Big chipmunk. Chipmunk, rodent chipmunk, all about chipmunks, about chipmunks, chipmunks description
In Latin, the name of chipmunks is written Tamias. Regarding the Russian name, there are two versions of its origin. One of them is borrowing and transformation from the Tatar language, where “chipmunk” is written as “boryndyk”. The second option is an origin from the Mari word uromdok, but there are few adherents of this version.
Chipmunks are widespread in North America, inhabiting almost the entire continent. All existing species live there with the exception of the Asian or Siberian chipmunk, which is found in Eurasia and Russia.
Appearance
Depending on the species, the animals reach a size of 5 to 15 centimeters, the tail can be from 7 to 12 centimeters. Weight varies from 20 to 120 grams. All chipmunks have one thing in common - five stripes, which are located along the back.
The stripes are separated from each other by black or gray lines. The rest of the animal's fur can be red-brown or black-brown. Due to their external similarities, most species of chipmunks are difficult to distinguish from each other. There are 3 in total, but each of them is divided into another 24 subspecies, so only specialists can figure out whether they belong to a particular family.
Where do chipmunks live? Photos, species distribution area
Even though chipmunks live on the ground, they need trees. As a rule, where chipmunks live, there are windbreaks, a large amount of dead wood, and the ground is covered with plants in which it is convenient to hide.
These are the places chipmunks look for, and if there are no trees in the area, but bushes densely cover the ground, then they can adapt here. Another is the presence of a body of water nearby. Therefore, you should look for where chipmunks live in nature in the forests - on the banks of rivers and lakes.
Home for rodents
In order to make a house, the chipmunk digs a hole for itself. Its length can reach 3 m, the burrows always branch. In the hole there are always two branches that end in dead ends - these are the animal’s toilets.
There are always several closets for supplies and living spaces. In them, rodents line the floor with leaves. Here they sleep in winter and at night, and here their children are born and grow up. When they dig a hole, they hide the earth behind their cheeks and carry it away from the place where they live. Chipmunks in the forest carefully hide the entrance to their burrow. It is located under dead wood, in thickets of bushes, under an old rotten stump. Finding a mink without the help of a dog is almost impossible.
Life of rodents
Chipmunks love warmth and hate rain. This is why they show up in warm weather and frolic when they are warm. The exception is species that live in places with constant rainfall.
In winter, animals hibernate, but not as tightly as gophers. They periodically wake up and are refreshed with supplies from the pantries. The chipmunk sleeps with its muzzle on its abdomen or wrapped around its flexible tail.
At the beginning of spring, the inhabitants of the burrows, which are located on sunny slopes and are the first to be freed from snow, go out to explore. At this time, chipmunks are still inactive, spend two to three hours outdoors and prefer to bask in the sun. Most often they can be seen on the tops of trees in the sun.
At such times, the chipmunks do not move far from the hole. They eat buds on nearby plants or eat up winter reserves. When the sun warms up, rodents pull out damp supplies and put them in the sun to dry. If warm days give way to cold ones again, the animals go into their burrows and wait for real spring.
In the summer, when it’s hot, chipmunks come out into the air early enough, but so that the ground warms up. They do their work before the heat of the day sets in, and their second exit is in the evening. In places where the weather is constantly warm and there is no heat or cold, chipmunks can be observed all day long. In autumn, animals crawl out of their burrows after the air warms up. This continues until it gets completely cold.
Animals do not tolerate rain and feel it very well. In places where chipmunks live, a few hours before a rainstorm begins, they stand on tree stumps and make special sounds that are different from their usual “talks.”
Offspring
Chipmunks prefer to live alone and jealously guard their apartments. During periods of mating, they communicate with the opposite sex, after which offspring appear. This occurs in May and then in August. In the spring, before the birth of offspring, a chipmunk can choose an old hollow as a home, because he does not have to think about wintering, and there are fewer enemies in the trees.
The Siberian chipmunk produces offspring once. The number of newborns is 4-8 individuals. Their relatives from America give birth two times, 3-4 times, to four cubs. Chipmunks become sexually mature in their first year of life. In the wild, the animal's lifespan is 3 years; in captivity, the figure can reach 10 years.
Young chipmunks spend a long time in the nest. When they are old enough, they begin to look for food near the entrance. Gradually they begin to go deeper and further from the hole.
While the cubs are small, the female is not far from the entrance to the hole and, in case of danger, begins to snort in alarm. Then the children quickly run back, squealing in response.
Enemies
Small rodents have a lot of enemies. These are birds of prey, small animals, people and sometimes bears. The latter most often dig up chipmunks' burrows and eat their reserves. When an animal sees an enemy, it begins to squeak anxiously at certain intervals.
After this, the chipmunk allows the enemy to come to a distance of 30 meters and carefully examines it. If there is real danger, it begins to run, emitting a continuous frightened squeak. Chipmunks most often hide from their pursuers in the bushes or try to climb a tree. They do not lead their enemies to the hole.
Nutrition
The main food of rodents is what he can get in the forest. This is mainly plant food, but sometimes there may also be small insects. Chipmunks love to eat buds, grains, tree nuts, and plant shoots. If any cereals grow nearby, then chipmunks happily feed on the grain from them.
Sometimes these animals can become real pests. With a small field located next to the hole where chipmunks live in the forest, you can completely lose the harvest. And all this is done by small rodents. In addition, chipmunks eat berries, mushrooms, and can eat apricots and other fruits carelessly planted by people near the hole.
Winter supplies
The chipmunk's supplies are quite varied. All types of food that he can get around his hole are used. The supply is maintained throughout the entire waking period.
According to researchers, where chipmunks live in Russia, their winter food supply reaches about 6 kilograms. The animal divides all its food by type, and even grain from different crops is in different piles. All food is piled on a bed of dry grass or leaves, and the piles are separated from each other by partitions of leaves.
The extraction of grain is interesting. If the ears of corn do not grow too close, the animal looks for the plant richest in grain and jumps on it. The stem bends under the weight and, holding it with its paws, the chipmunk bites off the spikelet itself.
After that, he picks the grains, hides them behind his cheeks and runs into his hole. If the ears grow close and there is no way to tilt them, then the chipmunk bites the stem until it gets to the grains.
Description of the chipmunk
Chipmunk is a small rodent of the squirrel family. Its length is up to 15 centimeters, and its tail is up to 12. It weighs up to 150 grams.
The name of the chipmunk comes from the characteristic sound called “burun” made before the rain. The chipmunk is similar in appearance, only on its back it has five black stripes along its back. There are light stripes between them.
These animals number 25 species, but the most numerous and widespread are three species:
1. Eastern American chipmunk
2. Chipmunk squirrel or red squirrel
3. Siberian chipmunk(Eurasian)
Chipmunk Features
Their fur is gray-red in color, and on the abdomen it is light grayish to white. They shed once a year in early autumn, changing their fur to dense and warm. Their pulse rate reaches 500 beats per minute, and their breathing rate can reach 200. Normal body temperature is 39 degrees. They are partly similar to a squirrel:
- The front legs are longer than the hind legs
- Big ears
- Little claws
- They dig holes and live in them.
- They have cheek pouches.
- There are no tassels on the ears.
- He stands on his hind legs and monitors the situation.
Chipmunks are not aggressive, compared to squirrels, and quickly get used to people. Therefore, it is not uncommon for people to live chipmunk at home in a cage.
Chipmunk Habitat
Most chipmunks live in North America in deciduous forests. Siberian chipmunk extends from Europe to the Far East, and south to China. Taiga animals chipmunks They climb trees well, but their home is in a hole. The entrance to it is carefully disguised with leaves, branches, maybe in an old rotten stump, in dense bushes.
The animals' burrow is up to three meters long with several dead-end compartments for storage, toilets, living and feeding the cubs of females. The living room is covered with dry grass.
Chipmunks have large bags behind their cheeks in which they carry food supplies for the winter, and also drag the earth away from it when digging a hole for the purpose of camouflage.
Each chipmunk has its own territory, and it is not customary for them to violate its boundaries. The exception is the spring mating of a male and female for procreation. During this period, the female calls the males with a specific signal. They come running and start fighting.
The female mates with the winner. After this, they disperse to their own territories until next spring. The animals lead a diurnal lifestyle. At dawn they come out of their holes, climb trees, feed, bask in the sun, and play.
When darkness falls, they hide in holes. In the fall, I prepare up to two kilograms of food for the winter, dragging it by the cheeks.
From mid-October to April chipmunks are sleeping, curled up in a ball, and the nose is hidden towards the abdomen. The tail covers the head. But in winter they wake up several times to eat and go to the toilet. In spring, on sunny days, animals begin to crawl out of their holes, climb a tree and bask.
In the photo, chipmunks are sleeping on a tree
Chipmunks forest animals and about them
When danger approaches, the animal stands on its hind legs and emits an intermittent whistle. 15 meters from a predator or person chipmunk runs away, continuing to whistle more often, diverting danger away from the hole. Usually runs and hides in dense bushes or climbs a tree.
Listen to the chipmunk whistle
You can tell by whistling whether an animal is sitting or running. There are rumors that chipmunk suicidal animal. If someone destroys an animal’s hole and eats all its supplies, then he finds a forked branch, sticks his head into this spear and hangs himself :)
If this were so, then in the taiga one could see numerous gallows made of chipmunks. However, this is not observed.
About chipmunks it must be said that they sometimes become carriers of some diseases dangerous to humans: tick-borne encephalitis and toxoplasmosis. But they themselves are susceptible to many diseases:
- Skin – dermatitis
- Cardiovascular from fright
- Respiratory. In this case, there is sneezing and discharge of fluid from the nose.
- Gastrointestinal
- Traumatic
Chipmunk as a pet used in many families. He quickly adapts to people and behaves calmly. Considering that chipmunk is not an aggressive animal, after a few days he takes food from a person's hands. But maintaining it at home requires special conditions:
- The cage must be at least 1 meter by 1 meter and 50 centimeters high
- Must have a wheel
- Inside the cage there is a house for the night measuring 15 by 15 centimeters with a hole with a diameter of 3 centimeters. Lay dry grass inside.
In a cage they live like a burrow. They go to the toilet in one corner, and put supplies in another corner. Though chipmunks forest animals, but they are unpretentious when it comes to food at home.
They love all types of porridge, fruits, cookies, lump sugar, carrots. Animals need to be given chalk and boiled eggs.
Myself chipmunk clean animal, but you should sometimes remove supplies from his pantry because they spoil. The presence of reserves indicates that the animal is eating enough when feeding. After a few days, he can be let out to walk around the room.
At home, animals do not sleep in winter, but lead an active lifestyle, but they very rarely have offspring.
Reproduction and lifespan of a chipmunk
With the onset of spring, the male and female mate, and after a month, babies from 5 to 12 appear.
After mating, the female drives the male into her territory, and subsequently raises the cubs alone. Feeding babies lasts about two months. After this they can exist independently.
Pictured is a baby chipmunk
The cubs grow disproportionately. First the head grows, and then the body grows. After two weeks, the babies acquire fur with stripes on their backs. After three weeks their eyes open. In nature chipmunks live 2 – 3 years due to the large number of enemies:
At home, animals live up to ten years.
Chipmunk food
These animals are rodents. They eat mainly plant foods:
- Seeds
- Berries
- Cereals
- Mushrooms
- Leaves
- Acorns
- Nuts
Sometimes chipmunks eat animal food: larvae, worms, insects. If a person plants vegetables near the animal’s home, the chipmunk will happily eat cucumbers, carrots, and tomatoes.
In a grain field, he bites a stalk of cereal, picks out all the grains into his cheek pouches from a fallen ear in a matter of seconds, and runs away.
The animals make supplies in the hole, placing different types in separate rooms. These bins are needed for spring, when food is practically scarce. When the sun begins to warm up well, the chipmunk takes out the remaining supplies to dry.
The Chipmunks became so beloved that their characters appeared in the cartoons Chip and Dale and Alvin and the Chipmunks". And the cities of Krasnoturinsk and Volchansk in the Sverdlovsk region have chipmunk image on their coats of arms. Movie "Alvin and the Chipmunks" aired in five episodes.
On the screen, viewers meet a trio of chipmunks speaking in a squeaky voice. They not only talk, but also create a musical trio and perform chipmunk songs. Film "Chipmunks" brought fame to musician Dave Saville, who wrote the songs for this series.
Asiatic or Siberian chipmunk (Tamias sibiricus) - a mammal of the genus chipmunks of the sciuridae family of the order of rodents. The only species of chipmunks found in Eurasia (the others are found in North America). It is often classified as a separate genus - Eutamias.
Appearance
The chipmunk is a small (smaller than an ordinary squirrel), slender animal with an elongated body and a long, fluffy tail. Body length 12-17 cm, tail - 7-12 cm; weight 80-111 g. Limbs shorter than those of squirrels; the hind legs are longer than the front ones. The soles are partially covered with hair.
The color is variegated: on the back, on a grayish-brown or reddish background, there are 5 longitudinal black stripes, separated by light ones. The belly is whitish. The tail is grayish above, rusty below. The hair is short, with a rather coarse spine; the color does not change with the seasons. The chipmunk sheds once a year, in July-September. The ears are small, slightly pubescent, without terminal tufts. There are quite developed cheek pouches.
Spreading
The Siberian chipmunk is distributed in the taiga zone of Eurasia: from the northeast of the European part of Russia to the Far East (except Kamchatka), Northern Mongolia, the islands of Sakhalin and Hokkaido. It is especially numerous in the cedar-deciduous forests of the Primorsky Territory, where in favorable years 200-300 chipmunks can live per 1 km2.
Lifestyle
The chipmunk is common in dark coniferous and mixed forests with abundant undergrowth of berry bushes; it prefers edges, bright areas, windfalls and litter; less common in deciduous forests. In the mountains it rises to the upper border of forests. In the east of the range it settles among dwarf cedar trees on rocky placers.
It climbs trees well, but constantly lives in shallow, simple burrows. In a burrow there are usually two chambers - a nesting chamber and a pantry, and shallow holes used as latrines. Summer nests are sometimes made in rotten stumps, under the trunks of fallen trees, at the roots, sometimes in low hollows and birdhouses. Chipmunks are active during the day.
The basis of the chipmunk's diet is the seeds of coniferous (primarily cedar) and deciduous trees (maple, linden, rowan), herbaceous plants, especially sedges and umbrellas; and in spring and summer - shoots, buds and berries of herbaceous plants, mushrooms, lichens, cereal grains (wheat, oats, buckwheat). It can also feed on animal food - insects and mollusks. From August, it begins to store food for the winter (nuts, acorns, grains, dried mushrooms and berries), carrying it in cheek pouches, sometimes from a distance of more than 1 km. The weight of the reserves can reach 5-6 kg. Underground storerooms are often robbed by other taiga animals - squirrels, sables, even wild boars and bears.
From October to the end of March, chipmunks hibernate. Their body temperature at this time drops to 3-8 degrees, their breathing rate decreases to two breaths per minute. However, they periodically wake up to feed.
Chipmunks live alone, each in their own area. Two chipmunks do not get along in the same hole; In captivity, adult chipmunks, placed in the same cage, fight. When the pine nut harvest fails, chipmunks leave their areas and wander.
Chipmunks have a rather complex sound signaling system. When danger arises, they whistle monosyllables or emit a sharp trill, similar to a bird's; females call “hook-hook” during the rut. Before the rain, the chipmunk makes a special sound “burunbu-ryu-burun”, which is why it got its name.
Reproduction
The chipmunk's breeding season occurs in April - May, after awakening from hibernation. Born in late May - June after a 30-day pregnancy. ,The mass of the cubs is 3-4 g, they are born naked and blind. After a few days, dark stripes appear on their backs. Eyes open at 31 days. They stay with their mother for up to 2 months. Life expectancy is 2-3 years in nature, in captivity - 5-10 years.
Meaning for humans
Many generations of children have grown up watching Chip and Dale. Everyone loved their mischievous and cute little faces. The animal chipmunk in nature is no less a cute character.
Thrifty Jumper
The chipmunk is a small rodent of the squirrel family.Chipmunks are wonderful animals with puffy cheeks. These animals are rodents and come from the squirrel family.
What does a chipmunk look like?
Chipmunks are small in size, their length, excluding the tail, is approximately 16 centimeters. The tail of the animal is not small, about 10 centimeters. Chipmunks are very light in weight, weighing approximately 100 grams. Externally, the animal resembles a squirrel, only very small in size. The coat color of these animals is reddish-yellow, with a lighter color on the abdomen. There are five stripes on the back, located along the body.
Animal habitats
Chipmunks can be found in coniferous and mixed forests. In our country, they live in the Far East and Siberia. However, in the Eastern European part it can only be seen occasionally. Favorite places for settlement are the edges located next to forest clearings. Chipmunks also love to inhabit dead wood and rotten stumps.
Lifestyle and behavior of chipmunks
The animal prefers to lead a diurnal lifestyle. It moves beautifully through trees thanks to its tenacious legs. The movements of chipmunks are spasmodic. Their activity depends on the time of year. For example, in the summer these animals begin to live their most active lifestyle. They are cheerful, cheerful, move around a lot, jump in trees, and prepare supplies for the winter, except on very hot days. In extreme heat, they try to do all their “business” early in the morning. In the spring, when the first warm days are just beginning, chipmunks like to climb to the top of a tree and bask in the sun's rays. Their behavior at this time is very sluggish and lazy.
Winter time for these animals is characterized by hibernation. But, as scientists' observations have shown, chipmunks sometimes still wake up to eat. Their fat reserves are not enough for the entire winter period, so they eat their own supplies, prepared for this occasion in the summer.
What do chipmunks eat?
The basis of the diet is nuts, seeds of trees and shrubs. They are especially attracted to seeds from the cones of coniferous trees, such as cedar or dwarf cedar (this tree is a mini-copy of cedar, its cones are also tasty, but two times smaller than cedar cones). When collecting nuts, the chipmunk eats some of them immediately, and takes some of them to his storage, making reserves for the winter. These animals can also eat various wild berries as food. What interests him most is sometimes not even the berries themselves, but the seeds contained in them (for example, raspberries or rose hips). Sometimes insects or shellfish may come to him for “lunch” as food.
How do these animals reproduce and what kind of babies do they have?
As soon as chipmunks wake up from hibernation, mating season begins. It lasts approximately 2 – 4 weeks. Then pregnancy occurs, its duration in chipmunks is approximately 30 days. One female gives birth, on average, to four to ten chipmunk babies. For 40 days after birth, the cubs feed on mother's milk. When babies reach two months of age, they leave their parents’ “home” and begin to live independently.
Apparently, he is stocking up for the winter...
Fur animals, Rodents
The chipmunk actually looks a lot like a squirrel.. But his similarity with her is not limited to this - they are almost identical in some habits, with the only difference being that the chipmunk prefers to spend a lot of time on the ground, while the squirrel prefers to spend a lot of time on the tree. The chipmunk is most widespread in North America and in the taiga zone of Russia.
Description of chipmunks
The size and weight of chipmunks depend on their species and can reach 5...15 centimeters (tail - 7...12 centimeters) in body length and 30...120 grams of weight. The main distinguishing characteristic of all chipmunks is the presence of 5 dark lines running along the back and separated by lighter stripes (gray or white). Otherwise, the color of their coat is almost the same and is gray-brown or red-brown. In this regard, the species of chipmunks are extremely difficult to distinguish one from another. There are 3 of them in total, the last of which includes a large number of subspecies - about 24.
Chipmunk Habits
Chipmunk activity occurs primarily in the morning and evening.. During the cold period of the year, it hibernates, but does not fall asleep as soundly as, for example, a marmot or a ground squirrel, so the chipmunk often awakens in the middle of winter, and then, having eaten thoroughly, falls asleep again.
Proof of this is the obligatory reserves for the winter and the small amount of subcutaneous fat deposited, in comparison with other warm-blooded forest inhabitants, who first fatten up and then burrow under the snow, go into dens and holes to spend there all the time until spring.
Chipmunks emerge from their burrows immediately with the onset of warm weather, but in a fan pattern. This is due to which side of the hill their home is located on - on warmer slopes, warmed up by the sun earlier than others, chipmunks appear earlier than others. But if suddenly the warmth is abruptly interrupted by a cold snap, the chipmunks again go into their holes, only to appear again only with the onset of invariably spring days.
The habits of spring chipmunks differ from summer chipmunks: under the not yet hot sun, these animals are more lethargic, sedentary, do not go far from their homes, preferring to climb nearby trees and feast on their buds or settle on the very tops of their heads and bask in the rays of the spring sun. In summer, chipmunks, on the contrary, are playful, active, nimble, mobile and spend more time outdoors, unless, of course, it’s hot.
At the peak of the heat, they emerge from their burrows only before sunrise or almost before sunset. But in the thicket, chipmunks do not hide in holes even in hot weather, remaining outside all day. Chipmunks are extremely intolerant of rain and sense its approach very keenly, warning each other with a special clicking sound.
Chipmunk habitats
Most species and subspecies of chipmunks live on the North American continent, where this small animal occupies almost the entire territory - from the central part of Mexico to the Arctic Circle. The only exception is the Eurasian species - the so-called Siberian or Asian chipmunk. It is distributed from northern China and the Korean Peninsula all the way to the northern region of Europe. There is also one on the island of Hokkaido. The Eastern American chipmunk forms a special subgenus, which is found only in the east of the continent. In the central zone of Europe, wild chipmunks have taken root, having escaped from specialized farms that breed them.
Judging by the landscape and vegetation zone, we can note the following: the small chipmunk has chosen the subarctic Canadian coniferous forests, the Siberian chipmunk prefers to live in the taiga, and the eastern American chipmunk prefers to live in the deciduous forests of New England. In addition, some subspecies of chipmunks have adapted to life in open areas, among bushes.
Where does the chipmunk live?
The chipmunk lives in burrows that it makes in tree roots or rotten stumps. and very rarely - in hollows. Despite the fact that he, like the squirrel, is a tree dweller, he does not necessarily need old tall trees - often the chipmunk gets along well with thickets of willow, birch and bird cherry. However, most of all he prefers dead wood and windbreaks, where it is best to get lost, remaining completely unnoticed. Another requirement for the place where the chipmunk lives is the presence of water. This is why they are most often found in thickets along large streams and rivers.
When digging a hole, the chipmunk throws the earth as far as possible, carrying it in its cheek pouches at a considerable distance from its home - so that nothing would betray the presence of a dwelling. Inside it can reach 3 meters and, in addition to 1 nesting chamber, have several more - 1-2 for supplies and 1-2 for the toilet. He usually covers the living room with leaves and dry vegetation. This chamber is intended for night rest, hibernation and hatching of young animals.
What does a chipmunk eat?
The chipmunk mainly eats plant foods, only occasionally mixing insects into it. However, this does not mean that the composition of its food is extremely poor - on the contrary, it is very diverse and includes mushrooms, forest and pine nuts, acorns, grass, young shoots of shrubs, tree buds, seeds of wild herbs and conifers.
And in general, the chipmunk is a very big gourmet - he loves various berries, cereals, peas, sunflowers, flax, corn, buckwheat. Often the diet is also diversified by what a person carelessly planted near its habitat - it eats apricots, plums, and cucumbers. But the chipmunk preferably chooses grain spikelets and pine nuts as winter reserves.
Chipmunk Hunt
Hunting for chipmunks begins in the spring, when the animal comes out of hibernation and appears on the surface. Its duration is approximately 40...45 days (traditionally until the last days of May). It coincides with the mating season of the chipmunk, which greatly increases prey. They take a break for the summer, since chipmunks are not hunted during the hot season due to the low quality and low value of the fur. It resumes in the fall, right in September, and lasts until the chipmunk goes into hibernation - that is, until the end of October.
Of the methods of hunting chipmunk in the spring, hunting with a decoy and a loop works best. At this time, they are most responsive to the call, since they are entering the time of searching for a mate. The optimal hours for fishing are midday and morning. But in the fall this method does not justify itself at all, so preference is given to hunting with a dog and a gun. It largely replicates squirrel hunting due to the similarity of the chipmunk to it - both in lifestyle and habits. A husky should be used as a hunting dog. It is best to take cartridges with a half charge - with shot numbers 8-10, since you have to hit them mostly at close range.
The word “chipmunk” is translated as “household manager” or “housekeeper.” This genus of rodents from the squirrel family includes 25 species that are common in North America, except for the Asian or Siberian chipmunk (Tamias sibiricus), a resident of Eurasia.
The weight of chipmunks ranges from 30 to 120 g, body length from 5 to 15 cm, tail length from 7 to 12 cm, depending on the species. A distinctive feature of all species is the five dark stripes located along the back, which are separated by white or gray stripes. In general, the color of chipmunks is red-brown or gray-brown and is characteristic of all species, which makes it quite difficult to distinguish them.
The basis of the chipmunks' diet is plant food, to which they occasionally add insects. In general, the composition of the feed is varied, including seeds of wild plants, buds of trees and shrubs, young branches, herbs, various berries, as well as acorns, pine and hazelnuts, and mushrooms. Near fields and vegetable gardens, chipmunks willingly feast on cereal grains, buckwheat, corn, flax, sunflowers, peas, cucumbers, plums, apricots and other crops grown by people.
For the winter, chipmunks also store a large variety of different foods: wheat, oats, buckwheat, flax, sunflowers, wild seeds, acorns, nuts, dried berries, apples, mushrooms. At the same time, the chipmunk never mixes different foods, but carefully puts them on a bed of dry grass in separate piles, or separates different foods using dry leaves. The amount of reserves in one burrow sometimes reaches 6 kg, since chipmunks are engaged in creating food reserves throughout the entire period before hibernation.
The method of harvesting grain is interesting. The chipmunk climbs into a not very dense crop, selects a good ear, grabs a straw and jumps up. Because of its weight, the straw bends and the animal moves along it, holding it between its paws, and thus reaches the ear. Then he bites it off, selects the grain in a few minutes, hides it in his cheek pouches and leaves. In dense crops, where it is not possible to tilt the straw, the chipmunk bites it from below, biting off fragments and gradually reaching the ear.
Chipmunks are found throughout North America, from the Arctic Circle to central Mexico. The Eastern American chipmunk (Tamias striatus) lives in the east of the continent. 23 species of the subgenus Neotamias are distributed in the western regions. The Siberian chipmunk lives in Northern Europe to the Korean Peninsula and the northern regions of China, on the island of Hokkaido. In Central Europe, there are feral chipmunks that escape from their breeding farms.
Chipmunks prefer forested areas to live. Thus, the eastern American chipmunk lives in the deciduous forests of New England, the Siberian chipmunk in the taiga, and the little chipmunk in the subarctic coniferous forests of Canada. Some species are also found in open areas overgrown with bushes.
Common types of chipmunk
Body length is 14-19 cm, tail length is 8-11 cm, weight is 70-140 g. The back is reddish-brown with five short white stripes, which are bordered by dark fur. The tail is reddish-brown.
The species' habitat covers the eastern United States and southeastern Canada, where the chipmunk is found in deciduous forests, bushes, and among rocks.
Slender body length 12-17 cm, tail length 7-12 cm, weight 80-111 g. Paws are short. The color is variegated. The back is grayish-brown or reddish with five longitudinal black stripes, which are separated by light ones. The belly is whitish. The tail is gray above, red below. The coat is short and rough. Molting occurs once a year, in July-September. The ears are small, without tufts. Cheek pouches are well developed.
The species is distributed in the taiga zone of Eurasia (Russia, the Far East, Northern Mongolia, Sakhalin Island and Hokkaido). The species acclimatizes well and independently spreads to new territories.
The body length is 23-29 cm, the tail is 10-13 cm long, the body weight is from 65 to 89 g. The upper body is light or dark orange-brown, on the back there are five dark stripes, which are separated by four orange stripes. The belly and throat are white to cream colored. The top of the tail is blackish-gray or silver, the bottom of the tail is bright orange. In winter the fur is darker than in summer.
The species lives in Canada (British Columbia) and the USA (Oregon, Washington), in dense forests.
The body length of the species is 19.5-23 cm, the tail length is 6.6-11 cm, the weight is 42-89 g. The fur is colored from red to pink-brown, the back is decorated with five dark, usually black stripes, which are separated by four white or gray stripes. The sides and tail below are gray-yellow. The ears are black in front, white in back. The belly and throat are white to cream in color. In winter the fur is duller than in summer.
The species is found in Canada (Alberta, British Columbia) and the USA (California, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, Oregon, Utah, Washington, Wyoming). Inhabits coniferous forests and meadows at altitudes up to 3000 meters above sea level.
The body length is 20-24 cm, the tail is 9-10 cm long, weight is from 44 to 79 g. The upper body is orange, on the back there are five stripes from black to brown, which are separated by four gray or yellow-brown stripes . The belly is white or cream. The tail is red below.
The species' habitat includes Canada (Alberta, British Columbia) and the USA (Idaho, Montana, Washington), where it lives at an altitude of 720 to 2400 m above sea level in coniferous forests.
Body length 10-13 cm, tail length 8-10 cm, weight from 35 to 53 g. The rump is grayish in color, the sides are red-brown, the abdomen is grayish-white. The tail below is reddish-yellow to brown. There are five dark and four light stripes on the back and sides, three dark and two light stripes are on the muzzle.
Found in the USA and Canada, in coniferous and deciduous forests, in the tundra.
Sexual dimorphism in chipmunks is manifested in the fact that females are slightly larger than males in size.
The chipmunk is a tree dweller. He can be content with both tall trees and thickets of bird cherry, birch, and willow. It does not live only in open areas, in clean tall forests without undergrowth. Preference is given to places with windbreaks and dead wood, as well as along the banks of rivers and streams.
The chipmunk's burrow is long, up to 3 meters, and contains a nesting chamber, large storerooms for supplies and toilets. The living area is lined with dry grass and leaves. Here chipmunks breed, sleep at night and hibernate.
In the middle of winter, chipmunks sometimes wake up, eat, and then fall asleep again. The chipmunk sleeps, curled up into a ball.
In the spring, chipmunks emerge from their burrows at different times, depending on the weather. If it gets cold again, they go into their burrows, where they wait for warmer weather and eat up their reserves.
In summer, chipmunks emerge from their burrows early in the morning, before sunrise, and search for food until the heat is intense. In the evening, when the heat subsides, they come to the surface again and remain until sunset. In dense shady forests they may not hide all day. In rainy weather they remain in their burrows.
Chipmunks lead a solitary lifestyle; they carefully protect their territory and mink from the invasion of relatives. Males and females seek each other only during the mating season. The first brood appears in May, the second appears in August. Pregnancy lasts about 30 days, with 4-5 babies in one litter. The cubs remain in the nest for a long time. Sexual maturity is reached in the first year of life. In the wild, chipmunks live on average 3 years, and in captivity they even live up to 10 years.
Natural enemies
The main natural enemies of chipmunks are small predatory animals and birds of prey. Occasionally, they are also pursued by large predators such as a bear, which seeks to dig up a chipmunk's burrow in search of its winter food reserves.
When people or dogs approach, chipmunks make a jerky “tink” or whistle. At the same time, the animal sits on its hind legs and examines the approaching person. Having allowed him 20-30 steps, the chipmunk runs away and continues repeating the alarm signal while running to notify his relatives of the danger.
- Chipmunks are bred in captivity; it is recommended to do this one at a time so that there is no rivalry or fights between the animals. Chipmunks that grow up in captivity are easily tamed. Domestic chipmunks choose a varied diet, adding nuts and berries to their diet. The cage should be as large and spacious as possible; its bottom should be lined with a special substrate for rodents (wood bark, sawdust). To maintain physical fitness, the cage is equipped with a running wheel.
- In places where agricultural crops are located near forests, chipmunks are pests of fields. In some cases, these animals are capable of stealing the entire crop from the field.
- Chipmunks are represented in world cinema, for example, Chip and Dale, the Disney cartoon characters, are chipmunks. The virtual musical group “Alvin and the Chipmunks” from the film of the same name was also loved by viewers.
Appearance
The chipmunk is a small (smaller than an ordinary squirrel), slender animal with an elongated body and a long, fluffy tail. Body length 12-17 cm, tail - 7-12 cm; weight 80-111 g. Limbs shorter than those of squirrels; the hind legs are longer than the front ones. The soles are partially covered with hair.
The color is variegated: on the back, on a grayish-brown or reddish background, there are 5 longitudinal black stripes, separated by light ones. The belly is whitish. The tail is grayish above, rusty below. The hair is short, with a rather coarse spine; the color does not change with the seasons. The chipmunk sheds once a year, in July-September. The ears are small, slightly pubescent, without terminal tufts. There are quite developed cheek pouches.
Spreading
The Siberian chipmunk is distributed in the taiga zone of Eurasia: from the northeast of the European part of Russia to the Far East (except Kamchatka), Northern Mongolia, the islands of Sakhalin and Hokkaido. It is especially numerous in the pine-deciduous forests of the Primorsky Territory, where in favorable years 200-300 chipmunks can live per 1 km2.
Lifestyle
The chipmunk is common in dark coniferous and mixed forests with abundant undergrowth of berry bushes; it prefers edges, bright areas, windfalls and litter; less common in deciduous forests. In the mountains it rises to the upper border of forests. In the east of the range it settles among dwarf cedar trees on rocky placers.
It climbs trees well, but constantly lives in shallow, simple burrows. In a burrow there are usually two chambers - a nesting chamber and a pantry, and shallow holes used as latrines. Summer nests are sometimes made in rotten stumps, under the trunks of fallen trees, at the roots, sometimes in low hollows and birdhouses. Chipmunks are active during the day.
The basis of the chipmunk's diet is the seeds of coniferous (primarily cedar) and deciduous trees (maple, linden, rowan), herbaceous plants, especially sedges and umbrella plants; and in spring and summer - shoots, buds and berries of herbaceous plants, mushrooms, lichens, cereal grains (wheat, oats, buckwheat). It can also feed on animal food - insects and mollusks. From August, it begins to store food for the winter (nuts, acorns, grains, dried mushrooms and berries), carrying it in cheek pouches, sometimes from a distance of more than 1 km. The weight of the reserves can reach 5-6 kg. Underground storerooms are often robbed by other taiga animals - squirrels, sables, even wild boars and bears.
From October to the end of March, chipmunks hibernate. Their body temperature at this time drops to 3-8 degrees, their breathing rate decreases to two breaths per minute. However, they periodically wake up to feed.
Chipmunks live alone, each in their own area. Two chipmunks do not get along in the same hole; In captivity, adult chipmunks, placed in the same cage, fight. When the pine nut harvest fails, chipmunks leave their areas and wander.
Chipmunks have a rather complex sound signaling system. When danger arises, they whistle monosyllables or emit a sharp trill, similar to a bird's; females call “hook-hook” during the rut. Before the rain, the chipmunk makes a special sound “burunbu-ryu-burun”, which is why it got its name.
Reproduction
The chipmunk's breeding season occurs in April - May, after awakening from hibernation. Born in late May - June after a 30-day pregnancy. ,The mass of the cubs is 3-4 g, they are born naked and blind. After a few days, dark stripes appear on their backs. Eyes open at 31 days. They stay with their mother for up to 2 months. Life expectancy is 2-3 years in nature, in captivity - 5-10 years.
Meaning for humans
The chipmunk is easily tamed and can be kept as a pet.
Other types
Links
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See what "Siberian chipmunk" is in other dictionaries: Siberian chipmunk
Žinduolių pavadinimų žodynas
Chipmunks Small chipmunk (Tamias minimus) Scientific classification Kingdom: Animalia Type: Ho ... Wikipedia chipmunk Siberian chipmunk
Husband. Siberian animal Tamias striatus, small, striped, ground squirrel. | On river vessels: tackle with a block through which a string is passed to pull the vessel; The chipmunk raises and lowers the whip. | mor. tackle that serves the sail of the unterlisel for... ... Dahl's Explanatory Dictionary
- (Tamias striatus) a mammal from the order of rodents and family squirrels. This is a small animal, 15 cm in length. B. is reddish in color with 5 black-brown longitudinal stripes, alternating with four yellowish ones. It generally looks like a squirrel, but is different... Encyclopedia of Brockhaus and Efron
- (Tamias striatus, see table Rodents, Glires) a mammal from the order of rodents and the squirrel family. This is a small animal, 15 cm in length. B. reddish in color with 5 black-brown longitudinal stripes alternating with four yellowish ones. He… … Encyclopedic Dictionary F.A. Brockhaus and I.A. Efron
The Siberian chipmunk (Tamias sibiricus) is a mammal from the genus Chipmunks, which belongs to the squirrel family. This is the only chipmunk in the world that lives in Eurasia. The fossil remains of this animal are known to paleontologists already from the Late Pleistocene cave deposits of Altai, Sayan and Primorye.
Description
In appearance, the chipmunk is similar to a small squirrel. Although in terms of family ties it is close to typical land-dwellers - ground squirrels and marmots, since its body structure features are quite “arboreal”. So, a chipmunk has a big difference in the length of its hind and front legs, rather large ears, and not so long claws. On the other hand, like gophers, it has cheek pouches for carrying small portions of food.
The body length of the Siberian chipmunk is up to 170 mm, and the tail is 130 mm, since it is always more than half of the body. The thick hair that covers the bottom of the tail, less distinct than that of squirrels, is combed on both sides. The fur of these animals is short, with a rather weak awn, and winter fur is practically no different from summer fur. The color of the fur on the upper body is reddish-gray, and five narrow dark stripes alternate with whitish ones. The abdomen is white.
Spreading
The distribution area of chipmunks is very extensive, and covers the taiga zone of Eurasia: from the northeast of the European part of Russia to the Far East (except Kamchatka), Northern Mongolia, the islands of Sakhalin and Hokkaido. A particularly large number of these animals are found in the cedar-deciduous forests of the Primorsky Territory, where in favorable years 200-300 chipmunks can live per 1 km2.
These animals live among larch forests in some places, in spruce-fir forests in others, and thirdly, they are most abundant in cedar trees and even in pine forests. In the southern part of their distribution range, where taiga forests turn into deciduous forests, chipmunks often live in birch forests mixed with other species. These animals live along the edges of forests, river banks, in overgrown burnt areas and clearings, and along the wooded outskirts of agricultural fields.
Life in nature
Chipmunks are animals that are active during the day. They climb trees well, but spend a long time on the ground. These animals live in shallow simple burrows, which serve as shelter for them; they rarely settle in hollows, since this is greatly affected by the prevailing terrestrial lifestyle. If chipmunks settle on screes, they do not dig holes, but make nests in the voids between the stones. Their underground home is of a simple structure, in which there are usually two chambers - a nesting chamber filled with dry grass and leaves, and a pantry in which the animals make their supplies. They also contain small holes, which they use as a latrine. A single passage, up to 3.5 meters long, leads into the hole of these animals, the hole into which is hidden under tree roots and inversions. In the area where the chipmunk lives, he makes several more holes to store supplies for the winter. Summer nests for animals can be hollows in rotten stumps, at the roots, under the trunks of fallen trees, and sometimes even birdhouses.
Siberian chipmunks live alone, each in its own territory. Two animals can never get along in one hole. These animals have a complex sound signaling system. When danger arises, they whistle monosyllables or emit a sharp trill that resembles a bird's.
During the harvest season, animals leave their burrows and wander around in search of food, using temporary shelters in a new place. In Eastern Siberia and the Far East, migration of animals to grain fields during their ripening is observed, and in mountainous regions, local “berry” migrations occur during the ripening of berries.
The main diet of a chipmunk in the wild consists of seeds of various wild and cultivated plants. First of all, these are coniferous (cedar), deciduous (maple, linden, rowan) and herbaceous (sedge and umbrella). In spring and summer, shoots, buds and berries of herbaceous plants (lingonberries and blueberries) are added to it. In the summer, when wheat and buckwheat grains are ripening in agricultural fields, Siberian chipmunks, along with other types of rodents, raid them and, accordingly, cause severe damage to the national economy. Animals rarely eat found food on the spot, and after filling their cheek bags with it, they quickly run to their shelter, where they then leisurely eat it. These animals can feed not only on plant foods, but also on animal foods such as insects and shellfish.
In August, chipmunks begin an important period of their lives - they begin to prepare food for the winter. The animals carry it, just like regular food, in their cheek pouches, covering distances of more than 1 km with it. Animals store nuts, acorns, grains, dried mushrooms and berries in the pantry chamber. The total weight of which can be up to 6 kg.
Badgers' winter reserves are easy and desirable prey for many animals inhabiting the taiga. These are sable, wild boar, bear and of course other rodents. When they destroy his warehouse and the chipmunk cannot drive them away, due to the significant difference in size, he is forced to run nearby, desperately chirp and twitch his fluffy tail raised up.
At the end of September - beginning of November, animals fall into a long winter hibernation, which ends in March - April, after spring warming and snowmelt. In the north it can last up to 7 months. During it, all life processes in their body slow down: body temperature drops to 3–8 degrees, and the breathing rate slows down to two breaths per minute. During periods of warming, rodents wake up and feed on previously made supplies, which are stored in the same burrow. During the winter period, as a rule, chipmunks do not eat all the reserves, leaving some of them for the hungry spring. If any animal or person ruins his little animal, then wintering may end in starvation for the animal.
After chipmunks emerge from hibernation, they begin the rut. At this time, females call males with their characteristic “gurgling” whistling. The latter run to the call 200 - 300 meters from the place where she is located. The males have quick fights with each other, rush along the branches and huddle into balls. At this moment they are defenseless and easy prey. After mating, within 30 days, cubs appear in the female’s burrows. They are born at the end of May - June completely blind and naked. The weight of each of them is 3 – 4 grams. After a few days, babies develop characteristic dark stripes on their backs, and their eyes open only by the 31st day of life. After this, they are ready to leave the hole and, under the strict guidance of the female, make their first familiarization excursions. 2 months after birth, the cubs are separated from their mother and move on to an independent lifestyle, the main concern of which in the future will be collecting supplies for the winter. During the year, the female brings only one litter, in which the number of cubs is on average 4 - 10. They reach sexual maturity only the next year. The life expectancy of chipmunks in the wild is from 2 to 3 years.
The Siberian chipmunk is an accessible and easy-to-hunt animal. Its enemies are almost all predators that inhabit its habitat. It is hunted by all small mustelids - sable, weasel, solongoi, ermine, as well as fox. Often these small animals die from the teeth of bears when they dig out their holes. Of the birds, the animals most affected by buzzards and hawks
Captivity
Chipmunks are one of the most beloved rodents that people keep in apartments. They look very elegant, they are active during the day and sleep at night and are also very clean. This is why many people want to keep one as a pet.
In order to keep this animal in captivity with the greatest possible comfort for it, the cage must be metal, since all wooden parts and objects in it instantly grind down and become unusable. It should be at least 80 cm in height, 40 cm in width and length. It is necessary to install a wheel in it, like a squirrel's, but a little smaller, so that the animal can thus satisfy its need for running and active movements. Without this, his muscles will become flabby, and the animal will become ill with physical inactivity. In addition, the wheel is also an emotional release for them, since in it they can “escape” from the danger that seems to them, which will not lead to overstrain of the nervous system and mental breakdown. In the cage you need to install all kinds of wooden shelves and sticks on which the chipmunk will sit and on which he will grind his teeth.
It is also necessary to have feeders from which the animal will eat and a drinking bowl - a dispenser for the animal’s constant access to water. Do not forget about the house in which the rodent can hide and stock up, as this is the norm of behavior.
Chipmunks are very neat and clean. In his cage, he uses the same corner for the toilet, thereby supporting the “burrow” instinct. As a tray for them, you need to place a soap dish with a double bottom where the animal itself has chosen.
To maintain cleanliness, and therefore the health of your pet, you need to clean the cage as it gets dirty, but wash the animal’s feeders and tray every day, and do a general cleaning once a month.
The chipmunk in nature eats almost everything: seeds, nuts, mushrooms, berries, plant shoots and much more. By his physiology, he is a vegetarian, and only occasionally and then under extreme circumstances, eating shellfish and insects. When feeding an animal at home, you need to create the same varied diet for it as it would receive if living in the wild.
For adequate nutrition when kept at home, the animal must be given dry food (special food for chipmunks) and juicy food (green parts of plants, berries) as a percentage of the total diet of 70 and 30%, respectively. Before giving the animal succulent food, it must be thoroughly washed in running water and checked for good quality. Fruits should be peeled because the gastrointestinal tract of these animals is very sensitive to chemicals in food (pesticides).
You should also not give almonds, as they contain hydrocyanic acid, which is very dangerous for chipmunks. They happily eat all types of nuts, as well as acorns and beech nuts, oatmeal, sunflower seeds, grains, fruits, berries, dandelions, fresh bark - all this is good and varied food for animals.
Chipmunks have large cheek pouches in which they carry food to their storage areas. They should be inspected periodically to ensure that food accumulated there does not begin to spoil. By the amount of supplies it is easy to determine whether the pet is getting enough food.
During the warm season, chipmunks can be kept in pairs in one cage or in small groups in enclosures. But when hibernation approaches, they need to be seated, since during this period they become aggressive towards their own relatives.
At home, animals do not hibernate, as such, their activity simply decreases, and they rarely leave their house. But after a while they can wake up and show the same activity as in the summer, and then go back to their place for a long time, which can be up to 2 weeks or more. The animal needs such periods to eat and run.
Chipmunks reproduce very poorly in captivity and therefore only experienced breeders or zoologists do this.
Chipmunks tend to be tamed and can be petted. The animal’s ability to store supplies pushes it into forced contact with the person from whom it accepts food. With frequent feeding from the hand, the rodent adapts to the person and ceases to be afraid of him and perceive him as an enemy. Thus, the food instinct displaces fear, and the consolidation of this reaction by a person will allow the animal to be domesticated in the future.
These animals love to walk around the apartment, run through closets and jump on the floor and sofas. In principle, they can be released from the cage, but such walks must take place under the strict control of the owner, since the chipmunk, like any other rodent, tries everything and climbs everywhere. Therefore, when you let him into the room, there should be no things in which the chipmunk can drop himself or fall from them; the presence of wires, open sockets, poisonous plants and any chemicals on the floor is also not allowed. The main thing you need to remember is that this animal is curious by nature and for this reason can suffer and even die from careless handling.
You cannot let your chipmunk out to walk around the apartment all the time, as he can jump out of an open window or door in a second and never return.
When keeping such an animal at home, you should always remember that no matter how tame it is, it always remains wild and can bite at the first opportunity. Therefore, you need to take chipmunks from above, protecting your hands from their strong and strong teeth. We should not forget about the health of the pet. When fixing it or catching it if it has escaped, you should not grab the animal by the tail, especially the tip, because in them, like many other animals, the skin is easily removed from the tail and only its musculoskeletal skeleton remains. After this, it dries out and the animal chews it off on its own, and your pet will forever be deprived of its beautiful and fluffy tail.
Therefore, in order for you and your pet to receive mutual pleasure from communicating with each other, the correct conditions of detention and communication are simply necessary.
Meaning.
The Siberian chipmunk has little commercial value (only its skin is used). For the most part, they are caught during the rut, when they seem to be easily accessible.
These animals are an important food item for fur-bearing taiga predators.
In the taiga zone, the chipmunk is one of the most harmful rodents. It causes great economic losses, destroying crops, destroying grain warehouses, and stealing feed from poultry farms. In the south of Primorye, these animals spoil melons and garden crops in order to get to their seeds.
Chipmunks are natural carriers of at least 8 pathogens of dangerous diseases, such as tick-borne encephalitis, rickettsiosis, toxoplasmosis, etc.
Interesting Facts
1. The chipmunk got its name due to the special sound “burunbu-ryu-burun” that it makes before the rain.
2. The most famous chipmunks remain the cartoon characters Chip and Dale, who were drawn by Walt Disney in the 1940s.
3. The popularity of these animals was also brought to them by the film “Alvin and the Chipmunks” released in 2007. After him, more and more people wanted to have these cute rodents in their homes.
4. Burudnuks are depicted on the coats of arms of the cities of Volchansk and Krasnoturinsk, which are located in the Svedlovsk region.
Health to you and your pets!
Chipmunk is a small rodent of the squirrel family. Its length is up to 15 centimeters, and its tail is up to 12. It weighs up to 150 grams. It looks like a very cute and beautiful animal that you want to pick up, pet and feed.
The name chipmunk comes from the characteristic sound called "burun" made before rain. The chipmunk is similar in appearance, only on its back it has five black stripes along its back. There are light stripes between them.
These animals number 25 species, but the most numerous and widespread are three species:
1. Eastern American chipmunk
2. Chipmunk squirrel or red squirrel
3. Siberian chipmunk (Eurasian)
Chipmunk Features
Their fur is gray-red in color, and on the abdomen it is light grayish to white. They shed once a year in early autumn, changing their fur to dense and warm. Their pulse rate reaches 500 beats per minute, and their breathing rate can reach 200. Normal body temperature is 39 degrees. They are partly similar to a squirrel:
- The front legs are longer than the hind legs
- Big ears
- Little claws
Chipmunks are also similar in some external signs and behavior:
- They dig holes and live in them.
- They have cheek pouches.
- There are no tassels on the ears.
- He stands on his hind legs and monitors the situation.
Chipmunks are not aggressive compared to squirrels, and quickly get used to people. Therefore, it is not uncommon for people to live chipmunk in a cage at home.
Chipmunk Habitat
Most chipmunks live in northern deciduous forests. Siberian chipmunk extends from Europe to the Far East, and south to. Living in the taiga, chipmunks climb trees well, but the animals make their home in a hole. The entrance to it is carefully disguised with leaves, branches, maybe in an old rotten stump, in dense bushes.
The animals' burrow is up to three meters long with several dead-end compartments for storage, toilets, living and feeding the cubs of females. The living room is covered with dry grass. Chipmunks have large bags behind their cheeks in which they carry food supplies for the winter, and also drag the earth away from it when digging a hole for the purpose of camouflage.
Each chipmunk has its own territory, and it is not customary for them to violate its boundaries. The exception is the spring mating of a male and female for procreation. During this period, the female calls the males with a specific signal. They come running and start fighting.
The female mates with the winner. After this, they disperse to their own territories until next spring. The animals lead a diurnal lifestyle. At dawn they come out of their holes, climb trees, feed, bask in the sun, and play. When darkness falls, they hide in holes. In the fall, I prepare up to two kilograms of food for the winter, dragging it by the cheeks.
From mid-October to April chipmunks are sleeping, curled up in a ball, and the nose is hidden towards the abdomen. The tail covers the head. But in winter they wake up several times to eat and go to the toilet. In spring, on sunny days, animals begin to crawl out of their holes, climb a tree and bask.
Chipmunks can spend the night right on a tree, covering themselves with their tail like a blanket.
Chipmunks forest animals and interesting facts about them
When danger approaches, the animal stands on its hind legs and emits an intermittent whistle. 15 meters away from a predator or a person, the chipmunk runs away, continuing to whistle more often, diverting danger from the hole. Usually runs and hides in dense bushes or climbs a tree.
Listen to the chipmunk whistle
You can tell by whistling whether an animal is sitting or running. There are rumors that chipmunk suicidal animal. If someone destroys an animal's hole and eats all its supplies, then he finds a forked branch, sticks his head into this spear and hangs himself :). If this were so, then in the taiga one could see numerous gallows made of chipmunks. However, this is not observed.
About chipmunks it must be said that they sometimes become carriers of some diseases dangerous to humans: tick-borne encephalitis and toxoplasmosis. But they themselves are susceptible to many diseases:
- Skin – dermatitis
- Cardiovascular from fright
- Respiratory. In this case, there is sneezing and discharge of fluid from the nose.
- Gastrointestinal
- Traumatic
The chipmunk is used as a pet in many families. He quickly adapts to people and behaves calmly. Being not not aggressive animals, in a few days Chipmunks Small chipmunk (Tamias minimus) Scientific classification Kingdom: Animalia Type: Ho ... Wikipedia is already starting to take food from a person’s hands. But maintaining it at home requires special conditions:
- The cage must be at least 1 meter by 1 meter and 50 centimeters high
- Must have a wheel
- Inside the cage there is a house for the night measuring 15 by 15 centimeters with a hole with a diameter of 3 centimeters. Lay dry grass inside.
In a cage they live like a burrow. They go to the toilet in one corner, and put supplies in another corner. Though chipmunks forest animals, but they are unpretentious when it comes to food at home. They love all types of porridge, fruits, cookies, lump sugar, carrots. Animals need to be given chalk and boiled eggs.
The chipmunk himself is a clean animal, but you should sometimes remove supplies from his pantry because they spoil. The presence of reserves indicates that the animal is eating enough when feeding. After a few days, he can be let out to walk around the room. At home, animals do not sleep in winter, but lead an active lifestyle, but they very rarely have offspring.
Reproduction and lifespan
With the onset of spring, the male and female mate, and after a month, babies from 5 to 12 appear. After mating, the female drives the male into her territory, and subsequently raises the cubs alone. Feeding babies lasts about two months. After this they can exist independently.
Pictured is a baby chipmunk
The cubs grow disproportionately. First the head grows, and then the body grows. After two weeks, the babies acquire fur with stripes on their backs. After three weeks their eyes open. In nature, chipmunks live 2–3 years due to the large number of enemies:
A chipmunk can hide a lot of grains behind its cheeks.
The animals make supplies in their burrows, placing different types in separate rooms. These bins are needed for spring, when food is practically scarce. When the sun begins to warm up well, the chipmunk takes out the remaining supplies to dry.
The Chipmunks became so beloved that their characters appeared in the cartoons Chip and Dale and Alvin and the Chipmunks. And the cities of Krasnoturinsk and Volchansk in the Sverdlovsk region have an image of a chipmunk on their coats of arms.
On the screen, viewers meet a trio of chipmunks speaking in a squeaky voice. They not only talk, but also create a musical trio and perform Chipmunk songs. The film "The Chipmunks" made famous musician Dave Saville, who wrote the songs for this series.