A fairly small rodent with a small furry tail and pert little ears. Fur reddish brown, with dark and white stripes on the back. Also has a red brown strip on the cheeks and white around the dark eyes. Active in the daytime, mostly in the summer. In the winter it sleeps a lot, with long periods of torpor, but it does not truly hibernate.While it climbs trees well, it spends most of its time on the ground and lives in underground burrows. It likes rocks and shrubs for hiding. Eats nuts, seeds, berries, insects, worms, and bird eggs. Carries food, as well as dirt from remodeling its burrows, in its highly stretchable cheeks.

A delightful but timid little native of the eastern United States and Southeastern Canada. Probably common in Wildwood, but most often seen dashing away.

The small size and distinctive stripes make it easily identified. Gray squirrels are larger, have fluffy tails, and are more likely to hang out in trees. Our only other ground squirrels are woodchucks, which are much larger and lack stripes.