Chipmunks have excellent vision, hearing, and sense of smell. They communicate with each other by making a variety of sounds, including the ‘chip’ for which they are named. They can be a menace to your gardens and landscape.
Chipmunks live in shallow burrows in the ground. They are partial to areas near rocky crevices, decayed tree trunks, and fence corners. They do not like dense forests where no sunlight reaches the ground. Burrows are made by digging and carrying away the dirt in their pouched mouths. These burrows can be up to 30 ft. in length with several different exits and tunnels. They conceal the exits with leaves and rocks and may inhabit these burrows for several years. Chipmunks are usually solitary animals that defend small territories around their burrows. There is considerable competition during the mating season for estrus females, but even if a male outcompetes his comrades the female may reject him by biting him and chasing him out of her burrow. Although chipmunks are solitary animals, they have been seen gathering to “sing,” or make noise in chorus. They also make a variety of other noises. The name chipmunk comes from the noise “chip, chip, chip” commonly made by these furry animals.