Yellow-pine Chipmunk – Ethical Birder

I have run across some photogenic rodents this year. While they don’t qualify as “charismatic mega-fauna,” some of them are quite stunning.

This is either a Yellow-pine Chipmunk or a Least Chipmunk. Apparently, you can only differentiate the two by measuring their skulls. I am leaning toward Yellow-pine on this one, as some sources say that Yellow-Pine Chipmunk tends to be more colorful than Least, and this individual was found in a grove of Yellow (Ponderosa) Pines.

As you can see, this individual has a lot more gray, with just a touch of rufous on the sides. The habitat was open sage steppe, so maybe Least Chipmunk?

It is slightly out of focus, but I love this image of a Belding’s Ground Squirrel peeking over a rock.

Here is a better view of a Belding’s Ground Squirrel.

Belding’s Ground Squirrel portrait

Golden-mantled Ground Squirrel in the morning sun

Yellow-bellied Marmot, high up on Mount Hood

Back on the west side of the state, this Douglas’s Squirrel make a brief appearance in the back yard.

Here is a California Ground Squirrel up in an Oregon White Oak. So, two of the three words in his name are incorrect in this case.

Yes, I know that rabbits are not rodents, but I can’t resist a cute bunny, in this case, a Mountain Cottontail.

Back to birds next time, unless something more interesting comes up.

Happy Summer

We made our first visit to Mt. Rainier NP in Washington last week. This park is an easy drive from Portland. I like getting above the tree line to the alpine meadows, seen here, but the park has large areas of forest, as well. The bird and mammal diversity was good on this trip, although the numbers of individuals were not as large as you usually find in parks such as Glacier or Yellowstone.

This American Dipper was swimming in one of the rivers; not very photogenic, but interesting behavior. The forested areas were too dark for bird photos, but Gray Jays, Varied Thrushes, and Red Crossbills were common.

Most of the birds in the alpine habitats were fast fly-bys. I did manage this photo of a young Cooper’s Hawk. The Prairie Falcon that was hunting the ridge was way too fast. I was hoping for White-tailed Ptarmigan on this trip, but perhaps the abundance of raptors was keeping that species out of sight.

This Black Bear spent many hours feeding on vegetation along one of the trails. We kept a respectful distance, unlike many other park visitors. The bear didn’t seem too concerned with his fans. He did get a little nervous when a couple was taking selfies with him.

Yellow-pine Chipmunks are common in the meadows.

Another view of the mountain. I definitely want to explore more of this area.

Tag: Yellow-pine Chipmunk

Random Rodents

Mt. Rainier NP