midline of the body. Chromosomal complement has 2n = 44 and FN = 84,
Habitat. Well-drained soils in mixed conifer-hardwood forests at elevations above ¢.2400 m, perhaps to timberline.
Food and Feeding. There is no specific information available for this species, but the Big Pocket Gopher probably feeds on roots, tubers, stems, and leaves of most plants available within the vicinity ofits burrow system. As in all other pocket gophers, the burrow system is a series of shallow feeding tunnels radiating spoke-like from a deeper, central network that contains one or more nest chambers and several smaller chambers for storage of food or fecal pellets.
Breeding. There is no information available for this species.
Activity patterns. The Big Pocket Gopheris active at any hour ofthe day, with periods of peak activity around dawn and dusk. It does not hibernate and is active year-round.
Movements, Home range and Social organization. There is no specific information available for this species, but the Big Pocket Gopheris likely solitary and aggressively territorial. Individuals probably leave their burrow systems only rarely, meaning that their home range is defined by size and extent of their burrow system.
Status and Conservation. Classified as Critically Endangered on The IUCN Red List (as Orthogeomys lanius). Field observations suggest that the Big Pocket Gopheris absentin regions where widespread deforestation has given rise to large agricultural fields, but itis found in areas subjected to small-scale agriculture, where individuals often occupy patches of brushy or wooded habitat too steep or rugged to cultivate. The Big Pocket Gopher waslisted as threatened in 2010 under the Mexican Endangered Species Act (also as O. lanius). Recent fieldwork has found the Big Pocket Gopher to be relatively abundant where it occurs.
Bibliography. Castro-Arellano & Vazquez (2008b), Ceballos (2014), Hafner et al. (2014), Patton (2005b), SE-MARNAT (2010), Spradling et al. (2016).
description: Published as part of Don E. Wilson, Thomas E. Lacher, Jr & Russell A. Mittermeier, 2016, Geomyidae, pp. 234-269 in Handbook of the Mammals of the World – Volume 6 Lagomorphs and Rodents I, Barcelona :Lynx Edicions on page 248, DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.6603807