Neotamias umbrinus

(J.A. Allen, 1890)

Uinta Chipmunk

G5Secure Found in 73 roadless areas NatureServe Explorer →
G5SecureGlobal Rank
Least concernIUCN
Identity
Unique IDELEMENT_GLOBAL.2.104775
Element CodeAMAFB02190
Record TypeSPECIES
ClassificationSpecies
Classification StatusStandard
Name CategoryVertebrate Animal
IUCNLeast concern
Endemicendemic to a single nation
KingdomAnimalia
PhylumCraniata
ClassMammalia
OrderRodentia
FamilySciuridae
GenusNeotamias
Synonyms
Eutamias umbrinusTamias umbrinusJ.A. Allen, 1890
Other Common Names
Uinta chipmunk (EN)
Concept Reference
Wilson, D. E., and D. M. Reeder (editors). 1993. Mammal species of the world: a taxonomic and geographic reference. Second edition. Smithsonian Institution Press, Washington, DC. xviii + 1206 pp. Available online at: http://www.nmnh.si.edu/msw/.
Taxonomic Comments
See Patterson and Norris (2016) for a revised classification of Marmotini (Sciuridae: Xerinae), based on Thorington et al. (2012), Ge et al. (2014), and Patterson and Norris (2016); the three chipmunk lineages should be recognized as three distinct genera, namely, Tamias Illiger, 1811, Eutamias Trouessart, 1880, and Neotamias A. H. Howell, 1929. Thorington and Hoffmann (in Wilson and Reeder 2005) noted that chipmunks could be legitimately allocated to one (Tamias), two (Neotamias, Tamias), or three (Tamias, Neotamias, Eutamias) genera; they chose to adopt the single-genus (Tamias) arrangement.

Pre-1953 references to T. quadrivittatus in some cases pertain to T. umbrinus. Bergstrom and Hoffmann (1991) found species-specific vocalizations, habitats, and bacular characters in sympatric umbrinus and quadrivittatus, but convergence in electromorphs. Former subspecies rufus now is regarded as a distinct species (Patterson 1984).
Conservation Status
Review Date1996-11-06
Change Date1996-11-06
Range Extent Comments
Eastern California and northern Arizona to northern Colorado, southeastern and northwestern Wyoming, and extreme southwestern Montana (Hoffmann et al., in Wilson and Reeder 1993). Elevations of about 6500-11,000 ft.
Ecology & Habitat

Habitat

Coniferous forests. Often found near logs and brush in open areas and at edge of forests. Found in Transition, Canadian and Hudsonian life zones. Excavates burrows beneath rocks and shrubs.

Reproduction

Probably similar to other western chipmunks which mate in the spring and produce 1 litter of 4-5 altricial young following a gestation period of approximately 1 month. Young weaned and foraging on their own in mid-July or August
Terrestrial Habitats
Forest - ConiferWoodland - ConiferShrubland/chaparral
Other Nations (1)
United StatesN5
ProvinceRankNative
IdahoS4Yes
ColoradoS5Yes
WyomingS4Yes
UtahS4Yes
CaliforniaSNRYes
NevadaS5Yes
ArizonaS3Yes
MontanaS4Yes
Roadless Areas (73)
Arizona (2)
AreaForestAcres
Burro CanyonKaibab National Forest19,928
Red PointKaibab National Forest7,139
California (3)
AreaForestAcres
Birch CreekInyo National Forest28,816
Black CanyonInyo National Forest32,421
Boundary Peak (CA)Inyo National Forest210,884
Colorado (1)
AreaForestAcres
Comanche Peak Adjacent AreaArapaho & Roosevelt NFs44,158
Montana (8)
AreaForestAcres
BeartoothGallatin National Forest5,285
Line Creek PlateauCuster National Forest24,825
LionheadGallatin National Forest33,549
Mt. Gmt Area HCuster National Forest1,335
Proposed Line Creek PrnaCuster National Forest389
Red Lodge Creek HellroaringCuster National Forest17,210
ReefGallatin National Forest2,500
Republic MountainGallatin National Forest836
Nevada (10)
AreaForestAcres
Bald Mtn.Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest41,598
MillerHumboldt-Toiyabe National Forest5,043
Moriah - Silver CreekHumboldt-Toiyabe National Forest1,582
Moriah - West SlopeHumboldt-Toiyabe National Forest14,737
Pearl PeakHumboldt-Toiyabe National Forest71,405
Ruby - Lamoille CynHumboldt-Toiyabe National Forest32,771
Ruby - SouthHumboldt-Toiyabe National Forest13,195
Ruby - ThompsonHumboldt-Toiyabe National Forest5,289
Snake - Peacock CynHumboldt-Toiyabe National Forest1,069
West Silver CreekHumboldt-Toiyabe National Forest5,028
Utah (45)
AreaForestAcres
0401001Ashley National Forest11,705
0401011Ashley National Forest30,062
0401012Ashley National Forest46,400
0401023Ashley National Forest8,352
0401024Ashley National Forest12,882
0401031Ashley National Forest7,110
0401037Ashley National Forest1,166
0419020Ashley National Forest355,684
418002Uinta National Forest19,152
418003Uinta National Forest10,912
418004Uinta National Forest16,661
418017Uinta National Forest19,631
418028Uinta National Forest34,002
418029Uinta National Forest15,673
418040Uinta National Forest1,702
Boulder Mtn. / Boulder Top / Deer LakeDixie National Forest110,690
Box - Death HollowDixie National Forest3,175
Burch CreekWasatch-Cache National Forest6,938
Circleville MountainFishlake National Forest24,142
City CreekFishlake National Forest13,939
Dairy ForkManti-Lasal National Forest30,222
FishhookDixie National Forest12,959
Fishlake MountainFishlake National Forest25,217
HancockDixie National Forest9,809
Happy ValleyDixie National Forest14,458
High Uintas (UT)Wasatch-Cache National Forest102,398
Hilgard MountainFishlake National Forest28,389
Hog RanchDixie National Forest17,130
LakesWasatch-Cache National Forest121,967
Lava BedsDixie National Forest14,944
Lone Peak ContiguousWasatch-Cache National Forest874
Long Neck Mesa / Steep Creek / Oak Creek - Steep Creek / OakDixie National Forest55,489
Mt. AireWasatch-Cache National Forest9,681
Mt. Logan NorthWasatch-Cache National Forest18,930
Mt. NaomiWasatch-Cache National Forest41,922
Mt. OlympusWasatch-Cache National Forest9,982
New Home BenchDixie National Forest10,513
Public GroveWasatch-Cache National Forest6,341
Red Canyon NorthDixie National Forest9,973
Table Cliffs - Henderson CanyonDixie National Forest19,581
Temple PeakWasatch-Cache National Forest24,081
Thousand Lake MountainFishlake National Forest27,267
Twin PeaksWasatch-Cache National Forest6,157
Upper South ForkWasatch-Cache National Forest16,811
White PineWasatch-Cache National Forest1,942
Wyoming (4)
AreaForestAcres
Beartooth Proposed WildernessShoshone National Forest16,837
South Beartooth HighwayShoshone National Forest105,570
Sulphur CreekShoshone National Forest30,221
West Slope TetonsTarghee National Forest47,448
References (26)
  1. American Society of Mammalogists (ASM). 2024. The Mammal Diversity Database (MDD). Online. Available: www.mammaldiversity.org
  2. Armstrong, D. M. 1975. Rocky Mountain mammals. Rocky Mountain Nature Asscoc., Inc. 174 pp.
  3. Baker, R. J., L. C. Bradley, R. D. Bradley, J. W. Dragoo, M. D. Engstrom, R. S. Hoffman, C. A. Jones, F. Reid, D. W. Rice, and C. Jones. 2003a. Revised checklist of North American mammals north of Mexico, 2003. Museum of Texas Tech University Occasional Papers 229:1-23.
  4. Banfield, A. W. F. 1974. The mammals of Canada. University of Toronto Press, Toronto, Canada. 438 pp.
  5. Broadbooks, H. E. 1970a. Home ranges and territorial behavior of the yellow-pine chipmunk, <i>Eutamius amoenus.</i> Journal of Mammalogy 51:310-26.
  6. Broadbooks, H. E. 1970b. Populations of the yellow pine chipmunk, <i>Eutamias amoenus</i>. American Midland Naturalist 83:472-488.
  7. Brown, J. H. 1971. Mechanisms of competitive exclusion between two species of chipmunks. Ecology 52:305-311.
  8. Elliot, L. 1978. Social behavior and foraging ecology of the eastern chipmunk (<i>Tamias striatus</i>) in the Adirondack Mountains. Smithsonian Contributions to Zoology No. 265. 107 pp.
  9. Gashwiler, J. S. 1965. Longevity and home range of a Townsend chipmunk. Journal of Mammalogy 46:693.
  10. Hall, E. R. 1981a. The Mammals of North America, second edition. Vols. I &amp; II. John Wiley &amp; Sons, New York, New York. 1181 pp.
  11. Ingles, L. G. 1965. Mammals of the Pacific States. Stanford University Press, Stanford, California.
  12. Jackson, H. H. 1961. Mammals of Wisconsin. University of Wisconsin Press, Madison. 504 pp.
  13. Jameson, E. W., Jr. 1999. Host-ectoparasite relationships among North American chipmunks. Acta Theriologica 44:225-231.
  14. Jones, J. K., Jr., R. S. Hoffman, D. W. Rice, C. Jones, R. J. Baker, and M. D. Engstrom. 1992a. Revised checklist of North American mammals north of Mexico, 1991. Occasional Papers, The Museum, Texas Tech University, 146:1-23.
  15. Larrison, E.J. and D.R. Johnson. 1981. Mammals of Idaho. The University of Idaho Press, Moscow.
  16. Levenson, H., et al. 1985. Systematics of the Holarctic chipmunks (<i>Tamias</i>). J. Mammalogy 66:219-242.
  17. Oxley, D. J., M. B. Fenton and G. R. Carmody. 1974. The effects of roads on populations of small mammals. Journal of Applied Ecology 11: 51-59.
  18. Patterson, B. D., and R. W. Norris. 2016. Towards a uniform nomenclature for ground squirrels: the status of the Holarctic chipmunks. Mammalia 80(3):241-251.
  19. Piaggio, A. J., and G. S. Spicer. 2001. Molecular phylogeny of the chipmunks inferred from mitochondrial cytochrome b and cytochrome oxidase II gene sequences. Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 20:335-350.
  20. Roberts, D. R. 1962. Rodent movements in a cutover forest of the Sierra Nevada, California. Ph.D. thesis, University of California, Berkeley.
  21. Sheppard, D. 1972. Home ranges of chipmunks (<i>Eutamias</i>) in Alberta. Journal of Mammalogy 53:379- 380.
  22. Storer, T. I., F. C. Evans, and F. G. Palmer. 1944. Some rodent populations in the Sierra Nevada of California. Ecological Monographs 14:166-192.
  23. Sutton, D. A. 1992. Tamias amoenus. Am. Soc. Mamm., Mammalian Species No. 390:1-8.
  24. Wadsworth, C. E. 1972. Observations of the Colorado chipmunk in southeastern Utah. Southwestern Naturalist 16:451-454.
  25. Wilson, D. E., and D. M. Reeder (editors). 1993. Mammal species of the world: a taxonomic and geographic reference. Second edition. Smithsonian Institution Press, Washington, DC. xviii + 1206 pp. Available online at: http://www.nmnh.si.edu/msw/.
  26. Wilson, D. E., and D. M. Reeder (editors). 2005. Mammal species of the world: a taxonomic and geographic reference. Third edition. The Johns Hopkins University Press, Baltimore. Two volumes. 2,142 pp. [As modified by ASM the Mammal Diversity Database (MDD) at https://www.mammaldiversity.org/index.html]