Oregon mammals

Townsend's pocket gopher in Oregon

Thomomys townsendii

Native to Oregon S4 Apparently Secure in Oregon

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

Taschenratte-Zion-National-ParkTownsend's Pocket Gopher imported from iNaturalist photo 82264531 on 18 April 2022
Photo: Lómelinde · CC0Taschenratte-Zion-National-ParkPhoto: no rights reserved · CC0Townsend's Pocket Gopher imported from iNaturalist photo 82264531 on 18 April 2022

Townsend's pocket gopher in Oregon, by the numbers

Occasional in Oregon 94th most recorded of 178 mammals logged in Oregon

59 occurrence records

Records from 2000–2026.

59 total records count every Oregon occurrence from GBIF and iNaturalist; the monthly chart covers the 57 records with a full observation date.

When to look for the Townsend's pocket gopher in Oregon

Most sightings fall in July to August.

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

Monthly Oregon records (table)
MonthRecords
January0
February0
March10
April4
May5
June8
July16
August10
September0
October3
November0
December1

Monthly townsend's pocket gopher occurrence records (iNaturalist and GBIF) in Oregon, 2000–2026.

Seasonality

Year-round in Oregon, with recorded sightings peaking in July–August, with a smaller rise in March.

Occurrence map

Where Townsend's pocket gopher has been recorded in Oregon

59 records mapped · zoom and drag to explore

59 Oregon records mapped

Where it's recorded in Oregon

CountyRecords
Malheur County 32
Harney County 25
Baker County 1
Lake County 1

The complete county distribution, spread across 4 Oregon counties. Every occurrence record falls in one county, so these sum to the total. Counties from GBIF and US Census boundaries.

Many Oregon reports have been submitted for this species. Places with suitable-looking land include Malheur National Wildlife Refuge, Klamath Marsh National Wildlife Refuge, Willamette Valley wildlife refuges, but report volume reflects where people looked and doesn’t measure population size.

Year-round resident; activity peaks vary by elevation and habitat.

Occurrence data from GBIF.

Taschenratte-Zion-National-Park
Full species profile Townsend's pocket gopher Thomomys townsendii Size 18.4 cm7.2 in Weight 190–380 g6.7–13.4 oz Lifespan Up to 6.1 yr View the full profile

More mammals in Oregon 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