Life History of the Kangaroo Rat

by Charles Taylor Vorhies; Walter P. Taylor

A den in sandy soil in the open may be of maximum size in area occupied and yet scarcely present the appearance of a mound in any sense, due probably both to the fact that the sandy soil will not heap up to such a height over a honeycomb of tunnels as will a firmer or rocky soil, and also to its greater exposure to the leveling action of rains and the trampling of animals. These mounds are in themselves large enough to attract some attention, but their conspicuousness is enhanced by the fact that they are more or less completely denuded of vegetation and are the centers of cleared areas often as much as 30 feet in diameter ([Pl. V, Fig. 1]); and further that from 3 to 12 large dark openings loom up in every mound. The larger openings are of such size as to suggest the presence of a much larger animal than actually inhabits the mound. Add to the above the fact that the traveler by day never sees the mound builder, and we have the chief reasons why curiosity is so often aroused by these habitations.

On the Range Reserve the mounds are usually rendered conspicuous by the absence of small vegetation, but Nelson writes that in the vicinity of Gallego, Chihuahua, they can be readily distinguished at a distance because of a growth of weeds and small bushes over their summits, which overtop the grass. In the vicinity of Albuquerque, N. Mex., Bailey reports (and this was recently confirmed by Vorhies) that the mounds about the holes of spectabilis are often hardly noticeable. Hollister writes that in the yellow-pine forests of the Gallina Mountains the burrows are usually under the trunk of some fallen pine, both sides of it in some cases being taken up with holes, there being some eight or ten entrances along each side, the burrows extending into the ground beneath the log. In the vicinity of Blanco, N. Mex., Birdseye says that occasionally spectabilis makes typical dens but more often lives in old prairie-dog holes (Cynomys), or in holes which look more like those of D. ordii.

Runways and Tracks.

Still other features add to the interest in the dwelling places of spectabilis. Radiating in various directions from some of the openings of the mounds well-used runways are to be seen, some of them fading out in the surrounding vegetation, but others extending 30, 40, or even 50 or more yards to neighboring burrows or mounds ([Pl. V, Fig. 2]; [Pl. VI, Fig. 1]). These runways and the entrances to the mounds are well worn, showing that the inhabitants are at home and are at some time of day very active. The worn paths become most conspicuous in the autumnal harvest season, when they stand out in strong contrast to surrounding grass. One usually finds not far distant from the main habitation one or more smaller burrows, each with from one to three typical openings, connected by the trail or runway system with the central den, and these we have called "subsidiary burrows" ([Pl. VI, Fig. 2]). These will be again referred to in discussing the detailed plan of the entire shelter system.

Examination of the runways and of the denuded area about a mound discloses an abundance of almost indecipherable tracks. The dust or sand is ordinarily much too dry and shifting to record clear footprints, and there are no opportunities to see footprints of this species recorded in good impressionable soil. Very characteristic traces of kangaroo rats may be readily observed in the dust about the mounds, however, and these are long, narrow, sometimes curving, furrows made by the long tails as the animals whisk about their work or play.

Plate V. Fig. 1.—Clearing About a Mound.
A typical clearing about a mound of Dipodomys s. spectabilis, showing the autumnal denudation of the mound and surrounding areas. In this instance about 30 feet in diameter.

Plate V. Fig. 2.—Mound and Runways.
A small mound of Dipodomys s. spectabilis in early autumn, showing runways radiating from the den. Evidences of activity may be noted in and about the surface of the mound.