Being Watched-Yellow-pine Chipmunk
Sometime you are just being watched during a home inspection.
Here was a Yellow-Pine Chipmunk who was very curious as what I was up to. But he was not the only one who was curious.
I see chipmunks all the time but rarely think about what exactly they are. So I did a little research to find out what exact type of Chipmunk he was. At first I thought it may be a Red-Tailed Chipmunk but it range does not match where I saw this little guy up by Mission Ridge south of Wenatchee.
It turns out this species of chipmunk ranges throughout the inland Mountain West from British Columbia to California and east to Montana, Wyoming, Utah and Nevada.
From the Slater Museum–
“These small squirrels are usually associated with rock piles and fallen logs, where they nest. They forage on the ground and in shrubs, sometimes ascending well up into the trees. Hyperactivity describes them best, as they move jerkily along with tail cocked up into the air. When disturbed, they dart into cover, appearing some distance away for another look at the disturbance.”
I thought this was kinda fun fact from the Animal Diversity Web
“Reproduction-
Yellow-pine chipmunks are polygynandrous. Females are in estrous for one day each year. They use vocalizations to attract mates a few days before the onset of estrous. On the day of estrous, females are typically pursued by two to six males in what is called a “mating chase”. A female mates with multiple males during this mating chase. All sexually mature males and females mate during the mating season, which occurs in late April or early May. (Larrison, 1976; Schulte-Hostedde, et al., 2002; Sutton, 1992; Verts and Carraway, 1998; Wilson and Ruff, 1999; Zeveloff and Collett, 1988)”
Next time you are out and about take check out who is checking you out.
If you find any errors or have additional information that would expand on any code, building standards or manufacturer requirements please let me know.
NCW Home Inspections, LLC is a Licensed Washington State Home Inspection service located in Wenatchee Washington serving Chelan County, Douglas County, Kittitas County, Okanogan County and Grant County Washington and the cities of Wenatchee, Leavenworth, Cashmere, Oroville, Cle Elum, East Wenatchee, Quincy and many more…
Your Wenatchee and Chelan Professional Real Estate, Home and Structural Pest Inspection Service
Coordinator & Instructor- Fundamentals of Home Inspection- Bellingham Technical College
Former WA Home Inspector Advisory Licensing Board
www.ncwhomeinspections.com 509-670-9572
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