3 o8 FARM FRIENDS AND FARM FOES 



although this much-abused word is more properly restricted 

 to the family of rodents commonly called Pocket Gophers. 

 These differ greatly in structure and appearance from the 

 ground squirrels. 



The Spermophiles bear a rather striking general resem- 

 blance in habits to the Chipmunks. They are ground-loving, 

 grain-eating squirrels, varying into more than seventy 

 species or subspecies in the Western regions where they 

 occur. They are known to cause an annual loss of many 

 millions of dollars, chiefly through their injuries to grain 

 and forage crops. They have recently been suspected of 

 carrying germs of the deadly disease known as bubonic 

 plague, so that they may become a menace to human life. 



The Leopard Spermophile, also known as the Thirteen- 

 lined or the Striped Spermophile, is one of the most 

 abundant and widely distributed species of ground squir- 

 rels. It occurs from Michigan and Minnesota west to 

 the Rocky Mountains and south to Texas. It lives in 

 burrows about two inches in diameter and not more than 

 two feet below the soil surface. The length of these 

 burrows varies greatly ; some are mere pockets for tem- 

 porary shelter, while others extend horizontally for many 

 feet. During summer the Spermophiles come forth from 

 their burrows in search of seeds of weeds, grains, grasses, 

 the succulent root stems and leaves of clover, alfalfa, and 

 other forage crops, as well as grasshoppers and other in- 

 sects. All these materials serve for food. While some 

 benefit to man is derived from the grasshoppers destroyed, 

 it is more than counterbalanced by the injury done to 

 grain, forage, and other crops. 



Early in autumn the Leopard Ground Squirrels store 

 up seeds and grain in their burrows. When winter comes, 

 they fall into a hibernating sleep that lasts about five 



