O. grandis Skull measures 2.9 inches. O. grandis Skull is museum quality polyurethane cast. Species name of Giant Pocket Gopher
O. grandis or Giant Pocket Gopher is the largest species of pocket gophers in the family Geomyidae.
Pocket gophers dig two kinds of tunnels: long, winding, shallow tunnels are constructed to obtain food, while deep tunnels are constructed for shelter and storage.
Deeper tunnels are fairly complex with chambers for nests, food storage, and fecal deposits. Burrows are often extensive and are usually marked above ground by a series of mounds of earth, the entrances of which are often closed with dirt, allowing the gophers to survive flooding and heavy rainfall and predation by snakes.
O. grandis or Giant Pocket Gopher dig with their foreclaws and upper incisors which are used to loosen soil and cut roots. When a considerable amount of loose earth has been accumulated it is held between the chest and forearms and pushed to the surface.
Inside the burrows, nesting and living chambers are cushioned with dried grasses while other chambers are left bare, presumably for storing food.
When O. grandis or Giant Pocket Gophers walk on hard ground they must draw their claws in so that they are essentially walking on the outer rims of the soles of their feet.
On softer ground the animals can walk normally, using their feet as shovels. Inside their burrows, pocket gophers can run backwards almost as fast as they can run forward. They may make special use of their tail when moving backwards so that the tip is in contact with the ground, serving as a tactile organ.
O. grandis or Giant Pocket Gophers collect large supplies of food in their cheek pouches transferring their loads to their storage rooms under ground. The gophers accomplish this by pressing their pouches from back to front with their fore feet.
It is generally noted that species in this genus tend to be solitary and extremely territorial. O. grandis, however is thought to be more tolerant of company because it mates year round. They do not hibernate and they are more active at night than during the day.
Little is known about the O. grandis vocal expressions. In captivity, it has been reported that species sometimes emit shrieks and crying sounds and frequently rattle their teeth. It has also been observed that when an animal produces a clicking sound with its teeth another animal may sometimes respond in a similar manner.
Giant pocket gophers are herbivores, with a diet that consists of a wide variety of plant matter, especially roots, turnips, nuts, tubers, seeds, corn, grasses, wheat, barley, rye, and oats. At night O. grandis emerges to search for food above ground as well as roots just below the surface.
