Welcome to You Ask Andy

Joe Donovan  age 13. of Philadelphia. Penna.;

What kind of animal is a chipmunk?

The Algonquin Indians called him head‑first. They must have enjoyed watching the chipper chipmunk come down the side of a tree. front feet firsts tail following. The Algonquin word was changed somewhat for us to pronounce.  And the name chipmunk also reminds us a little of the cheery fellow's voice. Chip. chip. chips he says. as he frisks about.

The chipmunk is classed as a ground squirrel. member of the rodent family. And indeed. he looks like a pocket sized tree squirrel. His tail is not so bushy as that of his big cousin. But he makes up for this with the handsome dark stripes down the center of his furry back. He is a bright‑eyed. cheerful  sassy little charmer.

The chipmunk lives almost all over North America; There are countless cousins. very much alike and closely related. The large family is divided into two main groups. the eastern chipmunk and the western chipmunk. They share the continent between them. The western cousin keeps to the west  the eastern chipmunk keeps to the east. The dividing line overlaps only in Ontario and Wisconsin. Here. east and west share the same territory.

It is not always easy to tell the two cousins apart. Westy is the slender one and has the best tail. His stripes are often more marked Easty has pretty ginger‑colored tones on his hips. He is rounder and usually looks plumper than his western cousin.

When possible. any chipmunk chooses a home among loose rocks. He digs a complicated burrow some three or four feet below ground. The tunnels are about two inches wide and go on for yards. Here and there are large living rooms and pantries. The home may have three or four well hidden entrances. When rocks are scarce. the burrow may be near a fence post or tree runk.

Mr. Chippy may seem very gay and carefree.. But he is far from silly. He is wiser than many burrow‑builders. Fifi he leaves no mound to give away the secret of his burrow. He totes away all the earth he digs out. maybe in his cheek pouches. What's more. he never treads a give‑away trail to his door. He rarely comes home by the same route. And he covers the last few yards in long leaps.

Those cheek pouches are the chipmunk's pride and joy.  They are usually stuffed full of all kinds of things ‑ like a boys pockets. There are nuts. seeds. grain. berries and maybe a grasshopper or two. Come fall they are chock full as marketing baskets. Chippy is busy stocking lip his pantries with winter supplies. One burrow may hold a whole bushel of food stuff.

Mr. Chippy may share the burrow with several others through the winter. They seem to spend the cold season between dozing and dining. The babies are born in early spring. Though furless. it is possible to see the dark chipmunk lines under the skin of their little backs. They are full grown in about three months. Then. suddenly. the rocky slopes and sunny meadows are alive with the frisky hops and cheerful chirrups of a new generation of chipmunks. Bless their little hearts!

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