In Latin, the name of the chipmunk is Tamias, which means steward. The chipmunk got this name due to its natural instinct of laying up provisions for the winter.
The Chipmunk and Food Storage
The chipmunk has the uncanny ability to fill its cheeks so full with seeds and nuts, that it changes its facial expression. When this little animal scampers off to the entrance of its burrow, it sometimes has to turn sideways or drop half its load and come back for the rest.
The chipmunk labors in late summer and fall with little wavering. Its instinct is to forage for more than it needs to sustain it through the cold months rather than not quite enough.
The Nimble Chipmunk
Chipmunks are not arboreal in nature, but they will climb a tree from time to time. For the most part, they scamper along fallen trees, stone walls or fences. Chipmunks are quick and nimble and have little fear of open spaces as long there is a hiding place within easy reach.
The Chipmunk's Territory
They are friendly, sociable little creatures, enjoying the running, chasing and tumbling with other chipmunks. They have a preference for associating with other chipmunks when the environment around them is rich in seed and nuts, and has lots of open ground with places to hide. Its home range is small, usually only a few acres.
If chipmunks remain unmolested in this environment, they will spend their whole lives in it. Several chipmunk pairs may live and play together, even sharing the same burrow in winter with the food stores becoming common property and the foraging a group effort.
They hide their burrow by carrying off the dirt, probably in their cheeks, and dumping it far from the entrance hole. This makes the burrow less obvious – intelligent little animals.
The Verbal Chipmunk
Chipmunks are very verbal for their small size. They chirp loudly off and on throughout the day and when they are alarmed, they send out a trilled whistle that can be heard in several keys. In early spring when the chipmunks leave their burrow, the chirping breaks the cold silence of winter. One at a time, they leave the safety of the burrow to add to the chorus.
Chipmunk Newborns
Chipmunks can give birth to four or five babies at a time. The babies are blind, naked of fur, almost without shape and quite helpless. The mother nurtures them in the burrow until they are ready to venture out into the open air. In spring, it's easy to tell the babies from the adults. They are much smaller and follow the adult around their home ground, scurrying over boulders and fences.
Chipmunk Enemies
Among the chipmunk's enemies are cats, weasels, foxes, hawks, snakes and of course, man. Chipmunks are killed by cars everyday.
When chipmunks appear with the breaking of the last frost, their negative traits are forgotten – their willful nibbling of flower buds, their rifling of bird's nests and the slaughter of fledglings.
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