Tuesday, May 19, 2009

The Watchers

chipmunkTake a very close look at this top picture. Go ahead and click on it to see it closer if you need to. You see that furry little critter on that tree stump? He's one of the watchers. I know, I know, you think it's just more squirrels. The return of Mr. Nutz or something like that. Nope, I already did that one, and this isn't even a squirrel.

This little guy is actually a Chipmunk. If you think squirrels are full of mischief, you can't even begin to imagine what chipmunks are like. These animals are such crazy little characters that they've inspired several cartoons about them. Alvin and the Chipmunks, and Chip and Dale are just a couple of them.

I've had a few encounters with chipmunks before this. But the group in these pictures might be the oddest sighting so far. I was coming from the back of one of the nature parks, where I saw some really good stuff, and the thought of chipmunks popped into my head. I looked to my left and I just saw one of these striped little punks running away.

chipmunkI wasn't fast enough to even get a bad picture of him, so I went on my way. I now had thoughts of getting a picture of a chipmunk in my head. That was the first one I'd seen this year, and now I had a new quest. I thought this was going to be tough.

I walked on for a ways until I was about halfway back to the front of the park. The thought of chipmunks came back all of a sudden. I looked to my left again and saw another one running just on the side of the trail! Would I get a picture of this one? Well, it's the one sitting right on top of that tree stump.

There was something very strange about this encounter with a chipmunk though. As I took my pictures, the chipmunk wasn't leaving. Squirrels almost always run away after a few seconds, but this little guy was watching me watching him. Even after I got my pictures we had a stare down. Angry because I lost, I stomped the ground at him, and he finally ran away.

chipmunkAs I moved up the trail, I saw another one! This one came over to stare at me too! This was now as many chipmunks as I saw all of last year, and they were a curious bunch. I didn't know there were any chipmunks in this park, but now I was seeing a small group.

Of course I took plenty of pictures of this third one too. You know I wouldn't pass up this opportunity. Seeing three chipmunks in one day is special, but getting pictures of two of them is unheard of for me. When I finished up with this one, something even stranger happened.

I saw a fourth chipmunk! I must have found a whole family of them, and they were all watching me! Honestly, this was getting a little creepy now. These chipmunks were all coming over to look at me, and they didn't seem to be very afraid at all. I was happy to see them, but I was also thinking that maybe I should leave.

chipmunkI turned to leave, and then I saw it on the other side of the trail. Number five! It happened the same as the others. It climbed up on an old fallen log to stare at me! I also got plenty of pictures of this last one. I'll show you those another time, but I have them.

These real chipmunks built an army much faster than the fictional squirrel, Mr. Nutz did. They never seemed angry with me, just extremely curious. It was a very interesting experience, even though it was also getting kind of creepy too. I really needed to get out of there.

After I made my way out of that section of the park, I didn't see any more of them. That doesn't mean there weren't more of them watching, it's just that I didn't see them. When I got back to my truck, I knew that I had another very good everyday adventure.

17 comments:

  1. We have at least 3 families of chipmunks in the back yard. They built many tunnels and are funny to watch, they even scare the squirrels away from the bird feeders. One of the bird feeders is just a couple of feet from the kitchen window, so the chipmunks come and pick up the seeds on the ground there – our cat loves to watch them and would love to jump at them through the window!

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  2. Chipmunks are supposed to be very cute as appear in Cartoon. I have tried to differentiate between chipmunks and squirrels that I never cared to do previously. I got the answer from the websites.
    Interesting post.

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  3. You are being watched Ratty...Don't let them get you!

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  4. Other than the cartoon I've never actually seen a chipmunk and a "stalker" chipmunk at that :) I love the first photo with all the details. It's beautiful.

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  5. they are cute watchers, starers or stalkers indeed :) they must be protecting you from Mr. Nutz that is why they keep on watching you :)

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  6. I just wish less of them would "watch" my bird seed..they are such devious little buggers...they eat 1/2 of my birdseed, even when I run out to shoo them away. I think they laugh at me back in their nests and plot how to tease me.

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  7. Pretty cool! Reminds me of camping as a child. We use to camp up in the Sierras and one campsite was so full of chipmunks that were tame as could be. I remember sitting by the fire early evening and them coming up and stealing potato chips from me. Actually had one crawl up the leg of my pants! My mom was sure I was going to get the plague or something.

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  8. They are lovingly and dont hurt to anyone. They are quiet and silent in nature.

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  9. That was fun following you through the park with the chipmunks..Great photos in capturing these little cute things!

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  10. I'm glad you got to see the Chipmunks!! I love those little guys. I have quite a few around here. They can get a little territorial with each other. I watch them chasing each other all the time.. I'm hoping to see young ones soon. Great post Ratty!!

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  11. Great post. Nature is so cool. I love the curious chipmunks.

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  12. Oh, I love chipmunks! I love how they stuff their little cheeks and run with their tails held straight up in the air. I have one around here, although I haven't seen it yet this spring. Doesn't mean it's not around--they are pretty quick. Cute photos!

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  13. Vagabonde - Scaring the squirrels is an accomplishment. I have trouble doing that sometimes. Chipmunks are fun little animals.
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    Rainfield - Chipmunks are very much like the cartoons. It is sometimes very hard to tell the difference between them and squirrels. I thought the first red squirrel I saw was a chipmunk. You make a good point. Maybe in my next post about chipmunks, I'll give some good information about them with the story.
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    Kruel - Yeah, I don't want chipmunks to get mad at me. I think they're smarter than squirrels.
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    Poetic Shutterbug - They're kind of new to me too. They're a lot like the cartoon versions. I like the detail in that first picture too. I had a closer one, but it wouldn't have been the same.
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    Betchai - They might be protecting me. Those little watchers seem very curious and happy to go with it.
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    The Retired One - I think they live for mischief. That makes me think of Chip & Dale. Did they ever lose?
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    Scott - That's a pretty good story! I can just picture a small swarm of them stealing chips. Leave it to a mom to overreact. I think that's a mom's job.
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    Santosh Nikam - I think you're right. They are also very curious. That makes them very interesting little creatures.
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    Icy BC - It was a lot of fun seeing them pop up in so many places. I've never seen so many before.
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    Ginnymo - I've seen some of your chipmunk pictures and they're wonderful. I think mine were younger, because their stripes didn't look as well defined as others I've seen.
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    BitterrootBob - Thanks. The chipmunks are a lot of fun.
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    Lin - Stuffing their cheeks full is one of my favorite things about them. These little guys in my pictures were very good examples of what chipmunks are like.

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  14. Chipmunks are so cute! I always see them in the woods when I am hiking and they run away with their loud little chip. Great pictures Ratty.

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  15. Hi Ratty this is a great post. very creepy! The photos are great. I can't belive the things you get to see when on your adventures. I would love to see something as interesting as a chipmunk when i went out and about. Not that we've got anything like a chipmunk here in the UK!
    The photos are really great too. Very much enjoyed this post.

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  16. Kallen - I love that about them. They know they have to run away, but their curiosity always gets the best of them.
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    Bemused - Any animal sighting can be like this. All you have to do is let your imagination drift wherever it wants to go. I never used to see all of these things until I really started watching for them. Now I see them everywhere.

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  17. I have a little chip named Oscar who lives next to my back porch. This is the 3rd year we've been friends after he tamed me in 2015. He keeps me occupied for an hour at a time, feeding him peanuts and sunflower seeds. He is at the point of actually pulling the peanuts out of my fingers. I try to select just the right sized ones so he can stuff one in each cheek and carry a 3rd in his teeth each trip. He puts his little "fingers" on mine as he steadies himself to pull on the peanuts. This happens about every evening as I'm sitting on the porch and have the time! I switch him to a small dish of black sunflower seeds for variety. Keep a bowl of clean water handy because they and the pine squirrels get really thirsty. Chips are VERY easy to train.

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