Minnesota Mammals

Least Chipmunk (Neotamias minimus) is the most widespread and also the smallest of the North American chipmunks. In Canada it occurs from Ontario to Yukon Territory. In the United States it occurs west of the Great Plains and in the upper Great Lakes region. In Minnesota it occurs in the Arrowhead and north-central regions. It is found at the edges and in the openings, clearcuts, and disturbed areas of coniferous and mixed forests. It eats seeds, nuts, fruits, acorns, snails, insect eggs and larvae, and small birds and mammals. It nests under stumps, logs, and rocks. It winters in a burrow it digs that reaches up to one meter underground. When running it holds its tail erect.

The adult is 7¼″ to 8¾″ long. It weighs about half as much as an Eastern Chipmunk. The coat (pelage) on the sides is reddish-brown in the front, grayish brown in the rear. The rump is grayish-brown. There are five dark brown or black stripes on the back separated by white or cream-colored stripes. The middle stripe stretches from the nape of the neck to the base of the tail. On each side of the face there are three dark brown stripes separated by two white or cream-colored stripes. The facial stripes are well defined and highly visible. The tail is orangish-brown, and bushy.

Franklin’s Ground Squirrel (Poliocitellus franklinii) is a medium-sized squirrel but a large ground squirrel. It is the largest and darkest ground squirrel in its range. It occurs in the tallgrass prairie region in the United States and Canada. It is considered scarce in Minnesota. It is found in areas with tall vegetation including edges of fields and prairies, open woodlands, and edges of marshes.

Franklin’s Ground Squirrel is superficially similar in appearance to an Eastern Gray Squirrel but it is smaller and has a shorter, less bushy tail, shorter ears, and a more pointed snout. The coat (pelage) is short and dark gray with pale and dark flecks and a brown wash over the back and rump.

Franklin’s Ground Squirrel spends most of its time in an underground burrow that can be up to 8 feet deep. It is tolerant of humans and can be seen at camp sights, in state parks, and at dumps. It is omnivorous, feeding on plants, ground nesting bird eggs, insects, and small animals, including other ground squirrels.

American Badger (Taxidea taxus) is a solitary, medium-sized, common but seldom seen, carnivorous mammal. It is a solitary animal, active mostly at night but also often during the day, especially in early morning. It has a home range of about 1 square mile in which it may have up to 46 burrows. It is a good digger, the only mammal that can dig out pocket gophers. It eats mostly ground squirrels and pocket gophers, but also voles, mice, reptiles (including rattlesnakes), amphibians, ground-nesting birds and their eggs, insects, and other invertebrates.

Badgers are easily recognized. The low, flattish profile and white middorsal head stripe are diagnostic. The common name is thought to refer to the black “badge”-shaped markings on their cheeks. There are four, fifteen, or twenty-one subspecies of badger in North America, depending on who you ask. All sources recognize the two subspecies found in Minnesota. Common badger, the largest subspecies, is found in the western border counties. Jackson’s badger, typically darker and smaller, is found in the remainder of the state.

Northern Short-tailed Shrew (Blarina brevicauda) is the only poisonous mammal on the North American mainland. Its poisonous bite allows it to paralyze its prey and eat it at a later time. It is sufficiently strong to kill animals up to the shrew’s size, and to produce a very painful reaction in humans who handle the shrew.

It has a poor sense of smell and very poor vision. It can navigate and detect objects in its environment using echolocation and and touch. Like bats, it emits a series of ultrasonic squeaks to detect its surroundings. Unlike bats, it does not use echolocation to locate prey. Its snout and whiskers are highly sensitive to touch.

There are 385 species of shrew worldwide, 7 in Minnesota. Northern Short-tailed Shrew is the largest and most widespread in eastern North America and the most common in Minnesota. The combination of large size and short tail distinguish this from all other shrew species in Minnesota.

There are six species of voles found in Minnesota. Southern Red-backed Vole (Myodes gapperi) is one of the smallest. It is common in moist deciduous, coniferous and mixed forests with stumps and logs for ground cover. It is usually the most common rodent in cedar, tamarack, and black spruce swamps. It is active both during the day and at night but more often at night. It is solitary, not forming colonies or pair bonds. It forages mostly on the ground but also in trees. This is the only vole in Minnesota that is a good climber of trees.

Southern Red-backed Vole is distinguished from mice by a stouter body; shorter, hairy tail; smaller ears and eyes; and molars with high crowns and angular cusps. It is easily distinguished from other voles by the gray sides and reddish back.