Two New Pocket Gophers from Wyoming and Colorado

“Two New Pocket Gophers from Wyoming and Colorado” by E. Raymond Hall and H. Gordon Montague is a scientific publication written in the early 1950s. This work details the identification of two previously unnamed subspecies of the northern pocket gopher, specifically focusing on their geographic variations and morphological distinctions. The publication serves as a significant contribution to the field of mammalogy, particularly concerning the study of rodent populations in the western United States. The book presents the findings of Montague’s study of the pocket gophers in Wyoming and Hall’s subsequent research examining related specimens from Colorado. It provides detailed descriptions of the two new subspecies, namely “Thomomys talpoides rostralis” and “Thomomys talpoides attenuatus”, highlighting their distinct characteristics, such as size, color, and skull morphology. The authors also compare these new subspecies to adjacent ones, discussing geographic distribution and variation, which enhances the understanding of the ecological and evolutionary dynamics of pocket gophers in this region.