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California Ground Squirrel
Scientific Name:
Otospermophilus beecheyi
Type:
Mammal
Habitat:
Fields, grasslands, woodlands, and any habitat other than deserts
Range:
Native to California, western Oregon, central Washington, and western Nevada
Status:
Least Concern (IUCN Red List)
This species is
NATIVE
to the Truckee Meadows.
Identification:
California ground squirrels can grow between 13 and 20 inches long. Their coats are mottled mixes of gray and light browns. The bellies of these squirrels are beige or a grayish-yellow. California ground squirrels have white rings around their eyes.
Fast Facts:
California ground squirrels communicate through scent, tail movements, and verbal screeches which they use to warn other squirrels of danger.
These squirrels live in colonies and inhabit underground burrows that can house multiple generations.
Every California ground squirrel in a colony has its own burrow entrance from which the squirrels are never usually more than 150 yards.
Sources:
Animal Diversity Web, California ground squirrel, 2003, https://animaldiversity.org/accounts/Spermophilus_beecheyi/
Nature Mapping Foundation, California Ground Squirrel, 2021, http://naturemappingfoundation.org/natmap/facts/california_ground_squirrel_712.html
IUCN Red List, California Ground Squirrel, 2021, https://www.iucnredlist.org/ja/species/20481/22263743
Contributor(s):
Haley McGuire (research & content)
Alex Shahbazi (edits & page design)