19 Pacific Pocket Mouse Pups Born at the Start of 4th Breeding Season

Breeding Program Staff Prepares to Release Animals to Native Habitat

San Diego Zoo Global is experiencing continued success with a breeding program for the endangered Pacific pocket mouse. The fourth breeding season started in February 2016, and it has already yielded 19 Pacific pocket mouse pups. Their stages of development range from pups that are blind, pink, hairless and weigh less than 2 grams, to pups that are 4 grams, beginning to wean from their mother and forage for seeds on their own. The Pacific pocket mouse is the smallest mouse species in North America, and adults typically weigh between 6 and 7 grams.

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