Chipmunks take frequent dust and sun baths, but I have never seen one
bathe in water. They appear, however, to drink water freely. One will
sip water several times daily.
In the mountains near me the chipmunks spend from four to seven months
of each year underground. I am at an altitude of nine thousand feet.
Although during the winter they indulge in long periods of what may be
called hibernating sleep, they are awake a part of the time and
commonly lay in abundant stores for winter. In the underground
granaries of one I once found about a peck and a half of weed seeds.
Even during the summer the chipmunk occasionally does not come forth
for a day or two. On some of these occasions I have found that they
were in a heavy sleep in their beds.
These in my yard are fed so freely upon peanuts that they have come to
depend upon them for winter supplies. They prefer raw to roasted
peanuts. The chipmunk near my cabin sometimes becomes a little
particular and will occasionally reject peanuts that are handed to her
with the shell on. Commonly, however, she grabs the nut with both fore
paws, then, standing erect, rapidly bites away the shell until the nut
is reached. This she usually forces into her cheek pocket with both
hands. Her cheek pouches hold from twelve to twenty of these. As soon
as these are filled she hurries away to deposit her stores in her
underground granary. One day she managed to store twenty-two, and her
cheek pouches stood out abnormally! With this "swelled" and uncouth
head she hurried away to deposit the nuts in her storehouse, but when
she reached the hole her cheeks were so distended that she was unable
to enter. After trying again and again she began to enlarge the hole.
This she presently gave up. Then she rejected about one third of the
nuts, entered, and stored the remainder. In a few minutes she was back
for more. One day she made eleven round trips in fifty-seven minutes.
Early one autumn morning a coyote, in attempting to reach her, dug
into her granary and scattered the nuts about. After sending him off I
gathered up three quarts of shelled nuts and left about as many more
scattered through the earth! Over these the jays and magpies squabbled
all day.
One day a lady who was unsympathetic with chipmunks was startled by
one of the youngsters, who scrambled up her clothes and perched upon
her head. Greatly excited, she gave wild screams. The young chipmunk
was in turn frightened, and fled in haste. He took consolation with
his mother several yards away. She, standing erect, received him
literally with open arms. He stood erect with one arm upon her
shoulder, while she held one arm around him. They thus stood for some
seconds, he screeching a frightened cry, while she, with a subdued
muttering, endeavored to quiet him.