THE GROUND SQUIRRELS 



75 



As in the case of nearly all burrowing rodents of 

 cold latitudes, nature has so adjusted the life of 

 this animal that it survives the long and dreary 

 winter in the strange, half-dead condition called 

 hibernation. To make this possible, the young 

 are born early in the year, and mature early, and 

 during summer and autumn, take on a great 

 quantity of fat. At the approach of winter, it 

 curls up in its burrow for a sleep of from three 

 to four months' duration. 



By the investigations of Dr. P. R. Hoy, it has 

 been discovered that in the case of the Thirteen- 

 Lined Spermophile, the action of the heart is 

 reduced from two hundred to only four feeble 

 beats per minute, the temperature is reduced 

 from 105° to 58°, and there is no visible breathing. 

 The circulation of the blood was so feeble that 

 when a limb was amputated, only a few drops of 

 blood slowly oozed from the wound, while the 

 nerves showed no sensitiveness. In fact, the 

 animal was in a condition of suspended anima- 

 tion, as if under the influence of chloroform. In 

 the northern portions of its range, this sper- 

 mophile hibernates from about November 20 

 to April ] . 



Franklin's Spermophile 1 looks very much 

 like a slender-bodied, short-tailed tree-squirrel; 

 and very often it is called the Gray Ground Squir- 

 rel. It should not, however, be called the "Gray 

 Gopher," or "Scrub Gopher," for both these names 

 are erroneous. It is best to call each animal 

 by a name peculiarly its own, even though the 

 beginning of correct naming involves a little 

 trouble. 



On an open prairie, especially in spring when 

 the young grass is short, this spermophile is a 

 conspicuous animal, and strongly resembles the 

 gray squirrel of the East. Its upper surface is 

 of a yellowish-gray color marked with fine, wavy, 

 cross- wise lines of black or brown. Its under 

 surface is distinctly gray, and its hair is coarse 

 and stiff. In size it is about 9 + 5 inches. Its 

 home is the central portion of the range of the 

 Thirteen-Lined Spermophile. The western limit 

 follows the eastern boundary of the arid plains 

 northward from southeastern Kansas to the 

 Saskatchewan, Alberta, and from thence south- 

 eastward to southern Wisconsin, eastern Illinois 

 and northern Missouri. 



Whenever numerous in farming regions, this 

 1 C'i-tel'lus frank'linri. 



animal is very troublesome, not only in destroying 

 grain in the ground and in the stack, but also in 

 destroying young chickens. They are very vent- 

 uresome in locating permanently near farm- 

 houses and barns, and sometimes they are very 

 destructive in gardens. As an offset to the valu- 

 able farm products destroyed by these creatures, 

 Franklin's Spermophile destroys great numbers 

 of noxious insects, such as grasshoppers, cater- 

 pillars, beetles, and also field mice. In the 



RICHARDSON S SPERMOPHILE. 



United States Department of Agriculture, twenty- 

 nine stomachs were examined with the following 

 result: animal matter present, 30.3 per cent.; 

 vegetable, 68.5 per cent., and undetermined, 1.2 

 per cent. Out of the whole twenty-nine stomachs 

 examined, twenty-six contained the remains of 

 insects! Thus the grain consumed by this ani- 

 mal is at least partially paid for by the destruc- 

 tion of insects that prey upon crops; but farmers 

 everywhere are diligent in destroying it with 

 poisoned wheat placed in its burrow. 



Richardson's Spermophile,' of northern 

 Montana, North Dakota and the region immedi- 

 ately northward as far as the Saskatchewan, has 

 a short body, short legs, and a short tail, and 

 looks very much like a thin prairie-" dog." In 

 color it is like the preceding species, except 

 that its tail is darker; but in size it is a trifle 

 smaller (9 + 3 inches). Its habits are practically 

 identical with those of Franklin's Spermophile, 

 but if there is any difference, it is more destruc- 

 tive to grain than is the latter, and consumes less 

 insect food. It is fortunate that this species 

 inhabits so small an area of the wheat country 

 of the Northwest. 



2 Ci-lel'lus rich' 'ard-son-i . 



