Thirteen-lined Ground Squirrel - Species Profile
Conservation • Description • Habitat • Ecology • Distribution • Taxonomy
Conservation Status
IUCN Red List
LC - Least Concern
NatureServe
N5 - Secure
SNR - Unranked
Minnesota
not listed
Description
Size
Sign
Similar Species
Habitat
Grasslands, cultivated fields, meadows, roadsides, shrublands, suburban lawns, pine barrens, and beaches. Sandy or loamy soil.
Ecology
Behavior
Lifespan
Adults live for a few years. Only about 10% of young reach adulthood.
Life Cycle
Food
Omnivorous. They eat seeds, fruits, grasses, forbs, and insects.
Distribution |
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Sources Biodiversity occurrence data published by: Minnesota Biodiversity Atlas (accessed through the Minnesota Biodiversity Atlas Portal, bellatlas.umn.edu, 12/19/2025). Timm, R. M. 1975. Distribution, natural history, and parasites of mammals of Cook County, Minnesota. Occasional Papers, Bell Museum of Natural History, University of Minnesota 14:1–56. Hazard, Evan B. 1982. The Mammals of Minnesota. University of Minnesota Press, Minneapolis, Minnesota. 280 pp. The counties in light green lack modern records but have historic county or township specimens or records. |
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| 12/19/2025 | ||
Occurrence |
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Common |
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Taxonomy
Class
Subclass
Theria
Infraclass
Placentalia (Placental Mammals)
Magnorder
Boreoeutheria
Superorder
Euarchontoglires (Primates, Rodents, and Allies)
Order
Rodentia (Rodents)
Suborder
Sciuromorpha (Squirrels, Dormice, and Mountain Beavers)
Family
Sciuridae (Squirrels)
Subfamily
Xerinae (Ground and African Tree Squirrels)
Tribe
Marmotini (Holarctic Ground Squirrels)
Genus
Ictidomys (Lined Ground Squirrels)
Genus
This species was formerly included in the genus Spermophilus with about 40 other species. Recent molecular phylogenetic studies suggested that the genus should be split. In 2009 it genus was split into eight genera. Thirteen-lined Ground Squirrel is now one of three species in the genus Ictidomys.
Subordinate Taxa
Allen’s Thirteen-lined Ground Squirrel (Ictidomys tridecemlineatus alleni)
Black Hills Ground Squirrel (Ictidomys tridecemlineatus olivaceous)
Blanca Thirteen-striped Ground Squirrel (Ictidomys tridecemlineatus blanca)
Hollister Striped Ground Squirrel (Ictidomys tridecemlineatus hollisteri)
Howell Striped Ground Squirrel (Ictidomys tridecemlineatus arenicola)
Pale Striped Ground Squirrel (Ictidomys tridecemlineatus pallidus)
Small Striped Ground Squirrel (Ictidomys tridecemlineatus parvus)
Texas Striped Ground Squirrel (Ictidomys tridecemlineatus texensis)
Thirteen-lined Ground Squirrel (Ictidomys tridecemlineatus tridecemlineatus) 
White Mountains Ground Squirrel (Ictidomys tridecemlineatus monticola)
Synonyms
Sciurus tridecemlineatus
Spermophilus tridecemlineatus
Common Names
Leopard Ground Squirrel
Squinney
Striped Gopher
Thirteen-lined Ground Squirrel
