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By Kate Teeter
Geographic Range
Southeastern Colorado and southwest Kansas, westernmost Oklahoma, to central San Luis Potosi (Mexico) (Wilson and Reeder, 1993)
Habitat
Cratogeomys castanops favors deep sandy or clayey soils for burrowing. Mounds of dirt excavated from burrows can often be found under bushes or cacti. When Pappogeomys is in a area that is also occupied by other species of pocket gopher (/Thomomys/ or Geomys) it tends to be restricted to shallower, rockier soils. It also appears to do better in drier habitats, with more desert plants (Davis and Schmidly, 1994; Paradiso, 1975; Whitaker, 1997).
Terrestrial Biomes:
desert or dune 
; savanna or grassland .
Physical Description
(7.5 to 11.62 oz; avg. 9.56 oz)
The fur of Cratogeomys castanops varies from a light yellowish color to a reddish brown dorsally. The feet are dark. The tail has little or no hair. The length of the body is 226-320mm, and the tail length ranges from 70-105mm. Pappogeomys can be distinguished from other pocket gopher genera by the single groove on their incisors (Thomomys have no grooves on incisors; Geomys have two grooves on incisors.) (Whitaker, 1997)
Some key physical features:
endothermic ; homoiothermic; bilateral symmetry .
Sexual dimorphism: sexes alike.
Reproduction
Cratogeomys castanops will often have multiple litters in a single year, and there are generally two young per litter. The sex ratio is skewed, with up to four times as many males as females. Mating begins in spring. Females will become reproductive in the year of their birth, but males will not mate until the following spring. (MacDonald, 1984; Paradiso, 1975).
Key reproductive features:
gonochoric/gonochoristic/dioecious (sexes separate); sexual .
Behavior
Pocket gophers are solitary and territorial. Territories may overlap at their edges - in particular, territories of males will overlap with those of females. Pocket gophers are aggressive with other pocket gophers unknown to them, and males are aggressive towards other males during the breeding season. (MacDonald, 1984).
Except when raising young, each animal will have its own burrow system. Shallower tunnels are used for foraging, and deeper tunnels for food storage and nesting. Openings of tunnels are kept plugged. (Whitaker, 1997).
Key behaviors:
motile .
Food Habits
Like other pocket gophers, Cratogeomys castanops is herbivorous. It will eat stalks and roots of many different plants, including stalks and joints of prickly pear. However, most foraging is done from underground. While foraging, C. castanops will store food in its cheek pouches. Most water is derived from the diet, so they drink very little water (Paradiso, 1975; Whitaker, 1997).
Plant Foods:
leaves; roots and tubers; wood, bark, or stems.
Economic Importance for Humans: Negative
Cratogeomys castanops is considered an agricultural pest because of it's burrows and the fact that it will eat the root systems of crop plants (Whitaker, 1997).
Ways that these animals might be a problem for humans:
crop pest.
Conservation Status
IUCN Red List: [link]:
Lower Risk - Least Concern.
US Federal List: [link]:
No special status.
CITES: [link]:
No special status.
This species is relatively common within it's range.
Other Comments
This species is also known as Pappogeomys castanops in the literature.
For More Information
Find Cratogeomys castanops information at
Contributors
Kate Teeter (author), University of Michigan.
Phil Myers (editor), Museum of Zoology, University of Michigan.
