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November 2017 - The Chipmunk

PicturePhoto courtesy of Frank R. Perez
 This is a small, striped rodent in the genus Tamias; Greek for “treasurer”, “steward”, or “housekeeper”, and reflects their habit of collecting and storing food for winter. Many names have been used over the years for these cute little mammals. John James Audubon called them chipping squirrels; others have called them striped squirrels, timber tigers, and ground squirrels. Their name is thought to originate from one of the sounds they make, a “chip-chip” sound. Other sounds include a deeper chuck and a startle call.

Chipmunks are 2 to 6 inches long, and weigh just a few ounces. They have brown, yellow and grey fur with black stripes down the back. All but one species of chipmunk are native to North America. The one other species lives in northern Asia.

Chipmunks are “omnivorous” meaning they eat just about everything. Their diet is mostly seeds, nuts and fruits, but they will also eat grass, small plant shoots, fungi, insects, arthropods, small frogs, and bird eggs. Or to put it simply, everything. Though they mostly find food on the ground, they will climb trees for nuts and acorns; sometimes as many as 165 acorns in a day. Early autumn, they start to hoard nonperishable food for winter and store it in the “larder” section of their burrow. Those puffy cheeks are like grocery bags and are used to carry loads of food to their burrow.

Chipmunks spend a lot of time underground in burrows which are extensive, up to eleven feet in length. The shallow part of their burrow is used to seek refuge when foraging during the day. The deeper parts are for storing food and sleeping. They keep their sleeping quarters clean by moving food debris and feces into special tunnels just for refuse. Our western chipmunks spend the winters in their burrow but do not hibernate. They depend on their stockpile of food for their survival. Since they have relative safety in their burrows, they spend about 15 hours a day sleeping.

Our western chipmunks mate just once per year in the spring and produce two to eight young. When born, the young, or pups, are hairless, blind, pink and about the size of a jelly bean. The young stay with their parents for about two months and then start to build their own home and stockpile of food for the coming winter.

Chipmunks are valuable to our forests. Harvesting and hoarding tree seeds means that some seeds are dispersed and sprout. Some species of fungi that chipmunks eat have lost the ability to disperse their spores through the air, so the chipmunks handle the dispersal.

A group of chipmunks is called a “scurry”. Can you guess why?

Tri County Wildlife Care, a local nonprofit started in 1994, is dedicated to the rescue and rehabilitation of our native wildlife and helping our community live in balance with wildlife. They envision a world where wildlife and people thrive together. For more information call (209) 283-3245, or visit pawspartners.org.

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  • Home
    • SiteMap
  • APAL
    • A-PAL History >
      • A-PAL Humane Society Leadership Team
      • APAL Leadership Opportunities
    • APAL Programs >
      • Save the Kittens
      • Spay or Neuter
      • Second Chance K9 >
        • TCK9-2014 Graduates
      • Community Cats >
        • Understanding Feral Cats
        • How to Trap a Feral Cat
      • Special Needs >
        • Special Needs Stories
      • Adopt a Friend
      • Trap-Neuter-Return
      • APAL Tracking Our Progress
    • Support A-PAL >
      • Volunteer for APAL
      • Foster for A-Pal
      • Donate to A-PAL >
        • Donate your Car
        • Giving Tuesday 2020
      • A-PAL Wish List
      • A-PAL Facility Sponsor
    • APAL Events >
      • APAL Calendar
      • APAL Past Events >
        • SantaPaws2019
        • Bark in the Park 2019
        • Whiskers and Wine 2017
        • Whiskers and Wine 2014
        • Bark in the Park 2014
        • Whiskers and Wine 2015
        • Bark In The Park 2015
        • Maui Raffle
        • Santa Paws 2015
    • Partners >
      • Shelter Partners >
        • Shelter Partners on TSPN
        • Dec14News-PitBulls
        • Jan15News-Excel
        • Feb15News-BenefitsOfPets
        • Feb15News-HarmfulAlgaeBlooms
        • Mar15News-Hoarding
        • Apr15News-TNR
        • Sep15News-QAMargeB
        • Oct15News-ButteFire
        • Oct15News-Bats
        • Nov15News-SeparationAnxiety
        • Dec15News-Tips4Treats
        • Jan16-Volunteer
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      • ACART >
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  • TCWC
    • Find an animal in need? >
      • Audio Wildlife Tips
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    • Wildlife Programs >
      • Education >
        • TCWC Education Events >
          • TCWC Education Animals
        • WildlifeSavesUs
        • Living Wildlife Friendly >
          • Songbird Concert Tips
          • Holiday Trash
          • Alert Your Birds
          • Water to Help the Critters!
          • Bread is for Sandwiches
          • No Dogs Allowed
          • Repurpose to Feed the Birds
          • GoNative
          • Netting It Out
          • Balloons
          • E-Waste
          • Organic Food
          • AllThatGlitters
          • Fly Strips and Glue Traps
          • Toxic Household Products
          • Recycling Pumpkins
          • Tree Trimming Tips
          • Saving Venomous Species
        • Nuisance Wildlife >
          • Nuisance-SayNoToTrapping
          • Foxlights
          • Wildproof Your Home
        • Gold Country Critters
        • Keep Them Wild and Free
        • TCWC Videos
        • Points to Ponder
      • TCWC-Tracking Our Progress >
        • TCWC 2014 Impact Report
        • TCWC 2015 Impact Report
        • TCWC 2016 Impact Report
        • TCWC 2017 Impact Report
        • TCWC 2018 Impact Report
        • TCWC 2019 Impact Report
      • TCWC Patients >
        • Success Stories >
          • 1 - Opossum Call
          • 2 - Raccoon Behind the Grill!
          • 3 - Saving a Raven
          • LongTripHome
          • Anita's Bird Comes Home
          • College the Wild Way
          • Releases
        • TCWC Critter Show
    • TCWC Events >
      • TCWC Calendar >
        • GivingTuesday2020
        • TCWC-WildlifeClasses2020
        • TCWC-WildlifeWorkshop2020
        • Paws&Claws2020
      • Past TCWC Events >
        • Paws & Claws 2019
        • No Dinner-Dinner
        • Paws&Claws 2018
        • AnimalScapes
        • Paws & Claws 2016
        • TCWC Grand Opening
        • Wildlife Workshop 2014
        • Paws & Claws 2014
        • Hot Rod Heaven 2014
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        • Paws&Claws2017
        • Paws&Claws2018
        • TCWC-No Shower Baby Shower
    • Support TCWC >
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  • About
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      • Watson
      • Don't Fawn!
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      • Trash Kitty!
      • Gretchen&Ginger
      • MajesticBird
      • DuckTherapy
      • MrJunco
      • TheOddCouple
      • The Twins
      • WillToSurvive
      • MeetMandy
      • Furrever - Chloe
      • Charlie the Corgi
    • Kids
    • Shop >
      • Learn More >
        • Promote Our Store
        • Submit Art
      • Volunteer Gear
      • Shop These Stores
      • Shop PawsPartners
      • Shop TCWC
      • Shop A-PAL Humane Society
    • Site Credits