this in Asia and North America gave a home strip or chipmunks been represented in the old world only by the Burunduk or the Siberian strip-croissant (Tamias sibiricus), while a whole series of strip-croissants, that chipmunk will name here, is given a home in North America. Since all strip-croissants resemble themselves in its look and its way of life, we can restrict to the description of the Burunduk here.
Burunduk (Tamias sibiricus)) This strip-croissant populates an extraordinarily extended spread-area, that extends to Russia's European part from North-Japan in the east over whole Siberia. Seems on that occasion to prolong the type for itself westward gradually on and on. In the middle of the previous century, it was reported from the Ural for the first time, then exceeded the Wolga and has its most western occurrences according to secured statements against the Onegasee and in Karelien today. According to unconfirmed news, it occurs also already in East-Finland.
It is to be assumed that the Burunduk advances even farther westward. The type is quite viable also in our climate.
Shape The strip-croissant becomes so big only approximately half as our squirrel and also remains smaller than the gopher. The fur is oberseits brown-gray and carries five dun vertical stripes. To the flanks and more still to the stomach becomes the fur more and more brightly. The tail is not quite as bushy as this of the squirrel. The cheek-bags are very big and reach the same volume as the whole skull filled together once again.
From the gopher, who is a pure Erdhörnchen, the Burunduk differs in the wider toe-bales and the far sharper claws. it shows also clear adaptations to the tree-life with it.
Way of life Although the Burunduk climbs very well, it usually is at the ground, however. Here, it places its Erdbauten also against protected and hidden place. The entrance leads to a nest already by 1-2 m - and a storeroom.
Only at day-beginning, the Burunduk comes from the construction, that it usually then leaves for several hours. The time outside the construction is spent with the food-search to 80 percent. In dry weather, the Burunduk takes dust-baths extraordinarily gladly and rolls in back-situation in the sand. In rainy weather, strip-croissants remain in the construction.
Food The food of the Burunduks is mainly vegetable origin. it creates seeds in the spacious cheek-bags, buds, fungi, grains and berries often over wide routes in direction construction. Sometimes, it buries also feed after squirrel-type. In the Siberian Zirbelkieferwäldern, the Burunduk with preference eats Zirbelnüsse. Occasionally it becomes damaging also in fields and in gardens, where it digs out seed-grains, seedlings bite off and harvest corn, poppy and hemp. it eats also insects beside it, reptiles and probably, as the squirrel, occasionally also squabs and räubert mouse-nests from.
Hibernation The causing factor for the hibernation is under +10 °C presumably the sinking the temperature. In Siberia, the Burunduk oversleeps approximately from October to March 5 months. In the Freiburger population, only 4 months were probably determined because of the mild climate. During the sleep-period, the Burunduk frequently wakes up and then lives off its reserves.
In Siberia, brown-bears sense them heavy several kilograms in the forward spring, after feed-kinds (grains, seeds, fungi) into different chambers sorted supplies on, they dig out and still eat it on that occasion Burunduk immediately hibernation-finish with.
Reproduction The females toss after a not exactly known Tragzeit (28-40)? Days, in Russia's north end of May of beginning June 4 -6 kids. Farther south (also in Freiburg), second-throws occur in the summer. Before the combination, the male waves peculiarly with the tail and directs the attention of the female to itself so. Among each other, the otherwise peaceful males are very touchy and intolerable during the Brunft.
Continuance The Burunduk also like the North American chipmunks are frequent.
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