Eastern Chipmunk (Tamias striatus)

County List:

Rule:

Forested or Mixed Forested/Nonforested Landscapes

      (Oak (Any Size Class))
      or (Assorted Hardwoods (Any Size Class))
      or (Northern Hardwoods (Any Size Class))
      or (Mixed Upland Hardwoods (Any Size Class))
      or (Mixed Northern Hardwoods (Any Size Class))
      or Upland Brush
   containing:
      (Mast and (Dead Down Woody Debris or Rock))

Habitat List:

view size class definitions

Literature:

It inhabits open deciduous forests where stumps, logs, rocky outcrops provide ready cover. Mature beech-maple forest is perhaps the ultimate habitat for the eastern chipmunk, but it also lives in brushy areas and, to a lesser extent, coniferous forests. This squirrel avoids swampy sites. The eastern chipmunk is somewhat tolerant of humans and occasionally burrows under buildings or stone foundations in rural areas.

Although this species forages mostly along the ground, it occasionally climbs a tree or shrub.

Dietary staples are fruits seeds, and nuts, supplemented with mushrooms, insects, earthworms, slugs, and bird eggs.

Habitat: Edges or interiors of deciduous woodlands with abundant cover of undergrowth, old logs, stone walls. Semi-open brushland with ample cover.

Special Habitat Requirements: Tree or shrub cover, elevated perches.

Distribution: The Eastern Chipmunk inhabits deciduous hardwoods forests of eastern North America.

Habitat Preferences: The eastern chipmunk is in deciduous hardwoods of both the Upper and Lower Peninsulas. The species will thrive in all successional stages of this forest type, from shrub growth in cutover to climax hardwood forest. Mature beech-maple forests may support maximum numbers, while moist swamps are usually avoided. In mixed evergreen-deciduous areas, chipmunks may occupy open situations and forest edges rather than shaded interiors.

Density and Movements: Mature beech-maple woodlands, according to Wrigley, may support the highest numbers of eastern chipmunks. The best habitat also contains dense canopy and sparse cover on the forest floor.

Behavior: Eastern chipmunks occupy underground dens, sometimes tree hollows. In construction of these home-sites, the animals frequently conceal the entrances (usually only one but sometimes two) under a rock, beside a log, between roots or in shrubs.

Associates: In the Upper Peninsula, eastern chipmunks and least chipmunks have abundant chances of meeting in forested situations. The former's inclination for upland woods and the latter's for swamp habitat may separate them to some extent ecologically, although Reilly obtained no evidence of competitiveness where both occurred on his study area in the Upper Peninsula.

Food Habits: While the eastern chipmunk will eat insects, other small organisms, birds' eggs, and even mice and snakes, the major diet consists of the reproductive parts of plants - fruits, flowers, seeds, and nuts. The species dines less often on green foliage, buds, bark, and other vegetative parts of plants.

Ecology: Tamias striatus inhabits primarily deciduous wooded areas; it occurs in open bushy habitats as well as mature forests, especially in habitats with abundant crevices for refuge along with elevated observation and vocalization posts.