Anselme GaÃ«tan Desmarest>Desmarest, 1817| subdivision_ranks = Subfamilies| subdivision = Dipodomyinae Heteromyinae Perognathinae}}Heteromyidae is a family of rodents consisting of kangaroo rats, kangaroo mice, pocket mice and spiny pocket mice. Most heteromyids live in complex burrows within the deserts and grasslands of western North America, though species within the genus Heteromys are also found in forests and their range extends as far south as northern South America. They feed mostly on seeds and other plant parts, which they carry in their fur-lined cheek pouchesJOURNAL, Morton, S. R., D. S., Hinds, R. E., MacMillen, 1980, Cheek pouch capacity in heteromyid rodents, Oecologia, 46, 2, 143â€“146, 10.1007/BF00540118, 28309665, 1980Oecol..46..143M, 20685098, to their burrows.BOOK, Macdonald, D., Fleming, Theodore, 1984, The Encyclopedia of Mammals, Facts on File, New York, 632â€“633, 0-87196-871-1, registration,archive.org/details/encyclopediaofma00mals_0/page/632, Although they are very different in physical appearance, the closest relatives of the heteromyids are pocket gophers in the family Geomyidae.

Description

There are about fifty-nine members of the family Heteromyidae divided among six genera. They are all small rodents, the largest being the giant kangaroo rat (Dipodomys ingens) with a body length of {{convert|15|cm|0|abbr=on}} and a tail a little longer than this.WEB,www.arkive.org/giant-kangaroo-rat/dipodomys-ingens/, Giant kangaroo rat (Dipodomys ingens), ARKive, 2013-09-15,www.arkive.org/giant-kangaroo-rat/dipodomys-ingens/," title="web.archive.org/web/20171113210612www.arkive.org/giant-kangaroo-rat/dipodomys-ingens/,">web.archive.org/web/20171113210612www.arkive.org/giant-kangaroo-rat/dipodomys-ingens/, 2017-11-13, dead, In many species the tail is tufted and is mainly used for balance. Other adaptations include partially fused vertebrae in the neck, short fore limbs and much enlarged bullae (bubble-shaped bones in the skull). The skulls vary widely across the group but they are all thin and papery and do not have the robust cranial crests and ridges found on the skulls of members of the family Geomyidae. The skull has other peculiarities. There is an extra hole that penetrates the rostrum, distinctive occluded teeth and the masseter muscle, which moves the lower jaw, is set far forward on the snout, an arrangement found in squirrels, beavers, pocket gophers, heteromyids and a few other groups. The dental formula is {{dentalFormula|upper=1.0.1.3|lower=1.0.1.3|total=20}} teeth in total. In the kangaroo rats, the teeth continue to grow all the time, being worn away as the animal chews. The molars have two-lobed cusps.WEB,animaldiversity.ummz.umich.edu/accounts/Heteromyidae/, Heteromyidae: kangaroo rats, pocket mice, and relatives, Myers, Phil, ADW: Animal Diversity Web, University of Michigan: Museum of Zoology, 2013-09-15, The upper incisors are grooved and the enamel on the molars is quickly worn away by chewing leaving the dentine exposed. In the kangaroo rats they are unrooted but in the pocket mice they have roots.WEB,www.utep.edu/leb/Pleistnm/taxaMamm/Heteromyidae.htm, Heteromyidaeâ€”Kangaroo Rats and Pocket Mice, Harris, Arthur H., 2012-11-23, Pleistocene vertebrates of Arizona, New Mexico and Trans-pecos Texas, University of Texas at El Paso, 2013-09-15, Fur-lined cheek pouches are a feature across the family Heteromyidae. They have openings near the mouth and extend backwards along the sides of the neck. The fur on the animal’s body is in general short and fine and often matches in colour the soil of the region in which the animal lives, being some shade of buff, pale brown, reddish-brown or grey. The spiny pocket mice have coarser fur and spiky bristles on the back near the tail.

Distribution

Heteromyids are endemic to the western United States, Mexico, Central America and northwestern South America. They are creatures of open country, mostly specialising in prairies, arid lands and desert fringes, but the spiny pocket mice are found in both wet and dry tropical forests in Central and northwestern South America. During the Oligocene, the extent of arid lands across the United States was greater than it is today and these animals occurred more widely. Fossils of kangaroo rats are known from the Pliocene.

Behaviour

The kangaroo rats, kangaroo mice and pocket mice are adapted for life in deserts and other arid environments where they largely feed on dry seeds. Kangaroo rats have no need to drink because they are able to extract sufficient water from metabolising their food, obtaining half a gram of water from each gram of seeds eaten. They carry most of the seeds they find back to their burrows in exterior cheek folds lined with fur rather than in cheek pouches inside the mouth as do hamsters. This is because carrying the food in the mouth would involve wetting it and moisture needs to be conserved as much as possible in dry environments. Most species store the seeds they gather in special chambers in the burrow where they absorb moisture from the humid air. Others, such as Merriam’s kangaroo rat, bury them in shallow caches in the open air.It has been found that there is little hoarding done in the winter but that food is most commonly stored in the autumn and spring. Heteromyids use sight and olfactory clues to locate possible food and then use their fore-feet to manipulate objects. Kangaroo mice make greater use of clumped food where wind or water has concentrated seeds in shallow depressions or around rocks while pocket mice hunt around under vegetation or debris for individual food items. It has been found that pocket mice forage more efficiently than kangaroo rats and this is thought to be due to the fact that they handle their finds more and are better able to distinguish between food and non-food items.JOURNAL, Lawhon, Debra K., Hafner, Mark S., 1981, Tactile Discriminatory Ability and Foraging Strategies in Kangaroo Rats and Pocket Mice (Rodentia: Heteromyidae), Oecologia, 50, 3, 303â€“309, 4216466, 10.1007/bf00344967, 28309045, 1981Oecol..50..303L, 26907954, These animals excavate long burrow systems with passages, chambers and multiple entrances. They are largely nocturnal, feeding and moving about at night and resting deep in their burrows during the day. Here it is cooler and more humid which conserves moisture and the animals may temporarily block the entrances to augment this. They are able to concentrate their urine to a viscous consistency which further reduces water loss. Under extreme conditions, some are able to aestivate in chambers under ground.Kangaroo rats have large hind feet with long metatarsals and no first digits. With these they bound around not using their fore feet at all for locomotion. Pocket mice are smaller and can also move with leaps but they normally run around on four limbs. Members of the genus Heteromys, the spiny pocket mice, move around on all fours and do not leap at all.

Ecology

Kangaroo rats and pocket mice form a part of the diet of many predatory creatures. They are eaten by foxes, coyotes, snakes and birds. They have acute hearing and can detect the approaching swoop of an owl or the movements of a snake. Many can leap to avoid the predators as they seek the safety of their burrows. The largest kangaroo rats can leap {{convert|2.75|m|ft|0}} in a single bound.In the Sonoran Desert there are many closely related species of heteromyid mice and rats. Each has its own niche in the environment which means that they do not unnecessarily compete with each other for the limited available resources. Bailey’s pocket mouse climbs into plants and bushes in order to find seeds and berries still attached to the plant. It is the only species able to eat the wax found inside the seeds of the jojoba plant.WEB,www.mnh.si.edu/mna/image_info.cfm?species_id=41, Chaetodipus baileyi, Smithsonian, 2013-09-15, Merriam’s kangaroo rat primarily moves rapidly from one bush to another gathering seed but overlooking anything lying on the desert floor. The desert pocket mouse forages across the open desert floor and gathers seeds that have fallen to the ground.WEB,www.desertmuseum.org/books/nhsd_heteromyidae.php, Heteromyidae: Kangaroo Rats & Pocket Mice, Merlin, Pinau, Arizona-Sonoro Desert Museum, 2013-09-15,

Taxonomy

Family Heteromyidae
- Subfamily Heteromyinae â€” spiny pocket mice
  - Genus Heteromys

Panamanian spiny pocket mouse, Heteromys adspersusTrinidad spiny pocket mouse, Heteromys anomalusSouthern spiny pocket mouse, Heteromys australisOverlook spiny pocket mouse, Heteromys catopteriusJOURNAL, Anderson, R. P., GutiÃ©rrez, E. E, Taxonomy, Distribution, and Natural History of the Genus Heteromys (Rodentia: Heteromyidae) in Central and Eastern Venezuela, with the Description of a New Species from the Cordillera de la Costa, Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History, 331, December 2009, 33â€“93, 10.1206/582-2.1, 41011596, Desmarest’s spiny pocket mouse, Heteromys desmarestianusGaumer’s spiny pocket mouse, Heteromys gaumeriGoldman’s spiny pocket mouse, Heteromys goldmaniMexican spiny pocket mouse, Heteromys irroratusNelson’s spiny pocket mouse, Heteromys nelsoniCloud-dwelling spiny pocket mouse, Heteromys nubicolensJOURNAL, Anderson, R. P., Timm, R. N., A new montane species of spiny pocket mouse (Rodentia, Heteromyidae, Heteromys) from northwestern Costa Rica, American Museum Novitates, 3509, 2006, 1â€“38, 10.1206/0003-0082(2006)3509[1:ANMSOS]2.0.CO;2, 1353074,zenodo.org/record/4735318, ParaguanÃ¡ spiny pocket mouse, Heteromys oasicusMountain spiny pocket mouse, Heteromys oresterusPainted spiny pocket mouse, Heteromys pictusSalvin’s spiny pocket mouse, Heteromys salviniJaliscan spiny pocket mouse, Heteromys spectabilisEcuadoran spiny pocket mouse, Heteromys teleus

Subfamily Dipodomyinae â€” kangaroo rats and mice
- Genus Dipodomys â€” kangaroo rats

Agile kangaroo rat, Dipodomys agilisCalifornia kangaroo rat, Dipodomys californicusGulf Coast kangaroo rat, Dipodomys compactusDesert kangaroo rat, Dipodomys desertiTexas kangaroo rat, Dipodomys elatorSan Quintin kangaroo rat, Dipodomys gravipesHeermann’s kangaroo rat, Dipodomys heermanniGiant kangaroo rat, Dipodomys ingensMerriam’s kangaroo rat, Dipodomys merriamiChisel-toothed kangaroo rat, Dipodomys micropsNelson’s kangaroo rat, Dipodomys nelsoniFresno kangaroo rat, Dipodomys nitratoidesOrd’s kangaroo rat, Dipodomys ordiiPanamint kangaroo rat, Dipodomys panamintinusPhillips’s kangaroo rat, Dipodomys phillipsiiDulzura kangaroo rat, Dipodomys simulansBanner-tailed kangaroo rat, Dipodomys spectabilisStephens’s kangaroo rat, Dipodomys stephensiNarrow-faced kangaroo rat, Dipodomys venustus

Genus Microdipodops â€” kangaroo mice

Pale kangaroo mouse, Microdipodops pallidusDark kangaroo mouse, Microdipodops megacephalus

Subfamily Perognathinae â€” pocket mice
- Genus Perognathus

White-eared pocket mouse, Perognathus alticolaArizona pocket mouse, Perognathus amplusOlive-backed pocket mouse, Perognathus fasciatusPlains pocket mouse, Perognathus flavescensSilky pocket mouse, Perognathus flavusSan Joaquin pocket mouse, Perognathus inornatusLittle pocket mouse, Perognathus longimembrisMerriam’s pocket mouse, Perognathus merriamiGreat Basin pocket mouse, Perognathus parvus

Genus Chaetodipus

Little desert pocket mouse, Chaetodipus arenariusNarrow-skulled pocket mouse, Chaetodipus artusBailey’s pocket mouse, Chaetodipus baileyiCalifornia pocket mouse, Chaetodipus californicusDalquest’s pocket mouse, Chaetodipus dalquestiChihuahuan pocket mouse, Chaetodipus eremicusSan Diego pocket mouse, Chaetodipus fallaxLong-tailed pocket mouse, Chaetodipus formosusGoldman’s pocket mouse, Chaetodipus goldmaniHispid pocket mouse, Chaetodipus hispidusRock pocket mouse, Chaetodipus intermediusLined pocket mouse, Chaetodipus lineatusNelson’s pocket mouse, Chaetodipus nelsoniDesert pocket mouse, Chaetodipus penicillatusSinaloan pocket mouse, Chaetodipus pernixBaja pocket mouse, Chaetodipus rudinorisSpiny pocket mouse, Chaetodipus spinatusHafner et al. (2007)JOURNAL, Hafner, J. C., Light, J. E., Hafner, D. J., Hafner, M. S., Reddington, E., Rogers, D. S., Riddle, B. R., Basal Clades and Molecular Systematics of Heteromyid Rodents, Journal of Mammalogy, 88, 5, 2007-10-18, 1129â€“1145, 10.1644/06-MAMM-A-413R1.1, free, summarized the molecular and morphological data to date and proposed the following taxonomy:{hide}Clade| label1=Heteromyidae| 1={{Clade

| label1=Dipodomyinae
| 1={{Clade
| 1=Dipodomys
| 2=Microdipodops{edih}
| label2=
| 2={{Clade
| 1=Heteromys
| label2=Perognathinae
| 2={{Clade
| 1=Perognathus
| 2=Chaetodipus}} }} }}

}}Finding that the formerly recognized genus Liomys is paraphyletic, they subsumed it into Heteromys. Most authorities prior to this (Alexander and Riddle, 2005; Patton, 2005) treated Liomys as a separate genus.

References

JOURNAL, Alexander, L. F., Riddle, B. R., Phylogenetics of the New World rodent family Heteromyidae, Journal of Mammalogy, 86, 2, 2005, 366â€“379, 10.1644/BER-120.1, 7246837, free,
{{MSW3 Heteromyidae | id = 12700001 | pages = 844-858}}

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