This tiny mouse is having a big comeback at Camp Pendleton

Pacific pocket mouse comeback

The San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance released a new population of the endangered Pacific pocket mouse into shrubland at Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton, only the third group reintroduced to the wild.

Key points Pacific pocket mouse comeback
  1. The San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance released a new population of the endangered Pacific pocket mouse into shrubland at Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton, only the third group reintroduced to the wild.
  2. The thumb-sized rodent vanished from the region for 20 years and was thought extinct until one was found in 1993; habitat loss, night lighting and noise had knocked populations back.
  3. Researchers breed mice from different populations to build genetic diversity and train them to fear predators, and the new group brings the total number of populations to six.
  4. A predicted El Nino winter with heavy rains could threaten the species, which does not do well in wet soil.
Read the full story Pacific pocket mouse comeback
Reported by

KPBS

kpbs.org

© OpenStreetMap contributors

San Diego County, CA

Finding more…