Pocket Gopher

Actual Size: Ranges from 5 to 14 inches when fully grown

Characteristics: Short brown to dark grey fur with a small, hairless tail.

Habitat: Creates an extensive tunnel system underground. They prefer loose, moist soil and can often be found in yards, meadows or agricultural areas.

Habits:

  • Most active in the spring and fall
  • Creates crescent-shaped hills
  • Have fur-lined cheek pockets to transport food
  • Uses whiskers to navigate through tunnels
Category:

Pocket Gophers in Santa Fe and Albuquerque NM

Pocket gophers are a common subterranean pest in Santa Fe and Albuquerque. These tiny rodents are known to destroy lawns, wreak havoc on landscaping and ruin gardens. They have strong front limbs used to dig their extensive underground network of tunnels and a small tail that helps them navigate backwards. As a result, pocket gophers can move almost as fast backwards as they do forwards.

Pocket Gopher Habitat

Pocket gophers can be found all over North America, preferring to live in areas with loose soil that is easy for them to tunnel through and abundant vegetation. Most people are no strangers to battling gophers; they are a common urban pest, often pock-marking communities’ lawns with distinctive crescent-shaped hills. While they are known for making mounds, gophers do not go above ground often; instead, they forage for roots, bulbs, tubers and other plant matter they encounter while tunneling. As they collect food, they hold it in their large cheek pockets until they return to their burrow to store it for the winter.

Pocket Gopher Behaviors, Threats, or Dangers

While these solitary and seldom-seen pests may appear harmless to many people, they create significant issues in residential and agricultural areas. The mounds created as gophers surface can be extremely frustrating as they disrupt the aesthetic appeal of many peoples’ landscaping. They are also known to decimate gardens and agricultural crops. As they create their large tunnel systems underground searching for food, they have been known to damage underground utility cables, irrigation systems and harm the root systems of plants.

Although these tiny pests can be a huge nuisance, it is best to have them humanly removed by trained professionals. Our expert team at New Mexico Pest Control specializes in effective and humane pocket gopher control and removal. Contact us today to reclaim your yard and bid farewell to the maze of gopher holes.

Say Goodbye To Pocket Gophers. Get Started Today!