![]() They rarely travel more than 75 yards from their den. The home range of a chipmunk is usually less than a half acre, and often no more than 12,000 square feet. Chipmunks are solitary, living in separate dens. Over time, the amount of soil excavated from under a slab can undermine the slab causing it to crack or collapse.Ĭhipmunks are particularly attracted to homes on wooded lots, or with dense shrubbery, or with rock walls or outbuildings for den sites. Now for the really bad news! After four or five years, the average chipmunk’s burrow may have been extended to a length of 30 feet, with several openings and as many as six nesting or food chambers. ![]() From the entrance, the burrow plunges straight down for a few inches, then gradually descends to a depth of about 3 feet. Unfortunately, a concrete slab like a sidewalk or patio serves just as well as a rock. Burrows are often located under an object like a rotten log, stump, or rock. Their burrow entrances are neat, round holes about two inches in diameter which have been cleared of loose dirt. Chipmunks mostly live at ground level but they can climb trees and will climb downspouts to get to rooftops.Ĭhipmunks nest in underground burrows. It has a hairy 3-4 inch long tail that it carries upright when it runs. The eastern chipmunk is rusty brown with five black and two beige stripes on its back, is about 6 inches long, and weighs only 2.5 to 4 ounces. Sometimes those pouches are full of soil that they have cleared out of their burrows under your sidewalk! Chipmunks can become pests in residential areas in the following ways:ġ) Their extensive burrows, often under patio slabs, foundations, concrete steps, stone walls, or sheds are unsightly and can result in collapse of the slab or wallĢ) They can make a mess in a garden by digging up garden seeds and flower bulbs, and feeding on berries and other fruitsģ) They raid bird feeders and pet food left outsideĬhipmunks are members of the squirrel family which means they are also rodents but, unlike tree squirrels, chipmunks are smaller ground dwellers. They are high energy and everyone loves to laugh at their cheek pouches bulging with collected food. Chipmunks are cute there’s no denying that. Can a little chipmunk cause that kind of damage?Ī. ![]() Our front sidewalk has cracked in several places and a contractor said it was because of chipmunks burrowing under the sidewalk. Chipmunks Damage Slabs By Chris Williams on June 30, 2011.
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