This informative post will be published on Saturday in place of my regular one.  You are invited to participate with the opening question.

Brain Teaser Question

What has keys but cannot open locks?

(answer found at the end of this post)

Featured Facts

Related to the squirrel, one of America’s smallest mammals is the diminutive chipmunk.  Its chipper and speedy presence can be found in many neighborhoods, woodlands, and shrubby deserts.

Here are a few interesting facts about chipmunks:

• Body length:  4-7 inches
• Tail length:  3-5 inches
• Diet:  (omnivorous) insects, nuts, berries, grains, seeds
• Lifespan:  2-3 years

Chipmunks are terrestrial, which means they generally live on the ground.  However, they are agile tree climbers.   Their quick, chirping sounds call out warnings to other chipmunks.

Chipmunks are easily distinguished from squirrels by their varying black and white strips, which run down their backs and on their faces.  Their body is colored gray or brown, and it is accented with a slightly bushy tail.

Being quite adaptable to a variety of habitats, chipmunks prefer areas with an undergrowth of vegetation cover.  Their homes include underground burrows, hidden nests beneath vegetation, or in fallen logs.

Much of a chipmunk’s daylight time is spent finding and storing food for their long winter’s semi-hibernation.  Their cheek pouches can expand to three times their head size, and this enables them to carry and store the food they find. 

Chipmunks are most active in the cooler hours during the warmer months–especially in the early morning and late afternoon.  During the winter, they may hibernate intermittently, but they are much less active than normal. 

Both males and females work together in raising their pups.  The most common time of year for another life cycle to begin is the spring.  Litters generally consist of 2-8 pups.  

Chipmunks have to be on the lookout for several predators.  These include carnivorous mammals such as weasels and foxes.  Large snakes and birds of prey also hunt chipmunks.

various photographs of chipmunks (in the top row, note the baby pups held in human hands).  (Courtesy of Pinterest)

Answer to Brain Teaser Question

A piano.