Title Recognizes a 9-year-old Pacific Pocket
Mouse, North America's Smallest
Mouse Species
SAN
DIEGO, Feb. 8, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- San
Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance today received a GUINNESS WORLD
RECORDS™ title for Oldest Living Mouse in Human Care
recognizing "Pat," a Pacific pocket mouse fondly named after actor
Sir Patrick Stewart. Pat was born
July 14, 2013 at the San Diego Zoo
Safari Park, in the first year of the organization's Pacific pocket
mouse conservation breeding and reintroduction program. Today, he
is 9 years and 209 days old. The GUINNESS WORLD RECORDS
title is a win for all the tiny but mighty—and often
overlooked—species around the world that play an important role in
their ecosystems.
Team members and local and regional partners were present at a
ceremony this morning in which Debra
Shier, Ph.D., Brown Endowed Associate Director of Recovery
Ecology at San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance, who established and
continues to oversee the Pacific pocket mouse conservation breeding
program, accepted a plaque commemorating Pat's significant age.
"This recognition is so special for our team, and is significant
for the species," said Shier. "It's indicative of the dedication
and incredible care we as an organization provide for each species,
from the largest to the very smallest. This acknowledgement is also
a symbol of appreciation for species that people don't know much
about because they're not charismatic megafauna, but are just as
critical for ecosystem function. These overlooked species can often
be found in our own backyards—like the Pacific pocket mouse."
The acknowledgement from GUINNESS WORLD RECORDS comes on the
heels of a historic Pacific pocket mouse breeding season. In 2022,
San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance recorded the earliest breeding
event and pup birth in the history of the program, and the team
helped with producing a record 31 litters, for a total of 117 pups
during the spring and summer months. Many of these mice will be
reintroduced into native habitats this spring.
Endemic to coastal scrublands, dunes and riverbanks within about
2 miles of the ocean, the Pacific pocket mouse's range once
stretched from Los Angeles to the
Tijuana River Valley. Because of human encroachment and habitat
degradation, their numbers dropped sharply after 1932. For 20
years, they were thought to be extinct until a tiny remnant
population was rediscovered in 1994 at Orange County's Dana
Point headlands. By then, the species had been reduced to
just a few small populations, isolated from one another by long
distances and urban barriers.
Continued declines in Pacific pocket mice populations prompted
the establishment of San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance's conservation
breeding program in 2012 to help save the species from extinction.
San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance carries out a breeding program and
studies behavior, ecology, genetics, microbiome and physiology to
best support genetically diverse, healthy and behaviorally
competent mice that are well prepared for reintroduction into
native habitats. With the support from Orange County Parks, in
2016, San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife
Service, and the California Department of Fish and Wildlife began
to establish a new population of Pacific pocket mice in
Orange County's Laguna Coast
Wilderness Park, and they began to breed without human assistance
in 2017.
Weighing about the same as three pennies, the endangered Pacific
pocket mouse is the smallest mouse species in North America. They get their name from
pouches in their cheeks used to carry food and nesting materials.
Though small, these mice play a crucial role in their ecosystems by
dispersing the seeds of native plants and encouraging plant growth
through their digging activities.
In addition to bolstering the species and maintaining high
genetic diversity, the breeding program provides the added benefit
of increasing the understanding of how to better manage genetic
diversity of populations in their native habitats. Because only
three small populations of Pacific pocket mice remain, San Diego
Zoo Wildlife Alliance's collaborative efforts to augment population
numbers, as well as to study and understand their biology and
habitat requirements, are critical in conservation of the
species.
About San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance
San Diego Zoo
Wildlife Alliance is a nonprofit international conservation leader,
committed to inspiring a passion for nature and working
toward a world where all life thrives. The Alliance empowers
people from around the globe to support their mission to conserve
wildlife through innovation and partnerships. San Diego Zoo
Wildlife Alliance supports cutting-edge conservation and brings the
stories of their work back to the San Diego Zoo and San Diego Zoo
Safari Park—giving millions of guests, in person and virtually, the
opportunity to experience conservation in action. The work of San
Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance extends from San Diego
to eco-regional conservation "hubs" across the globe,
where their expertise and assets—including the renowned
Wildlife Biodiversity Bank—are able to effectively align with
hundreds of regional partners to improve outcomes for wildlife in
more coordinated efforts. By leveraging these skills in
wildlife care and conservation science, and through collaboration
with hundreds of partners, San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance has
reintroduced more than 44 endangered species to native habitats.
Each year, San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance's work reaches over 1
billion people in 150 countries via news media, social media, their
websites, educational resources and the San Diego Zoo Wildlife
Explorers television programming, which is in children's hospitals
in 13 countries. Success is made possible by the support of
members, donors and guests to the San Diego Zoo and San Diego Zoo
Safari Park, who are Wildlife Allies committed to ensuring all life
thrives.
Press room link includes:
- Photos and videos from GUINNESS WORLD RECORDS ceremony on
Feb. 8, 2023
- Video interview with Debra
Shier, Ph.D., Brown Endowed Associate Director of Recovery
Ecology, San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance
- Photos and B-roll footage of Pat, the 9-year-old Pacific pocket
mouse, at the San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance conservation breeding
center
- Video explanation of Pacific pocket mouse conservation efforts
narrated by Will Miller, biologist,
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
- Graphics of historic and current range of the Pacific pocket
mouse
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CONTACT:
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San Diego Zoo
Wildlife Alliance
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publicrelations@sdzwa.org
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619-685-3291
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WEBSITE:
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sdzwa.org
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PRESS ROOM
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sdzwa.org/pr/PPMWorldRecord
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SOURCE San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance