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Ord's kangaroo rat

January 01, 1970

Ord's kangaroo rat (Dipodomys ordii) is a kangaroo rat native to western North America, specifically the Great Plains and the Great Basin, with its range extending from extreme southern Canada to central Mexico.[2][3]

Ord's kangaroo rat
Scientific classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Mammalia
Order: Rodentia
Family: Heteromyidae
Genus: Dipodomys
Species:
D. ordii
Binomial name
Dipodomys ordii
Woodhouse, 1853

Ord's kangaroo rat has a fifth toe on its hip feet, which distinguishes it from Dipodomys elator. It is bicolored with gold-brown dorsal hair and a white stomach. It has a long tail with a bushy tip, and is dark dorsally and ventrally with a white lateral stripe. Its hind feet are modified for jumping, and exceed 35 mm in length, and its total length exceeds 240 mm. Its tail is usually less than 160 mm, distinguishing it from D. elator (which exceeds 160 mm).

Though a common species in the United States, the population in Canada is considered endangered.[4]

Taxonomy edit

The currently accepted scientific name for Ord's kangaroo rat is Dipodomys ordii Woodhouse. It belongs to the family Heteromyidae, kangaroo rats and mice. Hall[5] listed 35 subspecies, but Kennedy and Schnell reported many of these subspecies are probably not legitimate since they were based on the assumption of little sexual dimorphism in the species. It has now been established that sexual dimorphism within the taxon is considerable.[6]

Distribution edit

Ord's kangaroo rat ranges from southern Alberta and southern Saskatchewan to southern Hidalgo, Mexico, and from central Oregon and eastern California east to central Kansas and Oklahoma.[7]

Ord's kangaroo rats occur mainly in semiarid, open habitats. In Nevada, they were trapped in desert scrub and gravelly soil, flat pebble desert, and washes.[8] In Utah, Ord's kangaroo rats have an affinity for open shrublands and grasslands on sandy soils.[7] In southeastern Idaho, big sagebrush/crested wheatgrass (Agropyron cristatum) range, most Ord's kangaroo rat captures occurred on disturbed sites or areas of sparse cover: Russian thistle (Salsola kali), cheatgrass (Bromus tectorum), and green rabbitbrush (Chrysothamnus viscidiflorus), followed by disturbed areas seeded to crested wheatgrass, then undisturbed big sagebrush.[9] In western South Dakota, Ord's kangaroo rats are associated with black-tailed prairie dog (Cynomys ludovicianus) towns.[10] In Wyoming, Ord's kangaroo rats are abundant in sand dune communities where vegetation is greater than 10 inches (25 cm) tall and bare soil exceeds 40%.[7] In Colorado, Ord's kangaroo rats were primarily captured in open areas with firm soil. Firm or lightly compacted soils are needed for burrow construction; highly compacted soils are too hard for them to dig.[11] In areas of desert pavement or tough clay soils in the Trans-Pecos region of Texas, Ord's kangaroo rats are confined to pockets of windblown sand and alluvial soils along arroyos.[12]

Strong intraspecific competition and little interspecific competition occurs among Dipodomys species.[13] In New Mexico, where Ord's kangaroo rats are sympatric with Merriam's kangaroo rats (D. merriamii), Ord's kangaroo rats were mostly captured in grassy microhabitats, and Merriam's kangaroo rats were captured more often around creosotebush.[13] Herbicide defoliation of shrubs (for rangeland improvement) reduced live canopy cover of creosotebush and resulted in an increase in bush muhly (Muhlenbergia porteri). After treatment, Ord's kangaroo rats replaced Merriam's kangaroo rats as the dominant rodent. This was suggested to be due to the change in habitat structure to open grass.[14]

Removal experiments to establish single species populations of kangaroo rats were unsuccessful, since many kangaroo rats are transient and quickly occupy vacated habitats.[13] Only one adult occupies a given burrow system, except for a brief period during breeding activity. Little territoriality occurs above ground except near burrow entrances, which are defended.[8]

In New Mexico, Ord's kangaroo rat annual home ranges in mesquite averaged 3.35 acres (1.36 hectares).[7] In Nevada sagebrush/grassland, Ord's kangaroo rat home ranges were estimated as 1.53 acres (0.62 hectares) by the circular method and 1.06 acres (0.43 hectares) by the principal component method. Home range movements increased through spring and again in late fall and early winter. No significant difference was found between male and female Ord's kangaroo rat home ranges; however, female home ranges decreased during reproductive periods.[15] Recapture data for Ord's kangaroo rats in Arizona indicated they do not travel far from the home range; most Ord's kangaroo rats were recaptured within 165 ft (50 m) of the original capture site. Data on the lifetime movements of individuals indicated most were recaptured within 330 feet (100 m) of the original capture site.[16]

In sagebrush in the Great Basin, Ord's kangaroo rats reach an average density of 113 rats per 10 ha.[17] In intermountain salt-desert shrublands, the population density averaged 28 individuals per 10 ha in shadscale communities and 135 individuals per 10 ha in black greasewood (Sarcobatus vermiculatus) communities.[18]

Plant communities edit

Ord's kangaroo rats occur in communities on sandy soils, including semiarid grasslands, mixed-grass prairie, shrub- and scrublands, and pinyon (Pinus spp.)-juniper (Juniperus spp.) woodlands.[7] In Canada, They are confined to open, sandy areas with sparse covers of sagebrush (Artemisia spp.), snowberry (Symphoricarpos spp.), rose (Rosa spp.), creeping juniper (J. horizontalis) and buffaloberry (Shepherdia spp.); the distribution of Ord's kangaroo rats appears to be closely associated with that of lanceleaved breadroot (Psoralea lanceolata).[19] In Oregon, Ord's kangaroo rats occur in big sagebrush (A. tridentata), western juniper (J. occidentalis), and greasewood (Sarcobatus spp.) communities. In Idaho, they are most abundant in juniper woodlands with rabbitbrush (Chrysothamnus spp.) and winterfat (Krascheninnikovia lanata) in the understory,[7] but also occur on shadscale (Atriplex confertifolia) range.[20] In Utah, Ord's kangaroo rats have an affinity for sagebrush, pinyon-juniper, and saltbush (Atriplex spp.) communities.[7] In Nevada, Ord's kangaroo rats are associated with big sagebrush communities.[21] In Colorado, Ord's kangaroo rats comprised 19% of small mammal captures in pinyon-juniper forest, scattered pinyon-juniper, and pinyon-juniper in canyon habitats.[11] In New Mexico, Ord's kangaroo rats are found in yucca (Yucca spp.), oak (Quercus spp.), mesquite (Prosopis spp.), saltbush, and creosotebush (Larrea tridentata) communities.[7][22] They are particularly abundant in mesquite sand dunes.[23] In Texas, Ord's kangaroo rats occur in honey mesquite (P. glandulosa), sand sagebrush (Artemisia filifolia), yucca, sand shinnery oak (Q. havardii), and broom snakeweed (Gutierrezia sarothrae) communities.[7] In southwestern Kansas, Ord's kangaroo rats are characteristic residents of sand sagebrush prairie.[24]

Cover requirements edit

Even in shrub-dominated communities, heteromyids including Ord's kangaroo rat tend to concentrate their activity in open areas between shrubs.[25]

Ord's kangaroo rats dig shallow burrows in loose sand in the sides of natural sand dunes, riverbanks, or road cuts. The one central burrow is surrounded by trails to feeding areas.[19] The burrows have 3-in-diameter (7.6-cm-dia) openings. Small mounds are usually formed outside the entrance to the burrow.[26] The burrow opening is usually plugged with soil during the day to maintain temperature and humidity within tolerable levels.[7][27] They scoop out small, shallow depressions to be used as dusting spots.[26]

Lifecycle edit

 
Ord's kangaroo rat

Ord's kangaroo rats are nocturnal, and spend their days in deep burrows.[26] Males are usually more abundant and active than females. Activity increases under cloud cover, particularly in winter.[7] Ord's kangaroo rats are active year-round in Texas, but further north, they are seldom seen above ground in cold weather.[26]

Ord's kangaroo rat breeding season varies with subspecies and area. Usually, one or two peak breeding seasons occur per year, and in many areas, some breeding activity occurs year-round.[7][28] The size of ovaries is significantly positively correlated with temperature.[7] The average length of the breeding period is 6.8 months. In Texas, males are fertile all year, with peak reproductive activity occurring between August and March. Higher reproductive rates are associated with increased precipitation and food supply and decreased population density. In a favorable growing season, most females breed at least twice a year, but when population density increased, females did not breed until November though growing conditions and food supplies were favorable.[29] In Arizona, the lowest proportion of males in breeding condition (about 60% of the male population) occurred in January and September–October. The lowest number of females in breeding condition occurred in November, but at least a few females were breeding at that time.[30] In Oklahoma, the two peaks in breeding activity are August–September and December through March.[31] In many areas, the onset of breeding activity follows a period of rainfall the previous month.[7]

Gestation lasts 28 to 32 days; one to six embryos are usually found. In captivity, the maximum litter size was six young.[7] The maximum number of litters produced per year by a captive female was five, the maximum number of litters per lifetime was 9, and the maximum number of young per female's lifetime was 38. The longest-lived Ord's kangaroo rat in captivity is a wild caught female who lived until 9 yr 1 months. Brown and Zeng calculated an annual death rate of 0.35 for all age classes.[16]

Food habits edit

Ord's kangaroo rats are primarily granivorous and herbivorous. They consume a variety of foods, but most commonly eat the seeds of grasses and forbs, green vegetation, and dry vegetation. They occasionally consume animal material, mostly arthropods. In Colorado, seeds comprised 74% of their diets, forbs 13%, grasses and sedges 5%, arthropods 4%, and fungi and mosses 2%.[7]

In southeastern Idaho big sagebrush/crested wheatgrass range, Ord's kangaroo rats consumed (in order of proportion) pollen, arthropods, plant parts (Asteraceae) and crested wheatgrass seeds.[9] A study of Ord's kangaroo rat foods in Texas found the primary foods consumed included seeds of sand paspalum (Paspalum stramineum), honey mesquite, sand bluestem (Andropogon gerardii var. paucipilus), common ragweed (Ambrosia artemisiifolia), and rose-ring gaillardia (Gaillardia pulchella).[32] In Texas, seeds of creosotebush, gramas (Bouteloua spp.) and dropseeds (Sporobolus spp.) formed the major portion of Ord's kangaroo rat diets.[12] Seeds of mesquite, Russian-thistle, sunflowers (Helianthus spp.), and sandbur (Cenchrus spp.) are also major dietary items.[26]

Harvested seeds are transported in cheek pouches to burrows and consumed or cached there. Ord's kangaroo rats also cache seed in scattered shallow holes; this activity sometimes results in seedling emergence. They are easily able to retrieve shallowly buried seeds. A single Ord's kangaroo rat may make tens to hundreds of caches, each with tens to hundreds of seeds.[33]

Kangaroo rats are physiologically adapted to arid environments. Most water is obtained from seeds and succulent plants. They drink water when it is available, but apparently do not require free water.[19][34]

Predators edit

In the Great Basin sagebrush, intermountain sagebrush steppe, and intermountain salt desert shrublands, potential predators of Ord's kangaroo rats include coyotes (Canis latrans), kit fox (Vulpes velox), bobcats (Lynx rufus), badgers (Taxidea taxus), long-eared owls (Asio otus), short-eared owls (Asio flammeus), great horned owls (Bubo virginianus), burrowing owls (Athene cunicularia), hawks (Buteonidae and Falconidae), rattlesnakes (Crotalus spp.), and gopher snakes (Pituophis melanoleucus).[17][18][35] In Idaho, the remains of Ord's kangaroo rats were found in up to 25% of prairie falcon (Falco mexicanus) nests. The three-year average frequency of Ord's kangaroo rat remains in prairie falcon nests was 4%.[36]

References edit

  This article incorporates public domain material from Dipodomys ordii. United States Department of Agriculture.

  1. ^ Cassola, F. (2017) [errata version of 2016 assessment]. "Dipodomys ordii". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2016: e.T6691A115083268. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-3.RLTS.T6691A22229045.en. Retrieved 9 March 2022.
  2. ^ Patton, J.L. (2005). "Family Heteromyidae". In Wilson, D.E.; Reeder, D.M (eds.). Mammal Species of the World: A Taxonomic and Geographic Reference (3rd ed.). Johns Hopkins University Press. p. 847. ISBN 978-0-8018-8221-0. OCLC 62265494.
  3. ^ Teh, Poh-lin (2001). . Animal Diversity Web (University of Michigan). Archived from the original on 2005-05-03. Retrieved 2007-08-15.
  4. ^ . Environment Canada. 2006-05-08. Archived from the original on 2005-05-03. Retrieved 2007-08-15.
  5. ^ Hall, E. Raymond. 1981. The mammals of North America. 2nd ed. Vol. 2. New York: John Wiley and Sons
  6. ^ Kennedy, Michael L.; Schnell, Gary D. (1978). "Geographic variation and sexual dimorphism in Ord's kangaroo rat, Dipodomys ordii". Journal of Mammalogy. 59 (1): 45–59. doi:10.2307/1379874. JSTOR 1379874.
  7. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p Garrison, Tom E.; Best, Troy L. (1990). "Dipodomys ordii" (PDF). Mammalian Species (353): 1–10. doi:10.2307/3504290. JSTOR 3504290.
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  9. ^ a b Koehler, David K.; Anderson, Stanley H. (1991). "Habitat use & food selection of small mammals near a sagebrush/crested wheatgrass interface in southeastern Idaho". Great Basin Naturalist. 51 (3): 249–255.
  10. ^ Sharps, Jon C.; Uresk, Daniel W. (1990). "Ecological review of black-tailed prairie dogs and associated species in western South Dakota" (PDF). Great Basin Naturalist. 50 (4): 339–344.
  11. ^ a b Ribble, David O.; Samson, Fred B. (1987). "Microhabitat associations of small mammals in southeastern Colorado, with special emphasis on Peromyscus (Rodentia)". Southwestern Naturalist. 32 (3): 291–303. doi:10.2307/3671446. JSTOR 3671446.
  12. ^ a b Schmidly, David J. 1977. The mammals of Trans-Pecos Texas: including Big Bend National Park and Guadalupe Mountains National Park. College Station, TX: Texas A&M University
  13. ^ a b c Schroder, Gene D.; Rosenzweig, Michael L. (1975). "Perturbation analysis of competition and overlap in habitat utilization between Dipodomys ordii and Dipodomys merriami". Oecologia. 19 (1): 9–28. Bibcode:1975Oecol..19....9S. doi:10.1007/BF00377586. JSTOR 4215091. PMID 28308827. S2CID 6735185.
  14. ^ Whitford, Walter G.; Dick-Peddie, Scott; Walters, David; Ludwig, John A. (1978). "Effects of shrub defoliation on grass cover and rodent species in a Chihuahuan desert ecosystem". Journal of Arid Environments. 1 (3): 237–242. Bibcode:1978JArEn...1..237W. doi:10.1016/S0140-1963(18)31726-9.
  15. ^ O'Farrell, Michael J. (1978). "Home range dynamics of rodents in a sagebrush community". Journal of Mammalogy. 59 (4): 657–668. doi:10.2307/1380131. JSTOR 1380131.
  16. ^ a b Brown, James H.; Zeng, Zongyong (1989). "Comparative population ecology of eleven species of rodents in the Chihuahuan Desert". Ecology. 70 (5): 1507–1525. doi:10.2307/1938209. JSTOR 1938209.
  17. ^ a b West, N. E. 1983. Great Basin-Colorado plateau sagebrush semi-desert. In: Temperate deserts and semi-deserts. Amsterdam; Oxford; New York: Elsevier Scientific Publishing Company: 331–349. (Goodall, David W., ed. in chief; Ecosystems of the world; vol. 5)
  18. ^ a b West, Neil E. 1983. Intermountain salt-desert shrubland. In: West, Neil E., ed. Temperate deserts and semi-deserts. Amsterdam; Oxford; New York: Elsevier Scientific Publishing Company; 1983: 375–397. (Goodall, David W., ed. in chief.; Ecosystems of the world; vol. 5)
  19. ^ a b c Banfield, A. W. F. 1974. The mammals of Canada. Toronto: University of Toronto Press
  20. ^ Groves, Craig R.; Steenhof, Karen (1988). "Responses of small mammals and vegetation to wildfire in shadscale communities of southwestern Idaho". Northwest Science. 62 (5): 205–210.
  21. ^ Welch, Bruce L.; McArthur, E. Durant. 1985. Big sagebrush—its taxonomy, origin, distribution and utility. In: Fisser, Herbert G., ed. Wyoming shrublands: Proceedings, 14th Wyoming shrub ecology workshop; 1985 May 29–30; Rock Springs, WY. Laramie, WY: University of Wyoming, Department of Range Management, Wyoming Shrub Ecology Workshop: 3–19
  22. ^ Mares, M. A.; Hulse, A. C. 1977. Patterns of some vertebrate communities in creosote bush deserts. In: Mabry, T. J.; Hunziker, J. H.; DiFeo, D. R., Jr., eds. Creosote bush: Biology and chemistry of Larrea in New World deserts. U.S./IBP Synthesis Series 6. Stroudsburg, PA: Dowden, Hutchinson & Ross, Inc.: 209–226
  23. ^ Campbell, R. S. (1929). "Vegetative succession in the Prosopis sand dunes of southern New Mexico". Ecology. 10 (4): 392–398. doi:10.2307/1931147. JSTOR 1931147.
  24. ^ Sexson, Mark L. 1983. Destruction of sandsage prairie in southwest Kansas. In: Proceedings, 7th North American prairie conference; 1980 August 4–6; Springfield, MO. Columbia, MO: University of Missouri: 113–115.
  25. ^ Price, M. V.; Brown, J. H. (1983). "Patterns of morphology and resource use in North American desert rodent communities". Great Basin Naturalist Memoirs. 7: 117–134.
  26. ^ a b c d e Whitaker, John O., Jr. 1980. National Audubon Society field guide to North American mammals. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, Inc.
  27. ^ Lechleitner, R. R. 1969. Wild mammals of Colorado. Boulder, CO: Pruett Publishing Company.
  28. ^ Smith, H. Duane; Jorgensen, Clive D. 1975. Reproductive biology of North American desert rodents. In: Prakash, I.; Ghosh, P. K., eds. Rodents in desert environments. Monographiae Biologicae Vol. 28. The Hague, Netherlands: Dr. W. Junk: 305-330
  29. ^ McCulloch, C. Y.; Inglis, J. M. (1961). "Breeding periods of the ord kangaroo rat". Journal of Mammalogy. 42 (3): 337–344. doi:10.2307/1377029. JSTOR 1377029.
  30. ^ Brown, J. H.; Heske, E. J. (1990). "Control of a Desert-Grassland". Science. 250 (4988). Translated by a Keystone Rodent Guild: 1705–7. doi:10.1126/science.250.4988.1705. PMID 17734708. S2CID 33357407.
  31. ^ Hoditschek, Barbara; Best, Troy L. (1983). "Reproductive biology of Ord's kangaroo rat (Dipodomys ordii) in Oklahoma". Journal of Mammalogy. 64 (1): 121–127. doi:10.2307/1380757. JSTOR 1380757.
  32. ^ Alcoze, Thomas M.; Zimmerman, Earl G. (1973). "Food habits and dietary overlap of two heteromyid rodents from the mesquite plains of Texas". Journal of Mammalogy. 54 (4): 900–908. doi:10.2307/1379084. JSTOR 1379084.
  33. ^ Longland, William S. 1995. Desert rodents in disturbed shrub communities and their effects on plant recruitment. In: Roundy, Bruce A.; McArthur, E. Durant; Haley, Jennifer S.; Mann, David K., compilers. Proceedings: wildland shrub and arid land restoration symposium; 1993 October 19–21; Las Vegas, NV. Gen. Tech. Rep. INT-GTR-315. Ogden, UT: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Intermountain Research Station: 209–215
  34. ^ Mares, Michael A. (1983). "Desert rodent adaptation and community structure. Great Basin Naturalist Memoirs". 7: 30–43. {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  35. ^ West, N. E. 1983. Western Intermountain sagebrush steppe. In: Temperate deserts and semi-deserts. Amsterdam; Oxford; New York: Elsevier Scientific Publishing Company. 352–374. (Goodall, David W., ed. in chief; Ecosystems of the world; vol. 5)
  36. ^ Ogden, Verland T.; Hornocker, Maurice G. (1977). "Nesting density and success of prairie falcons in southwestern Idaho". Journal of Wildlife Management. 41 (1): 1–11. doi:10.2307/3800084. JSTOR 3800084.

External links edit

January 01, 1970
kangaroo, dipodomys, ordii, kangaroo, native, western, north, america, specifically, great, plains, great, basin, with, range, extending, from, extreme, southern, canada, central, mexico, conservation, status, least, concern, iucn, scientific, classification, . Ord s kangaroo rat Dipodomys ordii is a kangaroo rat native to western North America specifically the Great Plains and the Great Basin with its range extending from extreme southern Canada to central Mexico 2 3 Ord s kangaroo rat Conservation status Least Concern IUCN 3 1 1 Scientific classification Domain Eukaryota Kingdom Animalia Phylum Chordata Class Mammalia Order Rodentia Family Heteromyidae Genus Dipodomys Species D ordii Binomial name Dipodomys ordiiWoodhouse 1853 Ord s kangaroo rat has a fifth toe on its hip feet which distinguishes it from Dipodomys elator It is bicolored with gold brown dorsal hair and a white stomach It has a long tail with a bushy tip and is dark dorsally and ventrally with a white lateral stripe Its hind feet are modified for jumping and exceed 35 mm in length and its total length exceeds 240 mm Its tail is usually less than 160 mm distinguishing it from D elator which exceeds 160 mm Though a common species in the United States the population in Canada is considered endangered 4 Contents 1 Taxonomy 2 Distribution 3 Plant communities 4 Cover requirements 5 Lifecycle 6 Food habits 7 Predators 8 References 9 External linksTaxonomy editThe currently accepted scientific name for Ord s kangaroo rat is Dipodomys ordii Woodhouse It belongs to the family Heteromyidae kangaroo rats and mice Hall 5 listed 35 subspecies but Kennedy and Schnell reported many of these subspecies are probably not legitimate since they were based on the assumption of little sexual dimorphism in the species It has now been established that sexual dimorphism within the taxon is considerable 6 Distribution editOrd s kangaroo rat ranges from southern Alberta and southern Saskatchewan to southern Hidalgo Mexico and from central Oregon and eastern California east to central Kansas and Oklahoma 7 Ord s kangaroo rats occur mainly in semiarid open habitats In Nevada they were trapped in desert scrub and gravelly soil flat pebble desert and washes 8 In Utah Ord s kangaroo rats have an affinity for open shrublands and grasslands on sandy soils 7 In southeastern Idaho big sagebrush crested wheatgrass Agropyron cristatum range most Ord s kangaroo rat captures occurred on disturbed sites or areas of sparse cover Russian thistle Salsola kali cheatgrass Bromus tectorum and green rabbitbrush Chrysothamnus viscidiflorus followed by disturbed areas seeded to crested wheatgrass then undisturbed big sagebrush 9 In western South Dakota Ord s kangaroo rats are associated with black tailed prairie dog Cynomys ludovicianus towns 10 In Wyoming Ord s kangaroo rats are abundant in sand dune communities where vegetation is greater than 10 inches 25 cm tall and bare soil exceeds 40 7 In Colorado Ord s kangaroo rats were primarily captured in open areas with firm soil Firm or lightly compacted soils are needed for burrow construction highly compacted soils are too hard for them to dig 11 In areas of desert pavement or tough clay soils in the Trans Pecos region of Texas Ord s kangaroo rats are confined to pockets of windblown sand and alluvial soils along arroyos 12 Strong intraspecific competition and little interspecific competition occurs among Dipodomys species 13 In New Mexico where Ord s kangaroo rats are sympatric with Merriam s kangaroo rats D merriamii Ord s kangaroo rats were mostly captured in grassy microhabitats and Merriam s kangaroo rats were captured more often around creosotebush 13 Herbicide defoliation of shrubs for rangeland improvement reduced live canopy cover of creosotebush and resulted in an increase in bush muhly Muhlenbergia porteri After treatment Ord s kangaroo rats replaced Merriam s kangaroo rats as the dominant rodent This was suggested to be due to the change in habitat structure to open grass 14 Removal experiments to establish single species populations of kangaroo rats were unsuccessful since many kangaroo rats are transient and quickly occupy vacated habitats 13 Only one adult occupies a given burrow system except for a brief period during breeding activity Little territoriality occurs above ground except near burrow entrances which are defended 8 In New Mexico Ord s kangaroo rat annual home ranges in mesquite averaged 3 35 acres 1 36 hectares 7 In Nevada sagebrush grassland Ord s kangaroo rat home ranges were estimated as 1 53 acres 0 62 hectares by the circular method and 1 06 acres 0 43 hectares by the principal component method Home range movements increased through spring and again in late fall and early winter No significant difference was found between male and female Ord s kangaroo rat home ranges however female home ranges decreased during reproductive periods 15 Recapture data for Ord s kangaroo rats in Arizona indicated they do not travel far from the home range most Ord s kangaroo rats were recaptured within 165 ft 50 m of the original capture site Data on the lifetime movements of individuals indicated most were recaptured within 330 feet 100 m of the original capture site 16 In sagebrush in the Great Basin Ord s kangaroo rats reach an average density of 113 rats per 10 ha 17 In intermountain salt desert shrublands the population density averaged 28 individuals per 10 ha in shadscale communities and 135 individuals per 10 ha in black greasewood Sarcobatus vermiculatus communities 18 Plant communities editOrd s kangaroo rats occur in communities on sandy soils including semiarid grasslands mixed grass prairie shrub and scrublands and pinyon Pinus spp juniper Juniperus spp woodlands 7 In Canada They are confined to open sandy areas with sparse covers of sagebrush Artemisia spp snowberry Symphoricarpos spp rose Rosa spp creeping juniper J horizontalis and buffaloberry Shepherdia spp the distribution of Ord s kangaroo rats appears to be closely associated with that of lanceleaved breadroot Psoralea lanceolata 19 In Oregon Ord s kangaroo rats occur in big sagebrush A tridentata western juniper J occidentalis and greasewood Sarcobatus spp communities In Idaho they are most abundant in juniper woodlands with rabbitbrush Chrysothamnus spp and winterfat Krascheninnikovia lanata in the understory 7 but also occur on shadscale Atriplex confertifolia range 20 In Utah Ord s kangaroo rats have an affinity for sagebrush pinyon juniper and saltbush Atriplex spp communities 7 In Nevada Ord s kangaroo rats are associated with big sagebrush communities 21 In Colorado Ord s kangaroo rats comprised 19 of small mammal captures in pinyon juniper forest scattered pinyon juniper and pinyon juniper in canyon habitats 11 In New Mexico Ord s kangaroo rats are found in yucca Yucca spp oak Quercus spp mesquite Prosopis spp saltbush and creosotebush Larrea tridentata communities 7 22 They are particularly abundant in mesquite sand dunes 23 In Texas Ord s kangaroo rats occur in honey mesquite P glandulosa sand sagebrush Artemisia filifolia yucca sand shinnery oak Q havardii and broom snakeweed Gutierrezia sarothrae communities 7 In southwestern Kansas Ord s kangaroo rats are characteristic residents of sand sagebrush prairie 24 Cover requirements editEven in shrub dominated communities heteromyids including Ord s kangaroo rat tend to concentrate their activity in open areas between shrubs 25 Ord s kangaroo rats dig shallow burrows in loose sand in the sides of natural sand dunes riverbanks or road cuts The one central burrow is surrounded by trails to feeding areas 19 The burrows have 3 in diameter 7 6 cm dia openings Small mounds are usually formed outside the entrance to the burrow 26 The burrow opening is usually plugged with soil during the day to maintain temperature and humidity within tolerable levels 7 27 They scoop out small shallow depressions to be used as dusting spots 26 Lifecycle edit nbsp Ord s kangaroo rat Ord s kangaroo rats are nocturnal and spend their days in deep burrows 26 Males are usually more abundant and active than females Activity increases under cloud cover particularly in winter 7 Ord s kangaroo rats are active year round in Texas but further north they are seldom seen above ground in cold weather 26 Ord s kangaroo rat breeding season varies with subspecies and area Usually one or two peak breeding seasons occur per year and in many areas some breeding activity occurs year round 7 28 The size of ovaries is significantly positively correlated with temperature 7 The average length of the breeding period is 6 8 months In Texas males are fertile all year with peak reproductive activity occurring between August and March Higher reproductive rates are associated with increased precipitation and food supply and decreased population density In a favorable growing season most females breed at least twice a year but when population density increased females did not breed until November though growing conditions and food supplies were favorable 29 In Arizona the lowest proportion of males in breeding condition about 60 of the male population occurred in January and September October The lowest number of females in breeding condition occurred in November but at least a few females were breeding at that time 30 In Oklahoma the two peaks in breeding activity are August September and December through March 31 In many areas the onset of breeding activity follows a period of rainfall the previous month 7 Gestation lasts 28 to 32 days one to six embryos are usually found In captivity the maximum litter size was six young 7 The maximum number of litters produced per year by a captive female was five the maximum number of litters per lifetime was 9 and the maximum number of young per female s lifetime was 38 The longest lived Ord s kangaroo rat in captivity is a wild caught female who lived until 9 yr 1 months Brown and Zeng calculated an annual death rate of 0 35 for all age classes 16 Food habits editOrd s kangaroo rats are primarily granivorous and herbivorous They consume a variety of foods but most commonly eat the seeds of grasses and forbs green vegetation and dry vegetation They occasionally consume animal material mostly arthropods In Colorado seeds comprised 74 of their diets forbs 13 grasses and sedges 5 arthropods 4 and fungi and mosses 2 7 In southeastern Idaho big sagebrush crested wheatgrass range Ord s kangaroo rats consumed in order of proportion pollen arthropods plant parts Asteraceae and crested wheatgrass seeds 9 A study of Ord s kangaroo rat foods in Texas found the primary foods consumed included seeds of sand paspalum Paspalum stramineum honey mesquite sand bluestem Andropogon gerardii var paucipilus common ragweed Ambrosia artemisiifolia and rose ring gaillardia Gaillardia pulchella 32 In Texas seeds of creosotebush gramas Bouteloua spp and dropseeds Sporobolus spp formed the major portion of Ord s kangaroo rat diets 12 Seeds of mesquite Russian thistle sunflowers Helianthus spp and sandbur Cenchrus spp are also major dietary items 26 Harvested seeds are transported in cheek pouches to burrows and consumed or cached there Ord s kangaroo rats also cache seed in scattered shallow holes this activity sometimes results in seedling emergence They are easily able to retrieve shallowly buried seeds A single Ord s kangaroo rat may make tens to hundreds of caches each with tens to hundreds of seeds 33 Kangaroo rats are physiologically adapted to arid environments Most water is obtained from seeds and succulent plants They drink water when it is available but apparently do not require free water 19 34 Predators editIn the Great Basin sagebrush intermountain sagebrush steppe and intermountain salt desert shrublands potential predators of Ord s kangaroo rats include coyotes Canis latrans kit fox Vulpes velox bobcats Lynx rufus badgers Taxidea taxus long eared owls Asio otus short eared owls Asio flammeus great horned owls Bubo virginianus burrowing owls Athene cunicularia hawks Buteonidae and Falconidae rattlesnakes Crotalus spp and gopher snakes Pituophis melanoleucus 17 18 35 In Idaho the remains of Ord s kangaroo rats were found in up to 25 of prairie falcon Falco mexicanus nests The three year average frequency of Ord s kangaroo rat remains in prairie falcon nests was 4 36 References edit nbsp This article incorporates public domain material from Dipodomys ordii United States Department of Agriculture Cassola F 2017 errata version of 2016 assessment Dipodomys ordii IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2016 e T6691A115083268 doi 10 2305 IUCN UK 2016 3 RLTS T6691A22229045 en Retrieved 9 March 2022 Patton J L 2005 Family Heteromyidae In Wilson D E Reeder D M eds Mammal Species of the World A Taxonomic and Geographic Reference 3rd ed Johns Hopkins University Press p 847 ISBN 978 0 8018 8221 0 OCLC 62265494 Teh Poh lin 2001 ADW Dipodomys ordii Information Animal Diversity Web University of Michigan Archived from the original on 2005 05 03 Retrieved 2007 08 15 Species at Risk Ord s Kangaroo Rat Environment Canada 2006 05 08 Archived from the original on 2005 05 03 Retrieved 2007 08 15 Hall E Raymond 1981 The mammals of North America 2nd ed Vol 2 New York John Wiley and Sons Kennedy Michael L Schnell Gary D 1978 Geographic variation and sexual dimorphism in Ord s kangaroo rat Dipodomys ordii Journal of Mammalogy 59 1 45 59 doi 10 2307 1379874 JSTOR 1379874 a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p Garrison Tom E Best Troy L 1990 Dipodomys ordii PDF Mammalian Species 353 1 10 doi 10 2307 3504290 JSTOR 3504290 a b Eisenberg John Frederick 1963 The behavior of heteromyid rodents University of California Publ in Zoology Vol 69 Berkeley CA University of California Press a b Koehler David K Anderson Stanley H 1991 Habitat use amp food selection of small mammals near a sagebrush crested wheatgrass interface in southeastern Idaho Great Basin Naturalist 51 3 249 255 Sharps Jon C Uresk Daniel W 1990 Ecological review of black tailed prairie dogs and associated species in western South Dakota PDF Great Basin Naturalist 50 4 339 344 a b Ribble David O Samson Fred B 1987 Microhabitat associations of small mammals in southeastern Colorado with special emphasis on Peromyscus Rodentia Southwestern Naturalist 32 3 291 303 doi 10 2307 3671446 JSTOR 3671446 a b Schmidly David J 1977 The mammals of Trans Pecos Texas including Big Bend National Park and Guadalupe Mountains National Park College Station TX Texas A amp M University a b c Schroder Gene D Rosenzweig Michael L 1975 Perturbation analysis of competition and overlap in habitat utilization between Dipodomys ordii and Dipodomys merriami Oecologia 19 1 9 28 Bibcode 1975Oecol 19 9S doi 10 1007 BF00377586 JSTOR 4215091 PMID 28308827 S2CID 6735185 Whitford Walter G Dick Peddie Scott Walters David Ludwig John A 1978 Effects of shrub defoliation on grass cover and rodent species in a Chihuahuan desert ecosystem Journal of Arid Environments 1 3 237 242 Bibcode 1978JArEn 1 237W doi 10 1016 S0140 1963 18 31726 9 O Farrell Michael J 1978 Home range dynamics of rodents in a sagebrush community Journal of Mammalogy 59 4 657 668 doi 10 2307 1380131 JSTOR 1380131 a b Brown James H Zeng Zongyong 1989 Comparative population ecology of eleven species of rodents in the Chihuahuan Desert Ecology 70 5 1507 1525 doi 10 2307 1938209 JSTOR 1938209 a b West N E 1983 Great Basin Colorado plateau sagebrush semi desert In Temperate deserts and semi deserts Amsterdam Oxford New York Elsevier Scientific Publishing Company 331 349 Goodall David W ed in chief Ecosystems of the world vol 5 a b West Neil E 1983 Intermountain salt desert shrubland In West Neil E ed Temperate deserts and semi deserts Amsterdam Oxford New York Elsevier Scientific Publishing Company 1983 375 397 Goodall David W ed in chief Ecosystems of the world vol 5 a b c Banfield A W F 1974 The mammals of Canada Toronto University of Toronto Press Groves Craig R Steenhof Karen 1988 Responses of small mammals and vegetation to wildfire in shadscale communities of southwestern Idaho Northwest Science 62 5 205 210 Welch Bruce L McArthur E Durant 1985 Big sagebrush its taxonomy origin distribution and utility In Fisser Herbert G ed Wyoming shrublands Proceedings 14th Wyoming shrub ecology workshop 1985 May 29 30 Rock Springs WY Laramie WY University of Wyoming Department of Range Management Wyoming Shrub Ecology Workshop 3 19 Mares M A Hulse A C 1977 Patterns of some vertebrate communities in creosote bush deserts In Mabry T J Hunziker J H DiFeo D R Jr eds Creosote bush Biology and chemistry of Larrea in New World deserts U S IBP Synthesis Series 6 Stroudsburg PA Dowden Hutchinson amp Ross Inc 209 226 Campbell R S 1929 Vegetative succession in the Prosopis sand dunes of southern New Mexico Ecology 10 4 392 398 doi 10 2307 1931147 JSTOR 1931147 Sexson Mark L 1983 Destruction of sandsage prairie in southwest Kansas In Proceedings 7th North American prairie conference 1980 August 4 6 Springfield MO Columbia MO University of Missouri 113 115 Price M V Brown J H 1983 Patterns of morphology and resource use in North American desert rodent communities Great Basin Naturalist Memoirs 7 117 134 a b c d e Whitaker John O Jr 1980 National Audubon Society field guide to North American mammals New York Alfred A Knopf Inc Lechleitner R R 1969 Wild mammals of Colorado Boulder CO Pruett Publishing Company Smith H Duane Jorgensen Clive D 1975 Reproductive biology of North American desert rodents In Prakash I Ghosh P K eds Rodents in desert environments Monographiae Biologicae Vol 28 The Hague Netherlands Dr W Junk 305 330 McCulloch C Y Inglis J M 1961 Breeding periods of the ord kangaroo rat Journal of Mammalogy 42 3 337 344 doi 10 2307 1377029 JSTOR 1377029 Brown J H Heske E J 1990 Control of a Desert Grassland Science 250 4988 Translated by a Keystone Rodent Guild 1705 7 doi 10 1126 science 250 4988 1705 PMID 17734708 S2CID 33357407 Hoditschek Barbara Best Troy L 1983 Reproductive biology of Ord s kangaroo rat Dipodomys ordii in Oklahoma Journal of Mammalogy 64 1 121 127 doi 10 2307 1380757 JSTOR 1380757 Alcoze Thomas M Zimmerman Earl G 1973 Food habits and dietary overlap of two heteromyid rodents from the mesquite plains of Texas Journal of Mammalogy 54 4 900 908 doi 10 2307 1379084 JSTOR 1379084 Longland William S 1995 Desert rodents in disturbed shrub communities and their effects on plant recruitment In Roundy Bruce A McArthur E Durant Haley Jennifer S Mann David K compilers Proceedings wildland shrub and arid land restoration symposium 1993 October 19 21 Las Vegas NV Gen Tech Rep INT GTR 315 Ogden UT U S Department of Agriculture Forest Service Intermountain Research Station 209 215 Mares Michael A 1983 Desert rodent adaptation and community structure Great Basin Naturalist Memoirs 7 30 43 a href Template Cite journal html title Template Cite journal cite journal a Cite journal requires journal help West N E 1983 Western Intermountain sagebrush steppe In Temperate deserts and semi deserts Amsterdam Oxford New York Elsevier Scientific Publishing Company 352 374 Goodall David W ed in chief Ecosystems of the world vol 5 Ogden Verland T Hornocker Maurice G 1977 Nesting density and success of prairie falcons in southwestern Idaho Journal of Wildlife Management 41 1 1 11 doi 10 2307 3800084 JSTOR 3800084 External links editView the kangaroo rat genome in Ensembl View the dipOrd1 genome assembly in the UCSC Genome Browser Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Ord 27s kangaroo rat amp oldid 1219501929, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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