Giant kangaroo rat  (Dipodomys ingens)

Biology

These nocturnal animals hide in their burrows during the heat of the day, plugging the burrow entrance with loose soil and only emerging at night (2) (6). They are solitary and territorial, advertising their territory with a loud drumming produced by the thumping of the hind feet (2). Burrows tend to be fairly shallow and contain many connected enlarged chambers; one that acts as a nest and the rest used to store food (7). Kangaroo rats feed on seeds, vegetation and insects, storing a cache of seeds to see them through periods of drought (1). In years of good rainfall, a female may give birth to up to three litters and individuals born that year may themselves begin breeding when only 12 to 13 weeks old (2).

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