There are 25 species of chipmunk, according to National Geographic. Only one of those species, called the Siberian chipmunk, lives outside of North America.
In North America, chipmunks can be found almost anywhere there are trees. Chipmunks make homes for themselves by creating burrows that consist of an underground tunnel system or by making nests in logs or bushes. Their tunnel systems can be 10 to 30 feet 3 to 9. Though you may see chipmunks around each other, they are not social animals. They like to keep to themselves and only interact during mating season, which is in the spring.
They are most active at dusk and dawn. Chipmunks spend most of their days foraging. A single chipmunk can gather up to acorns in a day, according to National Geographic Kids. Chipmunks hibernate, but they don't store fat to see them through long winters like bears do.
During the warm months, chipmunks will stuff extra food into their cheek pouches. These cheeks are massive grocery bags. They can stretch to be three times larger than the chipmunk's head, according to Connecticut's Department of Energy and Environmental Protection. When they have a full load, they carry the food to their home and store it.
During the winter, they eat from their food cache for energy. Chipmunks will even make calls in a chorus composed of several of the little rodents—shades of Alvin. Simon and Theodore. Hear how chipmunks sound. Garden Habitats , Wildlife Facts alvin and the chipmunks , chipmunk , Christmas , Global Warming , hibernation , wildlife. Written by Roger Di Silvestro. Recent Popular. Conservation , People and Wildlife. Students and Nature. Students and Nature , Wildlife Facts. Garden Habitats , Wildlife Facts.
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Starting in late October, some chipmunks fall into a deep sleep with a slowed heart rate and lower body temperature for extended periods until March or April. Instead, according to the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection, they wake periodically to dip into their stockpile of nuts and seeds and even venture outside.
Baby chipmunks called kits, kittens, or pups are born blind, hairless, and helpless. Imagine something that looks like a pink jelly bean. Pups develop quickly, though, and leave the nest by 4 to 6 weeks of age to make their own way in the world. Twice a year in spring and late summer, males called bucks and females does come together to mate, then part ways again. Vocalizations include chips, chucks, and trilling alarm calls. In fact, chipmunks are so talkative, and their high-pitched communications are so ubiquitous, many people mistake them for bird calls.
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