California mammals

Sagebrush Vole in California

Lemmiscus curtatus

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: elik03 · CC BY 4.0Sagebrush vole partly hidden in low shrub coverPhoto: Matt Berger · CC BY 4.0A sagebrush vole showing the compact body, small rounded ears, and stubby tail typical of the species.Photo: Tait Sougstad · CC0A small sagebrush vole crossing open gravel between patches of cover.Photo: randomtruth · CC BY-SA 2.0A sagebrush vole tucked under low sagebrush cover.

Sagebrush vole on rocky soil with short furred tail visible — Photo: elik03 · CC BY 4.0Sagebrush vole partly hidden in low shrub coverPhoto: Matt Berger · CC BY 4.0A sagebrush vole showing the compact body, small rounded ears, and stubby tail typical of the species.Photo: Tait Sougstad · CC0A small sagebrush vole crossing open gravel between patches of cover.Photo: randomtruth · CC BY-SA 2.0A sagebrush vole tucked under low sagebrush cover.

Sagebrush Vole in California, by the numbers

Occasional in California 162nd most recorded of 241 mammals logged in California

185 occurrence records

5 with iNaturalist photos

Records from 2000–2026.

185 total records count every California occurrence from GBIF and iNaturalist; the monthly chart covers the 184 records with a full observation date.

When to look for the Sagebrush Vole in California

Most sightings fall in July to September.

184 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	3
February	0
March	9
April	7
May	5
June	13
July	59
August	40
September	40
October	7
November	1
December	0

Monthly sagebrush vole occurrence records (iNaturalist and GBIF) in California, 2000–2026.

Seasonality

Year-round in California, with recorded sightings peaking in July–September.

Occurrence map

Where Sagebrush Vole has been recorded in California

185 records mapped · zoom and drag to explore

185 California records mapped

Notable places to look

Park, forest, or monument	iNaturalist records
White Mountains Wilderness	19
Valentine Eastern Sierra Reserve - Valentine Camp	2
Inyo National Forest	1
Blm	1
Lava Beds National Monument	1

Protected places with the most sagebrush vole 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
Mono County	111
Inyo County	49
Plumas County	16
Lassen County	6
Modoc County	3

The complete county distribution, spread across 5 California counties. Every occurrence record falls in one county, so these sum to the total. Counties from GBIF and US Census boundaries.

California’s combined state files contain 189 Sagebrush Vole records: 5 from iNaturalist and 184 from GBIF. It ranks 164th among 243 mammals in this California record comparison, placing it in the lower third. That’s a ranking of submitted records, not a head count of animals.

The monthly series reaches its high point in July, with 15 records in the busiest month. Records appear in 6 of 12 months, so the pattern shows when sightings were documented, not when the species must be present or absent.

California accounts for about 11% of the mapped GBIF records summarized on the national Sagebrush Vole page. That’s a modest share of the known record footprint, though differences in survey effort can strongly shape the percentage.

Occurrence data from iNaturalist and GBIF.

Full species profile Sagebrush Vole Lemmiscus curtatus Size 11–14 cm4.3–5.5 in Weight 28 g1 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"