Chaetodipus

Chaetodipus is a genus of pocket mouse. Like other members of their family such as pocket mice in the genus Perognathus, they are more closely related to pocket gophers than to true mice.

Characteristics
Members of this genus range in size from 80 to 125 mm (head and body) and weigh 15-47 grams (Nowak, 1999). Unlike the silky pocket mice (genus Perognathus), most species of the genus Chaetodipus have harsh pelage with some bordering on spiny hair. They tend to be found in arid habitats where they feed on seeds, vegetation, and insects (Nowak, 1999). Females give birth to a litter of 2-9 young after a gestation period of just under a month. The longest recorded lifespan is 8 years and 4 months (Nowak, 1999).

Sometimes members of the genus Chaetodipus are placed in the genus Perognathus.

References
 Nowak, Ronald M. 1999. Walker's Mammals of the World, 6th edition. Johns Hopkins University Press, 1936 pp. 
 Patton, J. L. 2005. Family Heteromyidae. pp. 844–858 in Mammal Species of the World a Taxonomic and Geographic Reference. D. E. Wilson and D. M. Reeder eds. Johns Hopkins University Press, Baltimore.

Category:Geomyoid rodents