How do Great Basin Pocket Mice stay hydrated when they don't drink much water?

Great Basin Pocket Mice are the ultimate desert rodent. Did you know that they don't really drink much water even through they live in such arid environments? Instead, they extract water from their food and have hyper-efficient kidneys that minimize the amount of water in their urine.

They primarily eat dry grass seeds along with the odd insect for extra moisture and because their burrows are underground, they are more humid and cool. Pocket Mice also tend to forage during the night, when it is cooler.

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Photo by Chloe Howarth via inaturalist (CC-BY-NC)