Idaho mammals

Ord's Kangaroo Rat in Idaho

Dipodomys ordii

Native to Idaho S4 Apparently Secure in Idaho

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

Ord's kangaroo rat standing in profile, showing its huge hind feet and long tufted tailOrd's kangaroo rat pausing alert at night, whiskers and dark eye lit by flashOrd's kangaroo rat sitting upright in sandy scrub habitatOrd's kangaroo rat among low shrubs on open sandOrd's kangaroo rat standing on gravel, showing its big ears and hind feet
Photo: ecovore · CC BY 4.0Ord's kangaroo rat standing in profile, showing its huge hind feet and long tufted tailPhoto: Juan Cruzado Cortés · CC BY 4.0Ord's kangaroo rat pausing alert at night, whiskers and dark eye lit by flashPhoto: Dominic Alianelli · CC0Ord's kangaroo rat sitting upright in sandy scrub habitatPhoto: Without Borders · CC0Ord's kangaroo rat among low shrubs on open sandPhoto: CK2AZ · CC BY 4.0Ord's kangaroo rat standing on gravel, showing its big ears and hind feet

Ord's Kangaroo Rat in Idaho, by the numbers

Occasional in Idaho 65th most recorded of 123 mammals logged in Idaho

357 occurrence records
31 with iNaturalist photos

Records from 2000–2026.

357 total records count every Idaho occurrence from GBIF and iNaturalist; the map plots a georeferenced sample of 300; the monthly chart covers the 352 records with a full observation date.

When to look for the Ord's Kangaroo Rat in Idaho

Most sightings fall in May to June.

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

Monthly Idaho records (table)
MonthRecords
January5
February2
March17
April10
May79
June121
July26
August32
September42
October15
November2
December1

Monthly ord's kangaroo rat occurrence records (iNaturalist and GBIF) in Idaho, 2000–2026.

Seasonality

Year-round in Idaho, with recorded sightings peaking in May–June.

Occurrence map

Where Ord's Kangaroo Rat has been recorded in Idaho

300 records mapped · zoom and drag to explore

300 Idaho records mapped

Notable places to look

Park, forest, or monumentiNaturalist records
Craters Of The Moon National Monument 6
Snake River Plain 4
City of Rocks National Reserve 2
Hagerman Fossil Beds National Monument 1
Owyhee River Wilderness Area 1

Protected places with the most ord's kangaroo rat 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 Idaho

CountyRecords
Owyhee County 110
Butte County 39
Elmore County 34
Power County 25
Twin Falls County 24
Bingham County 23
Cassia County 22
Ada County 16
Payette County 12
Minidoka County 11
Jefferson County 7
Blaine County 7
11 other counties 27

The complete county distribution, spread across 23 Idaho counties. Every occurrence record falls in one county, so these sum to the total. Counties from GBIF and US Census boundaries.

Ord’s kangaroo rat carries one of the strongest records in this rank band, 348 total sightings, concentrated on the Snake River Plain’s sagebrush steppe and lava fields around Craters of the Moon and the Morley Nelson Snake River Birds of Prey National Conservation Area, exactly the loose, sandy desert soil this bipedal seed-hoarder needs for burrowing.

Records climb sharply from April through June, peaking at 121 in June, then taper through late summer, a pattern that likely tracks spring trapping-survey timing as much as the kangaroo rat’s own strictly nocturnal activity. All 348 records come from GBIF rather than photographs, typical for a fast, nocturnal desert rodent that’s rarely caught on camera.

Occurrence data from iNaturalist and GBIF.

Ord's kangaroo rat standing in profile, showing its huge hind feet and long tufted tail
Full species profile Ord's Kangaroo Rat Dipodomys ordii Size 21–36.5 cm8.3–14.4 in Weight 50 g1.8 oz Lifespan Up to 9.9 yr View the full profile

More mammals in Idaho 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"