Chipmunk

Cheeks full and eyes bright, a chipmunk pauses on a stone ledge, just long enough for a portrait. Small, quick, and striped, the chipmunk is a lively character in Manitoba forests and backyards. Its cheeks stretch to carry seeds and nuts back to a burrow, where food is stored for the colder months.

Chipmunks are easy to recognize by the dark and light stripes running down the back and across the face. They gather seeds, nuts, and berries, carrying them home in expandable cheek pouches. Mostly active during the day, they hold their food in their front paws while they eat, and they spend much of the cold season in underground burrows. Chipmunks hibernate through the coldest part of winter but wake periodically to snack from their stored food, and their sharp chip calls are a common sound in summer woods.

This is a favourite frame of a chipmunk, standing upright on a mossy stone ledge.

Photos

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