The thirteen-lined ground squirrel, also known as the striped gopher, leopard ground squirrel, squinney,, is a ground squirrel that is widely distributed over grasslands and prairies of North America.
Description
It is brownish, with 13 alternating brown and whitish longitudinal lines on its back and sides, creating rows of whitish spots within dark lines.
Taxonomy
This species has usually been placed in the genusSpermophilus with about 40 other species. As this large genus is paraphyletic to prairie dogs, marmots, and antelope squirrels, Kristofer Helgen and colleagues have split it into eight genera, placing the thirteen-lined ground squirrel in Ictidomys with two other species.
Behavior
The thirteen-lined ground squirrel is strictly diurnal and is especially active on warm days. A solitary or only somewhat colonial hibernator, it often occurs in aggregations in suitable habitats. In late summer, it puts on a heavy layer of fat and stores some food in its burrow. It enters its nest in October, rolls into a stiff ball, and decreases its respiration from between 100 and 200 breaths per minute to one breath about every five minutes. It emerges in March or early April. The burrow may be long, with several side passages. Most of the burrow is within one to two feet of the surface, with only the hibernation nest in a special deeper section. Shorter burrows are dug as hiding places. This ground squirrel's home range is two to three acres.
Its primary diet includes grass and weed seeds, caterpillars, grasshoppers, and crickets, but it may also eat mice and shrews; it will viciously attack and consume cicadas if able to catch them. This squirrel sometimes damages gardens by digging burrows and eating vegetables, but also devours weed seeds and harmful insects. It is well known for standing upright to survey its domain, diving down into its burrow when it senses danger, then sometimes poking out its nose and giving a bird-like trill. It has a maximum running speed of and reverses direction if chased.
