Spatial behaviour Townsend's chipmunks and habitat structure

Abstract

Harestad A. S. 1991. Spatial behaviour of Townsend's chipmunks and habitat structure. Acta theriol. 36: 247-254. Habitat structure affected location of activity and choice of travel routes of captive Townsend's chipmunks (Tamias townsendii Bachman, 1839). When traveling between nesting and feeding sites, chipmunks used indirect routes with cover (boards elevated above the ground) more often than direct routes with only a grass substrate or indirect routes with boards lying flush with the ground. They did not exhibit a preference between overhanging or vertical cover. Use of travel routes with cover increased with increasing continuity of cover. Although proportion of time chipmunks were active remained constant, proportion of time spent away from nest boxes and proportion of time spent at feeding dishes increased with increasing continuity of cover. Cover has quantifiable characteristics that determine its quality and affect spatial behaviour of chipmunks.