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| Golden-Mantled Ground Squirrel in Yosemite National Park |
I find golden-mantled ground squirrels the
easiest of all squirrels to photograph.
They occur throughout the mountain areas of the western United States,
so I see them almost everywhere I go when I am travelling there in summer. These squirrels are usually not wary of
humans so readily allow a photographer to approach them. And campgrounds are favored foraging
areas.
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| A real 'Copperhead' in the Eastern Sierra |
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| Siblings Interacting (Colorado) |
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| Playing and Grooming |
We watched these young squirrels playing in
a camping area in Colorado for several days, under the watchful eye of their
mother. However, on our last day,
the adult disappeared and her offspring dispersed to different areas where they
searched for food separately. Now
if one young squirrel encountered another, it would chase the intruder
away. Food gathering is an
important activity later in summer as although these squirrels hibernate for
much of the winter, they also hoard food in their burrows to see them through
either unusually warm or cold periods, when they wake to feed.
Here are a couple more images of young golden-mantled ground squirrels photographed in Wyoming:
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| Surprised! |
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| Natural food |
There must be something interesting in there......
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| In Yosemite National Park |
Looks like he's found it......
All the photographs so far have been of the most widespread golden-mantled squirrel. This is Callospermophilus lateralis, which
occurs in higher areas from Arizona and New Mexico to Canada. Another species, with less distinctive
dark side stripes, Callospermophilus
saturatus, is found only in the Cascade Mountains of Washington and
southern British Columbia. There
is a third species in northern Mexico.
This squirrel has been collecting nesting material for its burrow:
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| Cascade Golden-Mantled Ground Squirrel in Mt Rainier National Park |
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| Cascade Golden-Mantled Ground Squirrel in Mt Rainier National Park |
Notice that the colour of the fur varies markedly in both species of squirrel.
