Order RODENTIA: Rodents 



Family SCIURIDAE. Squirrels, Marmots, etc. 



Subfamily SCIURINAE 



WIND RIVER MOUNTAINS 

 CHICKAREE 



SCIURUS HUDSONIUS VENTORUM (AUen) 



Sciurus hudsonius ventorum Allen, Bull. Am. Mus. Nat. Hist. 

 N. Y., 1898, p. 263. 



Description — Dorsal line and back dark red; apical 

 third of tail black ; size large. Winter pelage — Upper parts, 

 legs and feet yellowish gray ; dorsal line dark rufous ; lat- 

 eral line dusky ; beneath white ; tail above yellowish rufous 

 bordered with black and fringed with yellow; beneath 

 grizzled gray. Summer pelage — Above dark olivaceous ; lat- 

 eral line obscure; tail like winter, but reddish, central area 

 not well defined. (Elliot.) 



Distribution — Wind River mountains north to Mystic 

 Lake, west to head of Snake river in Idaho, south to Wa- 

 satch range, northeastern Utah. 



Habits — These squirrels do not hibernate, but are ac- 

 tive throughout the year ; they accumulate at the base of a 

 tree, under the shelter of a log, great stores of pine, spruce 

 or other cones, sometimes in heaps containing from six to 

 ten bushels.- They also hide nuts, corn and other seeds in 

 hollows or underground store-rpoms, and sometimes lay up 

 a half bushel or more of dried mushrooms in hollow trees. 

 They have the greatest variety of vocal notes possessed by 

 any members of the squirrel family. In addition to barking, 

 scolding and chattering, they sometimes sing with long- 

 drawn musical or churring notes. (Nelson.) Hornaday 

 says that on their native tree-trunks these little animals are 

 probably the most agile of our squirrels. 



