Oriental Basin pocket gopher

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Oriental Basin pocket gopher

Least Concern (IUCN 3.1)[1]
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Mammalia
Order: Rodentia
Family: Geomyidae
Genus: Cratogeomys
Species:
C. fulvescens
Binomial name
Cratogeomys fulvescens
Synonyms
  • Pappogeomys (Cratogeomys) merriami fulvescens (Merriam, 1895)[3]
  • Cratogeomys fulvescens subluteus Nelson and Goldman, 1934[4]
  • Cratogeomys merriami fulvescens Merriam, 1895

The Oriental Basin pocket gopher (Cratogeomys fulvescens) is a species of

least concern
.

Description

C. fulvescens is mid-sized for the genus Cratogeomys and exhibits

dental formula is 1.0.1.31.0.1.3 × 2 = 20. Each upper incisor has a longitudinal groove along its anterior surface.[5] The total body length is 290–350 mm (11–14 in).[5]

Distribution

This species is

type locality as: "Chalchicomula, State of Puebla, Mexico";[2] this city is now known as Ciudad Serdán.[8] The type locality for the formerly-recognized subspecies C. f. subluteus is Perote, Veracruz.[4]

Taxonomic history

The American zoologist

C. castanops on the basis of cranial morphology.[2]

In 1968, Robert J. Russell reclassified Cratogeomys to be a subgenus of

Pappogeomys (Cratogeomys) merriami.[3] Russell stated that of the seven subspecies he recognized for P. (C.) merriami, "the most divergent" was P. (C.) m. fulvescens due to differences in coloration, size, and cranial morphology.[10] This classification in E. Raymond Hall's 1981 The Mammals of North America also used the combination P. (C.) m. fulvescens for this taxon.[11] Cratogeomys was reinstated as a genus in 1982;[12][8] the third edition of Mammal Species of the World refers to this taxon as C. m. fulvescens.[13]

C. fulvescens was reinstated as its own species in 2005 due to a genetic and morphological study by Mark S. Hafner and colleagues. They placed it in the C. castanops

No subspecies are presently recognized.[5][6] A subspecies, C. f. subluteus had been described in 1934 by Edward William Nelson and Edward Alphonso Goldman.[4] This subspecies was also known by the common names "yellow pocket gopher"[14] and "fulvous pocket gopher".[15]

The holotypes for C. fulvescens and for C. f. subluteus are both in the collections of the U.S. National Museum of Natural History, Washington, DC.[16] Each specimen consists of its preserved skin and its skull.[17] Nelson and Goldman collected both holotypes: The C. fulvescens holotype was collected in 1894,[2] and the C. f. subluteus holotype was collected in 1893.[4]

The

inchoative form of the verb meaning "to become tawny". The epithet of its formerly recognized subspecies, subluteus (sub-luteus), is a Latin adjective meaning "yellowish".[18] The common name for the species, Oriental Basin pocket gopher, refers to the Oriental Basin in Mexico, where it is found.[5] Its common name in Spanish is gran tuza de la Cuenca de Oriental.[19]

Biology

G. fulvescens paratypes in the Natural History Museum, London

C. fulvescens's diet consists of

bulbs, and roots.[5] Pregnancy has been observed from December through February.[5] Because pregnancy was not observed in July, it is thought they only have one litter each year.[14]

Two species of

chewing lice in the genus Geomydoecus have C. fulvescens as a host: G. fulvescens and G. veracruzensis.[20][21] Both species were described in 1971 by Roger D. Price and K. C. Emerson.[22] The flea species Dasypsyllus megasoma and Meringis altipecten were also observed on C. fulvescens; although it is thought the presence of M. altipecten is thought to have been accidental rather than due to being a typical ectoparasite for the species.[23] The nematode species Vexillata convoluta is also a parasite of C. fulvescens.[24]

Genetics

Its

C. perotensis and C. merriami.[8]

Conservation status and relationship with humans

The

SEMARNAT did not include it in its 2010 list of threatened or endangered mammals of Mexico.[25][5] Although its observed habitat is less than 20,000 km2 (7,700 sq mi), it is believed to be "common and adaptable".[1] Part of its range is affected by habitat loss due to human expansion.[1] C. fulvescens were found as roadkill along a highway going through its range.[26][27] Mark S. Hafner wrote there ought to be further studies on its conservation status, particularly as its geographic range is smaller than that of other Mexican pocket gophers.[5] C. fulvescens have been observed in farmland and might be considered to be a pest[5] as they destroy crops including wheat, corn, and beans.[2][15]

References

  1. ^ . Retrieved 19 November 2021.
  2. ^ a b c d e Merriam, C. Hart (1895). Monographic Revision of the Pocket Gophers Family Geomyidæ (Exclusive of the species of Thomomys). North American Fauna. Vol. 8. Washington: Government Printing Office. pp. 151, 161–162.
  3. ^ a b Russell (1968), pp. 700–703.
  4. ^ a b c d Nelson, E. W.; Goldman, E. A. (1934). "Revision of the Pocket Gophers of the Genus Cratogeomys". Proceedings of the Biological Society of Washington. 47: 152.
  5. ^ .
  6. ^ .
  7. .
  8. ^ .
  9. ^ Russell (1968), pp. 591–594.
  10. ^ Russell (1968), pp. 695–697.
  11. .
  12. .
  13. .
  14. ^ .
  15. ^ a b Hall, E. Raymond; Dalquest, Walter W. (1963). "The Mammals of Veracruz". University of Kansas Publications, Museum of Natural History. 14 (14): 280–281.
  16. ISSN 0368-8720
    .
  17. ^ Poole, Arthur J.; Schantz, Viola S. (1942). "Catalog of the Type Specimens of Mammals in the United States National Museum, Including the Biological Surveys Collection". Smithsonian Institution United States National Museum Bulletin. 178: 367.
  18. ^ Glare, P. G. W. (1968). "sublūteus". Oxford Latin Dictionary. Oxford: Oxford University Press. p. 1844.
  19. ISSN 2007-3364
    .
  20. .
  21. .
  22. .
  23. .
  24. .
  25. ^ SEMARNAT (2010). "NORMA Oficial Mexicana NOM-059-SEMARNAT-2010, Protección ambiental-Especies nativas de México de flora y fauna silvestres-Categorías de riesgo y especificaciones para su inclusión, exclusión o cambio-Lista de especies en riesgo". Diario Oficial de la Federación. Archived from the original on 30 June 2017. Retrieved 6 February 2018.
  26. S2CID 17140075
    .
  27. .

Works cited