Big-eared Woodrat in California

Neotoma macrotis

Native to California SNR Unranked in California

Not listed as nonindigenous in California by USGS NAS; native to its California range.

IUCN Red List status

LC – Least Concern

Widespread and abundant; not at risk.

Photo: Zack Abbey · CC BY 4.0Neotoma macrotisPhoto: Millie Basden · CC BY 4.0Big-eared Woodrat (Neotoma macrotis)Photo: Bennett Grappone · CC BY 4.0Big-eared Woodrat (Neotoma macrotis)

Photo: Zack Abbey · CC BY 4.0Neotoma macrotisPhoto: Millie Basden · CC BY 4.0Big-eared Woodrat (Neotoma macrotis)Photo: Bennett Grappone · CC BY 4.0Big-eared Woodrat (Neotoma macrotis)

Big-eared Woodrat in California, by the numbers

Common in California 61st most recorded of 233 mammals logged in California

894 occurrence records

348 with iNaturalist photos

Records from 2000–2026.

894 total records count every California occurrence from GBIF and iNaturalist; the map plots a georeferenced sample of 300; the monthly chart covers the 880 records with a full observation date.

When to look for the Big-eared Woodrat in California

Most sightings fall in April to May.

880 California occurrence records (iNaturalist and GBIF) by month of year, 2000–2026. Shows when the species is recorded, not a guarantee of presence.

Monthly California records (table)

Month	Records
January	91
February	29
March	99
April	139
May	185
June	36
July	38
August	39
September	44
October	49
November	38
December	93

Monthly big-eared woodrat occurrence records (iNaturalist and GBIF) in California, 2000–2026.

Seasonality

Year-round in California, with recorded sightings peaking in April–May.

Occurrence map

Where Big-eared Woodrat has been recorded in California

300 records mapped · zoom and drag to explore

300 California records mapped

Notable places to look

Park, forest, or monument	iNaturalist records
Cleveland National Forest	30
Hastings Natural History Reserve	10
Owens Peak Wilderness Area	9
Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area	8
Merced River	8
Domeland Wilderness Area	6
San Joaquin Experimental Area	5
Canebrake Ecological Reserve	5

Protected places with the most big-eared woodrat sightings, from the USGS Protected Areas Database plus named mountain ranges, good spots to look, not a full breakdown, so they don't sum to the total.

Where it's recorded in California

County	Records
San Diego County	238
Monterey County	117
Kern County	116
Mariposa County	88
Los Angeles County	52
Inyo County	44
Riverside County	36
Ventura County	30
San Luis Obispo County	26
Orange County	20
Tulare County	20
Stanislaus County	19
8 other counties	88

The complete county distribution, spread across 20 California counties. Every occurrence record falls in one county, so these sum to the total. Counties from GBIF and US Census boundaries.

Big-eared Woodrat records in California fit chaparral, oak woodland, and rocky slopes.

Reports center on the Coast Ranges and Sierra Nevada foothills rather than California’s open deserts. They show where people have documented the species, and they don’t rank California’s best habitat.

Reports rise most clearly in Apr–May, Dec. That pattern can reflect animal movements, weather, and observer effort, so it isn’t a population count.

Occurrence data from iNaturalist and GBIF.

Full species profile Big-eared Woodrat Neotoma macrotis Size 21.8 cm8.6 in Weight 220 g7.8 oz View the full profile

More mammals in California in the atlas

Data & sources

The data and visualizations on this page draw on these open sources:

GBIFCC-BY 4.0occurrence records behind the range map, elevation, and record counts
iNaturalistCC0 / CC-BY / CC-BY-SAobservations, photos, and audio recordings
NatureServe ExplorerCC-BYthe state conservation rank
IUCN Red Listattributed factthe global conservation status
USGS NASpublic domainnative / introduced status
Natural Earthpublic domainthe relief basemap
USFSpublic domainnational-forest boundaries
USGS Protected Areas Databasepublic domainthe named parks, forests, and refuges behind "notable places to look"