California mammals

California Pocket Mouse in California

Chaetodipus californicus

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 4.0California pocket mouse in dry grassPhoto: Zack Abbey · CC BY 4.0California pocket mouse on cracked dry soilPhoto: Rachel Lee Harper · CC BY 4.0California pocket mouse sitting in green grass

Photo: Zack Abbey · CC BY 4.0California pocket mouse in dry grassPhoto: Zack Abbey · CC BY 4.0California pocket mouse on cracked dry soilPhoto: Rachel Lee Harper · CC BY 4.0California pocket mouse sitting in green grass

California Pocket Mouse in California, by the numbers

Common in California 68th most recorded of 241 mammals logged in California

2,769 occurrence records

151 with iNaturalist photos

Records from 2000–2026.

2,769 total records count every California occurrence from GBIF and iNaturalist; the map plots a georeferenced sample of 300; the monthly chart covers the 2,749 records with a full observation date.

When to look for the California Pocket Mouse in California

Most sightings fall in June to November.

2,749 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	69
February	65
March	240
April	250
May	211
June	274
July	296
August	240
September	371
October	276
November	318
December	139

Monthly california pocket mouse occurrence records (iNaturalist and GBIF) in California, 2000–2026.

Seasonality

Year-round in California, with recorded sightings peaking in June–November, with a smaller rise in March–April.

Occurrence map

Where California Pocket Mouse 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
San Joaquin Experimental Area	192
Hastings Natural History Reserve	71
Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area	21
Fort Ord Natural Reserve	20
Canebrake Ecological Reserve	20
San Gabriel Mountains National Monument	20
Mount Diablo State Park	15
Carrizo Plain National Monument	14

Protected places with the most california pocket mouse 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
Monterey County	338
Kern County	322
Los Angeles County	260
Madera County	252
San Luis Obispo County	241
San Diego County	198
Contra Costa County	162
San Benito County	156
Alameda County	149
Santa Barbara County	149
San Bernardino County	125
Ventura County	90
18 other counties	327

The complete county distribution, spread across 30 California counties. Every occurrence record falls in one county, so these sum to the total. Counties from GBIF and US Census boundaries.

California Pocket Mouse records in California fit dry scrub, rocky canyons, and sandy or gravelly ground.

Reports center on the Mojave and Colorado deserts, including Death Valley and the Joshua Tree region. They show where people have documented the species, and they don’t rank California’s best habitat.

Reports rise most clearly in Mar–Apr, Sep, Nov. 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 California Pocket Mouse Chaetodipus californicus Size 19–23.5 cm7.5–9.3 in Weight 18–29 g0.6–1 oz Lifespan Up to 1.8 yr 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"