Panamint Chipmunk

About the Panamint Chipmunk

The Panamint chipmunk (Neotamias panamintinus) is a species of rodent in the squirrel family, Sciuridae. It is endemic to desert mountain areas of southeast California and southwest Nevada in the United States. It is considered a species of least concern on the IUCN Red List due to its broad range, prevalence, and no known major threats. The Panamint chipmunk occurs in pinyon pine-juniper woodlands in bushes, boulders, and on cliffs.

Environmentally, the Panamint chipmunks are a prey species that contributes to the diets of their predators, including birds, raptors, coyotes, foxes, and bobcats. Panamint chipmunks are medium-sized chipmunks with a head-and-body length of about 11–12 cm (4.5 in) and a tail length of roughly 9–10 cm (3.5–4 in). Adults weigh between 74 and 105 g, with females on average somewhat larger than males (a kind of sexual dimorphism common in chipmunks). In summer, their fur is a bright golden or reddish-brown on the shoulders and sides with a grayish tinge on the anterior back. They have characteristic dark and light stripes on the back and face: five dark dorsal stripes divided by lighter stripes, which are bold on the upper back and diminish... Wikipedia →