Cherrie's Pocket Gopher: orthogeomys cherriei
Considered an agricultural pest by some.
Classification:
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Mammalea
Order: Rodentia
Family: Geomyidae
Description and Behavior: The Cherrie's Pocket Gopher is a Pocket Gopher who is characterized by its tunneling behavior, allowing them to protect and store food, and their large cheek pouches, fur-lined and able to turn inside out meant for transporting food. They are brown-black colored, allowing their camouflague with the soil. They have large front teeth, and are rarely seen above ground.
Habitat:
The Cherrie's Pocket Gopher lives in old and secondary forests and agricultural regions. It can inhabit a variety of climates as well, ranging from humid to dry. Because of its diet, the Cherrie's Pocket Gopher can harm primary forest crops such as cassava, banana, rubber, and palm trees where their habitat encroaches on farms. They live in North-central Costa Rica from lowlands to 1,450 meters (4,750 feet).
Threats: There are no serious threats to the Cherrie Pocket Gopher, as it is classified as Least Concerned. Its extent of occurance is less than 10,000 square kilometers, but it can survive in a range of habitat and climate, and the population is stable and has no significant threats against it. Their only threat is agricultural, where they are considered pests and sometimes trapped and poisoned.