Native to the Americas, pocket gophers animals like gophers are a type of rodent. These common rodents are well-known for creating mounds out of their burrows.
They also enjoy digging in damp soil, which is why many of them are drawn to gardens and lawns that have recently received water. Therefore, despite their cuteness, most people consider gophers to be pests.
Apart from that, gophers are amazing creatures. They tunnel underground for the most of their life.
They follow those tunnels to trees and plants where they gather nuts, roots, and bulbs. They then load these items into cheek pouches and store them in a special area of their tunnel called a “larder.”
The amount of food in their enormous larders can often exceed the gopher’s own weight.
Nevertheless, it’s frequently against the law to keep them as pets. And given that gophers enjoy tunneling, that makes logical. Furthermore, released gophers can cause havoc in a new ecology because they are invasive.
These Creatures That Resemble To Other Animals like Gophers:
1. Chinchilla Rats
Scientific Name (family): Abrocomidae
What Is Similar To The Animals Like Gophers:
Chinchilla rats resemble fluffy gophers, but instead of tunneling, they burrow.
With longer tails, chinchilla rats resemble real chinchillas in appearance. They are not as similar to chinchillas as they are to other South American rodents like degus and nutria. There are nine distinct species of rodents that inhabit Argentina or its environs.
The fact that chichilla rats frequently don’t dig their own tunnels makes them special. Rather, they frequently coexist in burrows with other creatures, such as real chinchillas. If they are unable to, they will burrow beneath big outcroppings of rock.
Chinchilla rats are distinguished by their huge bodies, round ears, and soft, dense hair. They are all approximately the size of an average the animals like gophers, measuring about a foot long including the tail.
2. Scaly-tailed Squirrels
Scientific Name (family): Anomaluridae
What Is Similar To The Animals Like Gophers:
With bigger eyes and softer fur, scaly-tailed squirrels bear a striking resemblance to gophers. They also typically glide between trees as opposed to subterranean dwelling.
Scaly-tailed squirrels resemble flying squirrels, while not being squirrels. Instead, with their big eyes, short heads, and wide, rounded ears, they resemble flying gophers or rodents. Many have striping on the back as well.
Furthermore, the bushy tail that most people associate with squirrels is absent from scaly-tailed squirrels.
Rather, they have a short tail that makes up around 80% of their body and is coated in short, silky fur. This gives them a more rat or animals like gophers-similar appearance, though some of them have tail tufts.
Moreover, folds between their legs enable scaly-tailed squirrels to glide as they jump from tree to tree. Insects are among the many omnivorous foods they consume, something gophers often avoid.
Records reveal that they can glide for over 800 feet, demonstrating their high level of efficiency.
3. Mole Rats
Scientific Name: Heterocephalidae glaber
What Makes Mole Rats Similar To The Animals Like Gophers:
Mole rats and gophers are comparable in terms of diet, tunneling, and hoarding behaviors.
East African tropical grasslands are home to a species of rodent known as mole rats, also referred to as sand puppies.
Though there are two distinct species in their genus—African mole rats and blind mole rats—they are all members of the same genus and share the same DNA.
Famously, mole rats have no fur. Nevertheless, they are also cold-blooded, which means that their only source of energy for movement is the heat from their tunnels.
In addition, mole rats live in colonies of up to 300 members, in contrast to gophers who spend most of their lives alone. They also have workers and a queen, which are assigned duties within the colony, unlike other mammals.
Mole rats are almost totally dependent on roots and tubers, just animals like gophers. Mole rats, on the other hand, are more specialized and concentrate on huge tubers, where they consume the inside and then exit the outside to allow the tuber to regrow.
A single tuber can thus sustain a colony for several months or even years.
4. Hamsters
Scientific Name (subfamily): Cricetinae
What Makes Them Similar To The Animals Like Gophers:
Even though they often have shorter tails and more pigmentation, hamsters can resemble little, fluffy gophers.
More than 19 species of small rodents, the majority weighing less than a third of a pound, are classified as hamsters. While the European Hamster can grow to be over a foot long, the majority are only a few inches long at most.
Even that enormous hamster is always less than one pound in weight.
As pets, these tiny rodents are adored. Still, they have a lot in common with gophers in the wild.For instance, they occasionally tunnel and burrow.
They also have cheek pouches where they store food, mostly grass and root vegetables. The majority of hamsters have absurdly large pouches that can hold up to six times their own body weight in food.
The majority of hamsters hibernate over the winter, however this can be avoided by keeping them warm.
Similar to the animals like gophers, most hamsters live alone. But since hamsters prefer to live alone, housing them together can cause irritation and even fights.
5. Hutias
Scientific Name (subfamily): Capromyinae (Subfamily)
What Is Similar To The Animals Like Gophers:
Hutia has the same size and furry characteristics as long-tailed gophers.
Large rodents known as hutias are indigenous to the Caribbean islands, particularly Cuba and Hispaniola. These rodents, which have longer tails and leaner bodies, frequently resemble a hybrid between animals like gophers and rats.
Furthermore, the majority don’t burrow at all. As a result, many of them move in around human dwellings, much like rats, hiding in cracks, holes, and hollows.
Because they typically consume vegetables and grasses, they are also frequently regarded as pests. Most are now prohibited to hunt because to diminishing populations, which has the unintended consequence of seriously damaging lawns and gardens in some places.
Still, the various varieties of hutias differ greatly from one another.
For instance, the most prevalent variety resembles a little beaver and is either dark brown or gray in color (but they can weigh up to 18 pounds).
Conversely, the Bahamian hutia often weighs no more than three pounds, has a smaller tail, and is typically light gray in color.
6. Beavers
Scientific Name (genus): Castor
What Makes Them Similar To The Animals Like Gophers:
These big rodents resemble gophers, but they’re bigger and have a completely distinct tail.
Two kinds of semi-aquatic rodents known for their propensity to construct dams or lodges are called beavers. Animals like gophers and Beavers are similar in look and characteristics.
They hoard food, are largely alone, and devote a lot of effort to building their dwellings.
Beavers consume softwood, such as roots, bark, and tubers. Additionally, they are among the few rodents who have adapted to live largely in water.
For this reason, lodges are typically constructed with submerged entrances to shield the animals from predators who are less suited to the water.
Beavers also have extremely thick, oily coats that effectively keep water out. They typically weigh between 24 and 70 pounds and have a length of 3 to 4 feet. The largest, though, may be larger.
7. Guinea Pigs
Scientific Name (genus): Cavia
What Makes Them Similar To The Animals Like Gophers:
Despite having differing tails, guinea pigs frequently resemble little, fluffy gophers.
A kind of rodent-like or rodent-like mammal native to South America is the guinea pig, also known as the cavia.
The common form that most people keep as pets now is actually a domesticated species that is only found in feral groups in the wild. Furthermore, like European rabbits, guinea pigs were originally raised for meat.
Nonetheless, wild guinea pigs such as the mountain guinea pig continue to survive. Although these species are typically smaller and less tractable, they nevertheless have the same smooth, fluffy coat as guinea pigs.
For instance, a domestic guinea pig can weigh up to 2.5 pounds, whereas a mountain guinea pig often weighs only half as much.
Lastly, guinea pigs’ appearances differ greatly from one another. Wild guinea pigs are usually black, white, or brown in hue. However, just like domestic dogs, the domestic variant comes in a wide range of sizes and hair lengths.
8. Maras
Scientific Name: Dolichotis patagonum
What Is Similar To The Animals Like Gophers:
Maras live similarly to rabbits and resemble a hybrid between a guinea pig and a rabbit.
Although maras and guinea pigs are closely related, maras resemble jackrabbits more due to their shorter ears. These big rodents are typically slightly shorter than three feet in length and weigh ranging from eighteen to thirty-five pounds.
Furthermore, maras are unique to Argentina, where they are widespread in the lowlands and steppes.
Maras live similarly like rabbits and have a similar appearance. The majority sleep in burrows and live in social groupings. On the other hand, they are active throughout the day and consume soft plants and grasses for food.
9. Capybaras
Scientific Name (genus): Hydrochoerus
What Makes Them To The Animals Like Gophers:
Capybaras resemble huge, long-tailed, long-legged gophers.
The largest live rodents in the world, capybaras can weigh up to 150 pounds. Native to South America, both remaining species inhabit lowlands and grasslands, frequently in tropical climates.
The larger and more prevalent of the two is the greater capybara.
Furthermore well-known for their high degree of social interaction, capybaras have been known to establish groups of up to 100 members. They congregate near water sources as well, so other animals are frequently spotted with them. They don’t look for that company, though.
Capybaras and gophers are similar in terms of body form and pigmentation. Their larger legs, however, make them less adept at burrowing; instead, they stick to hollows and little burrows.
They graze, grazing on grass and other green material, as opposed to excavating for roots and nuts.
Furthermore, despite the notable differences in their toed feet, a young capybara may give the impression that it is a baby rat.
10. Chinchillas
Scientific Name (genus): Chinchilla
Comparable To The Animals Like Gophers:
Chinchillas and gophers are similar in many physical aspects, with the exception of the latter’s great softness and above-ground lifestyle.
Native to the Andes Mountains of South America, animals in the endangered genus Chinchilla are found there. These days, their huge faces, wide ears, and incredibly luxurious fur make them popular pets.
Their fur is distinct because, unlike humans, they have roughly 60 hairs growing from each follicle.
Furthermore, chinchillas and gophers can have quite similar builds. Many, for instance, have medium- or short-sized tails.
Some will resemble squirrels more with longer tails. Additionally, chichillas have a ruff around their necks and more loose skin.
generally, chinchillas reside in burrows or rocky outcrops. They typically don’t dig these themselves, though.
They also reside in her home, which can house up to 100 people depending on the amount of food and sleeping quarters that are available.
Sea also: Do Crocodiles Feel Pain?
11. Viscachas
Scientific Name (family): Chinchilidae
What Makes Them Similar To The Animals Like Gophers:
Although they typically live like rabbits, viscachas resemble a cross between a gopher and a squirrel.
Viscachas are South American lagomorphs, or creatures that resemble rabbits, and they have a close kinship with chinchillas.
They frequently have incredibly soft fur and curled tails, just like chinchillas. They have big, floppy ears that are occasionally nearly as long as the head, in contrast to chinchillas.
Viscachas also dwell in groups of up to 100 individuals in colonies or warrens that are typically underground. Those groups go out during the day to feed on nearly anything they can find, including grass, roots, and nuts.
Additionally, viscachas can grow to be rather huge, with some members weighing more than fifteen pounds. Some are also gray in hue, whereas gophers are not, such as the plains viscacha.
At last, unlike gophers, chinchillas, and rabbits, the majority of viscachas have an extended tail with a tufts or ridge of fur along it.
12. Voles
Scientific Name (subfamily): Arvicolinae
What Makes Them Similar To The Animals Like Gophers:
The majority of the nutrition and social behaviors of gophers and voles, small rodents well-known for their digging habits, are similar.
Voles are little rodents that live all over the world. Usually measuring between 3 to 9 inches in length, these tiny rodent-like creatures hardly ever weigh more than a few grams.
They also lead quite similar lives to gophers, digging beneath the surface and consuming other plants, roots, and bulbs. Voles will also consume dead animals or carrion that they come across.
Furthermore, voles are major pests. They may actually completely destroy large sections of plants in fields and gardens before the harm is even apparent because they are so little and have such excellent burrowing skills.
This is particularly true when voles don’t chew their food well enough to protect the plant. They even ring or remove the lowermost layer of bark from young trees, just like certain other animals do, which frequently results in their death.
Vole lifespans are likewise incredibly short. The typical lifespan is less than six months, and most only last three to twelve months. On the other hand, they give birth to one litter of voles per month and mature in just one month and three weeks of gestation.
This implies that even a small population of voles has the potential to grow rapidly and to pose serious issues.
13. Rats and Mice
Scientific Name (order): Rodentia
What Is Similar To The Animals Like Gophers:
Except for their ears, rats and gophers have completely different appearances. In spite of this, they lead surprisingly similar lives—just on a more social level.
A fairly large order of mammals, rats and mice include small to medium-sized rodents with short fur and long, almost nude tails. Although they are equally content to use pre-existing tunnels, burrows, and hollows instead, all rats and mice burrow.
They can be just as problematic as animals like gophers and voles since, in the wild, they often burrow for plant roots and tubers.
Unlike gophers, rats typically reside in social groupings. As long as there is enough food and adequate housing, such groupings will grow.
Mice and rats come in a wide variety. The tiniest mice weigh only a few grams. Over a pound can be weighed by the largest rats.
14. Muskrats
Scientific Name: Ondatrata zibethicaus
What Is Similar To The Animals Like Gophers:
Muskrats resemble gophers, but they can swim across the water thanks to their flat, scaled tail.
Because of how closely they resembled beavers, muskrats were once known as “musk beavers”. All things considered, animals like gophers and these semi-aquatic creatures are extremely similar, with the exception of their dwelling quarters and tails.
Native to the northern hemisphere of the Americas, muskrats inhabit wetlands and swamps. But they have also spread throughout the entire northern hemisphere, and today they are found in Siberia, Asia, and Russia.
Muskrats are semi-aquatic, just like beavers. Like beavers, they frequently construct nests with underwater entrances.
But largely, they consume aquatic plants like cattails. Muskrats, as opposed to beavers, will also consume insects, carrion, and breached fish.
With a tail that makes up half of their overall length of two feet, muskrats are typically smaller than beavers. They weigh about five pounds total.
15. Lemmings
Scientific Name (subfamily): Arvicolinae
What Makes Them Similar To Animals Like Gophers:
Lemmings resemble gophers in most aspects, however they have longer fur and more pigmentation.
The “suicide marches” for which lemmings are most well-known are a fiction, perpetuated by a documentary that staged lemmings purposefully plunging off a cliff.
Native to the northern tundra, lemmings dig tunnels beneath the surface of the earth or through the snow. In addition to berries, lichens, nuts, mosses, and roots, they can also survive on grass in an emergency.
Lemmings store food in tunnels, just like gophers do. They inhabit larger social groups—which might number in the hundreds—than gophers do.
Furthermore, during warmer seasons, lemming populations can explode, resulting in mass migrations of hundreds or even thousands of individuals.
Lemmings do not keep a larder, in contrast to the animals like gophers. They do, however, gather soft materials to construct nests for semi-permanent dwelling tunnels, such as wool and grass.
16. Gundis
Scientific Name (family): Ctenodactylidae
What Makes Gundis Similar to the animals like Gophers:
Gundis resemble a hybrid between a gopher and a chinchilla, although they are more gregarious and desert-adapted.
Native to certain regions of Africa, gundis inhabit arid deserts.
At first impression, these tiny rodents resemble chinchillas, although their tails are shorter. Some, nevertheless, have a big fan of hair on their tails that might make them resemble chinchillas.
Moreover, the brown hue of gundis aids in their ability to blend in with the desert.
Gundis do not consume water either. Rather, the plants they consume provide them with all the water they require. Their diet, which consists of roots, bulbs, and any other soft plant materials they can locate, is very similar to animals like gophers
Gundis, as opposed to gophers, are gregarious animals that occasionally number in the hundreds. Additionally, instead of burrowing in the soft sand at night, they frequently find cover in cracks and rocks.
17. Tuco-tucos
Scientific Name (genus): Ctenomyus
What Makes Them Similar To The Animals Like Gophers:
In North America, gophers and tuco-tucos are considered to play the same ecological role due to their striking resemblance.
Tuco-tucos are a relatively common rodent species that resemble gophers in both habit and adaption.
Tuco-tucos are so abundant that they are thought to account for about half of all underground rodents. And it’s not hard to believe, considering that there are 60 different species of Tuco-tuco native to South America.
Tuto-tucos animals like gophers, dwell underground most of their lives. With their short claws and forelimbs for digging, their entire biologies are tailored to satisfy this demand. Long teeth are also used by tuco-tucos.
Similar to the animals like gophers, tuco-tucos have minimal size variation between their heads and bodies. They have a long, hairless tail as opposed to a gopher-like tail.
Conclusion
Gopher are a common sight in the United States, so chances are good that you will see them if you spend enough time on grassy fields outside. However, they are regarded as pests in many places and cannot be kept as pets. It’s usually best to leave them alone, even if you think they’re cute.
Animals like gophers share striking similarities with many other animals due to their membership in the rodent family. Despite the fact that many of the 17 species on this list are above ground rather than below, they are all very similar to the animals like gophers.
Pingback: 7 Best Examples Of Animals Like Chipmunks (with Photos) - Wildlifeboss.info
Pingback: 13 Amazing Fish Similar With Herring(with Photos) - Wildlifeboss.info
Pingback: 10 Unique Animals That Look Like Beavers(with Photos) - Wildlifeboss.info