A medium chipmunk of southwestern rocky areas.
§ Quick facts
§ Encyclopedia
The cliff chipmunk is a small, bushy-tailed squirrel that typically lives along cliff walls or boulder fields bordering Pinyon-juniper woodlands in the Western United States and Mexico. Cliff chipmunks are very agile, and can often be seen scaling steep cliff walls. Cliff chipmunks do not amass body fat as the more common ground squirrel does. They create caches of food which they frequent during the cold winter months.
Source: Wikipedia — Cliff chipmunk Licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0
§ Identification
Field marks. Medium chipmunk with dark dorsal stripes; pale stripes; smaller than eastern chipmunks.
Similar species. Other western chipmunks.
Voice. Sharp chips and chatters.
§ Diet & behavior
Diet. Seeds, nuts, fruits, insects.
Behavior. Southwestern chipmunk of rocky habitats. Adapted to dry climates.
§ Range
Southwestern US
§ Habitat
Rocky desert habitats
§ Threats
Habitat loss.
§ Conservation status
According to the IUCN Red List, the cliff chipmunk is currently classified as Least Concern.
§ What helps
Support southwestern habitat conservation.
§ Further reading
- Wikipedia — Cliff chipmunk
- www.nwf.org — authoritative profile of Neotamias dorsalis
- IUCN Red List · taxon 42566
- iNaturalist · taxon 46031
- GBIF occurrence records
- Encyclopedia of Life — Neotamias dorsalis
§ Sources cited
- American Society of Mammalogists
- IUCN Red List 2016
