402 Life-histories of Northern Animals 



VOICE This Ground-squirrel has a much greater variety of 



whistles and bird-like chirps than the Yellow species, though 

 it is inferior vocally to the Scrub-gopher. Its short, sharp 

 whistle of alarm, and Its prolonged quavering defiance, uttered 

 from the safe underworld, are well known to every farm boy 

 who snares Ground-squirrels for pocket money. When held 

 by a trap it bites its adversary savagely, and utters a sort of 

 angry snarling. 



"During the breeding season these Spermophiles are quiet 

 and shy, but In June and July, when the half-grown young 

 begin to make their appearance above ground, their voices are 

 most frequently heard. The parent and her young at this 

 time are constantly calling back and forth." {V. Bailey. y 



CLIMB- I was greatly surprised to find that this creature could 



readily climb a low bushy tree, and twice saw one do it as 

 noted In the food paragraphs, page 405. 



SPEED Its speed Is about the same as that of the Yellow Ground- 



squirrel, but mentally it is decidedly superior. 



MEN- If you find a Striped-gopher sitting by its burrow and 



walk straight toward It, It waits until you are within perhaps 

 ten feet, then dives with a little defiant " chirrup " into its under- 

 ground safety. If you walk so far as to pass within eight or 

 ten feet and do not look at it, it seems to watch your eye and 

 remains perfectly still while you pass. If you step or turn 

 toward it, It dives at once. The Yellow Ground-squirrel, on 

 the other hand, no matter how approached, always runs into 

 its hole with nervous haste, as soon as it sees a foe anywhere 

 near. 



When I kept the two species together In a cage, the Striped 

 one bullied Its larger brother mercilessly, and lost no oppor- 

 tunity of impressing it with the superiority of mind over matter. 



If a Striped Ground-squirrel on the prairie be followed, 

 not too fast, it will play with the observer, leading him 



' Rep. Pr. Grd. Sq., 1893, p. 33. 



