California mammals

Desert Woodrat in California

Neotoma lepida

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

  1. LC
  2. NT
  3. VU
  4. EN
  5. CR
  6. EW
  7. EX

LC – Least Concern

Widespread and abundant; not at risk.

Desert woodrat facing the camera among desert rocks at nightPale desert woodrat walking over sandy soil with its long tail visibleDesert woodrat inside a sheltered nest entrance under rocks and dry plant materialDesert woodrat crouched in vegetation with large rounded ears and pale feet
Photo: Jason Eckberg · CC BY 4.0Desert woodrat facing the camera among desert rocks at nightPhoto: nmoorhatch · CC BY 4.0Pale desert woodrat walking over sandy soil with its long tail visiblePhoto: Trevor Van Loon · CC BY 4.0Desert woodrat inside a sheltered nest entrance under rocks and dry plant materialPhoto: Ken-ichi Ueda · CC BY 4.0Desert woodrat crouched in vegetation with large rounded ears and pale feet

Desert Woodrat in California, by the numbers

Common in California 54th most recorded of 241 mammals logged in California

4,537 occurrence records
169 with iNaturalist photos

Records from 2000–2026.

4,537 total records count every California occurrence from GBIF and iNaturalist; the map plots a georeferenced sample of 300; the monthly chart covers the 4,477 records with a full observation date.

When to look for the Desert Woodrat in California

Most sightings fall in March to June.

4,477 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)
MonthRecords
January208
February207
March686
April604
May493
June531
July246
August345
September304
October381
November185
December287

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

Seasonality

Year-round in California, with recorded sightings peaking in March–June.

Occurrence map

Where Desert 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 monumentiNaturalist records
Death Valley National Park 310
Mojave National Preserve 141
Joshua Tree National Park 139
Mojave Trails National Monument 64
Owens Peak Wilderness Area 51
Santa Rosa And San Jacinto National Monument 35
Inyo Mountains Wilderness Area 25
Kiavah Wilderness Area 16

Protected places with the most desert 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

CountyRecords
San Bernardino County 1,474
Riverside County 810
Inyo County 805
Kern County 499
Los Angeles County 218
Imperial County 215
San Diego County 122
Orange County 111
Mono County 55
Lassen County 55
Ventura County 32
San Benito County 16
14 other counties 125

The complete county distribution, spread across 26 California counties. Every occurrence record falls in one county, so these sum to the total. Counties from GBIF and US Census boundaries.

Desert Woodrat 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, May, Oct. That pattern can reflect animal movements, weather, and observer effort, so it isn’t a population count.

Occurrence data from iNaturalist and GBIF.

Desert woodrat facing the camera among desert rocks at night
Full species profile Desert Woodrat Neotoma lepida Size 17.1 cm6.7 in Weight 113 g4 oz Lifespan Up to 10.5 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"