During most of the year, only one adult occupies a burrow system. May. However, we have captured pregnant females as late as 1 July. Young leave their mother's burrow system in summer and may travel above ground for a time before digging their own burrow. Plains pocket gophers commonly reach densities of 4 to 6 animals per acre. Although pocket gophers are encountered infrequently, their solitary nature reflects their disposition.
Pocket gophers are very aggressive and they often have scars from fighting with other gophers.
If you encounter one, it is best to leave it alone. If you wish to move a pocket gopher without harming it, carefully pick it up by its tail. Gophers can live in a wide variety of soil types and conditions. They are active year-round but their presence is most obvious in spring and fall when they push numerous new mounds of soil to the surface. Each gopher could make as many as 200 mounds in a year.