Here is a picture of the most widely seen chipmunk found in Canada.
It prefers to live in deserts, pastures, rocky cliffs and woody areas.
These areas may seem different but they have some important things in common to the chipmunk in that they offer hiding places, and low bushes and plants which chipmunks need for food. Chipmunks, being ground animals spend much of their lives in underground homes called burrows. This is one of the reasons they prefer a ground that is dry and easier to dig. They are not found in the hot, swampy areas of the south.
Chipmunks recognize one another by scent. When they come across another chipmunk they will smell each other's face. They remember the scents of their family members.
Baby chipmunks or pups are born in a litter of four to six, without hair and cannot see or hear. A pup weighs only about 1/9 of an oz. or approximately 3 grams. “That's less than the weight of a nickel” says Merebeth Switzer in “Getting To Know Nature's Children”
While chipmunks groom similar to cats, they bathe in dust. The dust helps to remove dirt, fleas, parasites, and excessive oil from their fur. It then uses its tongue, and paws to brush, clean and groom. Chipmunks living in the northern regions shed twice yearly, so there is a need to remove excessive hair while grooming.
Because of a chipmunks acrobatic abilities it may appear that they are flying from branch to branch, but they are extremely agile and are merely leaping.
They generally live within 150 feet or 50 meters from their burrow. Only family members or a would-be mate are welcome in their strictly guarded territory. Chipmunks are clever about hiding the entrance and exit to their burrow. Adult chipmunks live alone.
Mother chipmunks prepare their young to be on their own at 10 weeks of age. The babies are nearly as big as Mom.
The mother moves the newborn from the burrow to a tree nest around their fifth week. She carries them by the skin on their bellies. Babies turn into tight little bundles as they curl up with their head and tail cuddled around Mom's nose.
In the summer time chipmunks may have a nest in a tree, or even take over an abandoned woodpecker's home.
Chipmunks have built in grocery bags in their cheeks. The inside of a chipmunk's mouth is not moist like ours, but dry. An Eastern Chipmunk can stuff 6 chestnuts in its cheeks, which is quite a bit, when you consider how small the chipmunk's face is. Chipmunks have inadvertently planted trees and plants because it burrows the seeds and berries to hide them, and sometimes forgets where. A chipmunk has been known to have 3,700 blueberry seeds stored in its cheeks. When eating, a chipmunk will usually take their food to higher spots, where they can watch for danger.
Chipmunks do not need to drink daily. They get much of the water they need from the plants they eat.
While chipmunks prefer to eat nuts, berries, sprouts, chokecherries, and seeds, they will eat grasshoppers, beetles and caterpillars when the food of choice is not available.
Chipmunks avoid harsh weather and hibernate for the winter. All spring and summer they have been busily storing food. Unlike some animals that put on extra fat for the winter the chipmunk depends on his store to help him get through the season. His breathing and heart rate slow so as to preserve his energy for warmer weather. The milder the weather, the shorter he will hibernate.
Chipmunks like to sunbathe. They do not like to be in the sun in hot days, but on cooler days you may spot one lying on a rock in the sunlight.
Chipmunks battle for their mate. Males will fight over the right to court the female and thereby ensure a healthier breed of pup.
Unlike their cousin the squirrel, notice the stripes in the chipmunk's face.
Count the stripes on its back. There are 5 dark brown stripes separated by four white or beige stripes.
Shown below is a link to a video depicting a chipmunk and cat chase.
http://www.eagle.ca/~diane/index21.htm
To receive free post cards, posters and interesting information on various animals log in here: http://www.wildlifesearch.com/chipmunk.htm
Chipmunks are becoming one of the latest wild animals to be domesticated. Check out this site http://pages.matmice.com/home/chipmunk/ to get tips from an actual chipmunk owner or the Odd Pet Directory. The first site advises that pets generally come from the Siberian and Asian type of chipmunk, while the second site advises that they generally are available from the North American and Siberian variety.
Regardless, there is a new breed of chipmunk that is being purposely bred for pets. It is advised to adopt one as soon after weaning as possible (approximately 6 weeks of age) so that the pet and owner can bond. They are being extensively bred in England and sold as pets.
The Siberian chipmunk is slightly smaller and finer boned. It comes in two color varieties, either the ruby-eyed white with almond stripes or the cinnamon color with black eyes and variations of red and yellow in their fur.
They have the curiosity of a cat and want to jump and explore in your home, so you would need to take care to pet proof your surroundings. They are unlike a cat in that they prefer sleeping at night, and playing during the day. They can be won over but are shy and wary of strangers. To pick up your chipmunk, you would hold out your hand, and it would enter your open palm.
Darlene McFarlane has shared a few pictures of her little chipmunk buddies in picable. See one here: http://www.picable.com/Nature/Animals/Chipmunk-Eating-From-my-Hand.33695 A word of caution though. Although chipmunks in the wild are incredibly cute and interesting approach them with caution. They have been known to bite. Not everyone has the ability to feed an untamed animal without getting injured. She has spent countless hours (and peanuts) instilling trust in her select group of wild life. God bless her. Even a chipmunk knew a good human when it saw one.
