Efforts Intensify to Safeguard Pacific Pocket Mouse in California

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California's tiniest rodent faces extinction with less than 740 acres of habitat remaining along Orange and San Diego counties' coastline.

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Conservation advocates filed a petition on March 25 seeking state-level protection for the Pacific pocket mouse after federal safeguards proved inadequate.

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Despite 30 years of federal endangered status, the mouse population continues to dwindle across just three isolated locations.

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These thumbnail-sized mammals quietly support their ecosystem by aerating soil, dispersing seeds, and feeding native predators.

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Federal wildlife officials twice rejected critical habitat designation requests, leaving recovery benchmarks unmet since 1994.

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One-third of remaining mouse populations live at Dana Point Preserve, where state protections could provide crucial safeguards beyond federal reach.

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"We're at great risk of losing one of California's smallest native mammals to extinction," warns Elizabeth Reid-Wainscoat from the Center for Biological Diversity.

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California wildlife officials now have three months to make recommendations before a public commission vote determines the mouse's fate.

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