Wyoming mammals

Common Golden-mantled Ground Squirrel in Wyoming

Callospermophilus lateralis

Native to Wyoming S5 Secure in Wyoming

Not listed as nonindigenous in Wyoming by USGS NAS; native to its Wyoming range.

IUCN Red List status

  1. LC
  2. NT
  3. VU
  4. EN
  5. CR
  6. EW
  7. EX

LC – Least Concern

Widespread and abundant; not at risk.

Common golden-mantled ground squirrel on a fallen log, showing its plain face and striped sidesCommon golden-mantled ground squirrel perched on a wooden railGolden-mantled ground squirrel sitting upright beside a trail railingCommon golden-mantled ground squirrel crossing a sunlit logClose view of a golden-mantled ground squirrel with no facial stripes
Photo: stephen · CC BY 4.0Common golden-mantled ground squirrel on a fallen log, showing its plain face and striped sidesPhoto: Karen Kincy · CC BY 4.0Common golden-mantled ground squirrel perched on a wooden railPhoto: Karen Kincy · CC BY 4.0Golden-mantled ground squirrel sitting upright beside a trail railingPhoto: stephen · CC BY 4.0Common golden-mantled ground squirrel crossing a sunlit logPhoto: Darrin LeBlanc · CC BY 4.0Close view of a golden-mantled ground squirrel with no facial stripes

Common Golden-mantled Ground Squirrel in Wyoming, by the numbers

Common in Wyoming 12th most recorded of 126 mammals logged in Wyoming

1,901 occurrence records
1,599 with iNaturalist photos
Jul 9, 2026 Last seen in Wyoming

Records from 2000–2026.

1,901 total records count every Wyoming occurrence from GBIF and iNaturalist; the map plots a georeferenced sample of 300; the monthly chart covers the 1,897 records with a full observation date.

When to look for the Common Golden-mantled Ground Squirrel in Wyoming

Most sightings fall in June to August.

1,897 Wyoming occurrence records (iNaturalist and GBIF) by month of year, 2000–2026. Shows when the species is recorded, not a guarantee of presence.

Monthly Wyoming records (table)
MonthRecords
January4
February0
March2
April10
May177
June416
July646
August494
September130
October12
November3
December3

Monthly common golden-mantled ground squirrel occurrence records (iNaturalist and GBIF) in Wyoming, 2000–2026.

Seasonality

Year-round in Wyoming, with recorded sightings peaking in June–August.

Occurrence map

Where Common Golden-mantled Ground Squirrel has been recorded in Wyoming

300 records mapped · zoom and drag to explore

300 Wyoming records mapped

Notable places to look

Park, forest, or monumentiNaturalist records
Yellowstone National Park 622
Grand Teton National Park 412
Bridger Wilderness 26
Popo Agie Wilderness 12
Jedediah Smith Wilderness 8
Gros Ventre Wilderness 8
Fitzpatrick Wilderness 6
Jackson Hole 3

Protected places with the most common golden-mantled ground squirrel sightings, from the USGS Protected Areas Database plus named mountain ranges, good spots to look, not a full breakdown, so they don't sum to the total.

Where it's recorded in Wyoming

CountyRecords
Teton County 983
Park County 371
Albany County 217
Fremont County 79
Sublette County 68
Carbon County 53
Sweetwater County 53
Laramie County 38
Lincoln County 24
Uinta County 9
Sheridan County 1
Natrona County 1
3 other counties 4

The complete county distribution, spread across 15 Wyoming counties. Every occurrence record falls in one county, so these sum to the total. Counties from GBIF and US Census boundaries.

Golden-mantled ground squirrels favor rocky openings and forest edges in Wyoming’s mountains. Campgrounds, overlooks, and trails in Yellowstone and Grand Teton produce many encounters, with additional habitat in the Absaroka, Wind River, Bighorn, and Medicine Bow ranges. Unlike chipmunks, they lack stripes on the face even though bold body stripes are present.

They hibernate, making late spring through summer the principal viewing season and May–August the strongest reporting window. Never feed habituated animals around picnic areas. The concentration of records at developed mountain sites reflects easy observation as much as underlying distribution.

Occurrence data from iNaturalist and GBIF.

Common golden-mantled ground squirrel on a fallen log, showing its plain face and striped sides
Full species profile Common Golden-mantled Ground Squirrel Callospermophilus lateralis Size 23–32 cm9.1–12.6 in Weight 120–350 g4.2–12.3 oz Lifespan 7 yr View the full profile

More mammals in Wyoming in the atlas

Data & sources

The data and visualizations on this page draw on these open sources:

  • GBIFCC-BY 4.0occurrence records behind the range map, elevation, and record counts
  • iNaturalistCC0 / CC-BY / CC-BY-SAobservations, photos, and audio recordings
  • NatureServe ExplorerCC-BYthe state conservation rank
  • IUCN Red Listattributed factthe global conservation status
  • USGS NASpublic domainnative / introduced status
  • Natural Earthpublic domainthe relief basemap
  • USFSpublic domainnational-forest boundaries
  • USGS Protected Areas Databasepublic domainthe named parks, forests, and refuges behind "notable places to look"