Belding’s ground squirrel records in Idaho concentrate on the Snake River Plain and along the Snake River corridor’s irrigated farmland and grassland edges, open ground this colonial burrower needs for its extensive tunnel systems and clear sightlines against predators.
Records build sharply from April through June, peaking at 51 in June, then drop to nearly zero by September as the squirrels retreat underground for a long hibernation that can last more than half the year. NatureServe ranks the species S3, Vulnerable, in Idaho, and the species is also a documented agricultural pest in parts of its range, complicating its conservation picture.
Full species profile
