255.

La Guarda Deermouse

Peromyscus guardia

French: Péromyscus d’Angel de la Guarda / German: Guarda-Hirschmaus / Spanish: Raton ciervo de La Guarda

Other common names: Angel Island Mouse

Taxonomy. Peromyscus guardia Townsend, 1912, Angel de la Guarda Island, 29° 33’ N, 113° 35° W, Baja California Norte, Mexico.

Peromyscus guardia is in the eremicus species group. Peromyscus interparietalis historically was considered a subspecies of P. guardia . Two subspecies, harbisoni named by R. C. Banks in 1967 and known only from Granite Island and mejiae by W. H. Burt in 1932 from Mejia Island, are extinct. One extant subspecies recognized.

Subspecies and Distribution.

P. g. guardia Townsend, 1912 — Angel de la Guarda I and nearby Estanque I, Baja California, Mexico.

Descriptive notes. Head—body ¢.96-100 mm, tail 93-123 mm, ear 20-23 mm, hindfoot 23-25 mm. No specific data are available for body weight. The La Guarda Deermouse is small and morphologically very similar to the Cactus Deermouse (PF. eremicus). Dorsum is gray-brown, and venter is whitish. Tail is slightly bicolored and scantily haired. Ears are relatively large and nearly naked. Skull is very arched, rostrum is long, and auditory bullae are large.

Habitat. Xeric scrublands near beaches, rocky beaches, and brushy sand flats at very low elevations.

Food and Feeding. No information.

Breeding. [La Guarda Deermice reproduce in spring.

Activity patterns. No information.

Movements, Home range and Social organization. No information.

Status and Conservation. Classified as Critically Endangered on The IUCN Red Last. Recent efforts to capture La Guarda Deermice led to conclusion that two of the three subspecies (harbisoni and mejiae) are extinct and that nominate guardia may be close to extinction.

Bibliography. Alvarez-Castaneda & Cortés-Calva (1999), Alvarez-Castafieda & Ortega-Rubio (2003), Banks (1967), Brand & Ryckman (1968), Burt (1932), Hall (1981), Lawlor (1971a), Lépez-Forment et al. (1996), Mellink (1992), Mellink & Luévano (2014e), Mellink et al. (2002), Musser & Carleton (2005), Rios & Alvarez-Castaneda (2011), Townsend (1912).