Eastern Chipmunk

Tamias striatus

The Eastern Chipmunk is a small, striped animal that loves to scurry around looking for food. They have big cheeks to store their snacks and are often seen in gardens and parks.

Habitat: Forests

Appearance

The Eastern Chipmunk is a small, striped rodent with reddish-brown fur, a pale belly, and distinctive dark and light stripes running down its back. It has two white stripes and a dark stripe on each side of its face. Its bushy tail is shorter than its body.

KingdomAnimaliaPhylumChordataClassMammaliaOrderRodentiaFamilySciuridaeGenusTamias

Eastern Chipmunk

Interesting facts

A chipmunk's heart can beat over 350 times a minute when it's excited or scared!

Baby chipmunks are born blind and hairless, completely dependent on their mother for weeks!

Chipmunks collect hundreds of nuts each year for winter, but often forget where they buried them!

They build separate 'bathroom' tunnels in their burrows to keep their living areas clean!

Special abilities

Eastern Chipmunks have expandable cheek pouches that help them carry large amounts of food back to their burrows to store.

Eastern Chipmunks can dig intricate underground burrows with multiple tunnels and chambers to store food and sleep safely.

Eastern Chipmunks can enter a state of torpor (light hibernation) in winter, waking frequently to snack on stored food.

Measurements & details

Length: 18-26 cm
Weight: 0.05-0.12 kg
Lifespan: 2-3 years
Top Speed: 25 km/h
Litter Size: 2-8
Gestation: 31-35 days

Diet & Feeding

A tiny omnivore, they feast on seeds, nuts, fruits, and insects, storing food for later.

Primary Foods

Seeds
Nuts
Berries
Fungi
Insects

Foraging Method

Foraging

Ecological connections

eaten by

Red-tailed Hawk

Buteo jamaicensis

A common aerial predator in their habitat.

eaten by

Red Fox

Vulpes vulpes

A swift ground predator hunting them in forests.

depends on

Red Oak

Quercus rubra

Relies on acorns from oak trees for a major food source.

depends on

American Beech

Fagus grandifolia

Feeds on the nutritious nuts produced by beech trees.

Traits

Furry

Furry describes animals possessing a dense covering of soft hair or fur.

Striped

Marked with parallel bands or lines of color.

Social

Social animals live in organized groups, cooperating for survival benefits such as foraging, defense, and raising offspring.

Omnivorous

This trait identifies organisms whose diet includes both plant and animal matter.

Burrowing

Burrowing animals dig tunnels and chambers in the ground, using these subterranean structures for shelter, hunting, or breeding.

Forest

Forest habitats are terrestrial environments dominated by dense tree cover, supporting a high diversity of plant and animal life.

Hibernating

Hibernating animals enter a state of metabolic depression during cold periods or when food is scarce, characterized by reduced body temperature and activity.