Ictidomys tridecemlineatus

Grasslands, cultivated fields, meadows, roadsides, shrublands, suburban lawns, pine barrens, and beaches. Sandy or loamy soil.

Head and body: 4½″ to 6½″

Tail: 2½″ to 5¼″

This is a slender, light brown or dark brown ground squirrel. It averages 9¾″ long including the tail.

The ears are short.

There are 13 alternating lines of dark brown and tan lines that extend from the nape of the neck to the tail. The 13 stripes may be either 7 broad dark brown and 6 thin tan stripes or 7 narrow yellow and 6 broader dark brown stripes. There are no stripes on the side of the face. The belly is whitish.

The tail is thin and sparsely bushy.

Franklin’s ground squirrel (Spermophilus franklinii) is much larger, the head and body 9″ to 10″. It does not have stripes on the back or rump. The belly is nearly as dark as the back.

Richardson’s ground squirrel (Spermophilus richardsonii) is much larger, the head and body 7¾″ to 9½″. It does not have stripes on the back or rump. It is found only in far western Minnesota.

Omnivorous. They eat seeds, fruits, grasses, forbs, and insects.