Oregon mammals

Townsend's Chipmunk in Oregon

Neotamias townsendii

Native to Oregon S4 Apparently Secure in Oregon

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

Neotamias townsendiiTownsend's Chipmunk (Neotamias townsendii)Live Townsend's chipmunk feeding on leaves while perched on a branchLive Townsend's chipmunk sitting upright on a moss-covered boulder, striped back visibleLive Townsend's chipmunk close-up on the forest floor, cheek stripes and large dark eye visible
Photo: Ludovic Hirlimann from 's-Gravenhage, The Netherlands · CC BY-SA 2.0Neotamias townsendiiPhoto: Walter Siegmund (talk) · CC BY-SA 3.0Townsend's Chipmunk (Neotamias townsendii)Photo: Eric Habisch · CC BY 4.0Live Townsend's chipmunk feeding on leaves while perched on a branchPhoto: Sean Haight · CC0Live Townsend's chipmunk sitting upright on a moss-covered boulder, striped back visiblePhoto: John Hibbard · CC BY 4.0Live Townsend's chipmunk close-up on the forest floor, cheek stripes and large dark eye visible

Townsend's Chipmunk in Oregon, by the numbers

Common in Oregon 15th most recorded of 178 mammals logged in Oregon

3,660 occurrence records
2,030 with iNaturalist photos
Jul 9, 2026 Last seen in Oregon

Records from 2000–2026.

3,660 total records count every Oregon occurrence from GBIF and iNaturalist; the map plots a georeferenced sample of 300; the monthly chart covers the 3,646 records with a full observation date.

When to look for the Townsend's Chipmunk in Oregon

Most sightings fall in July to September.

3,646 Oregon occurrence records (iNaturalist and GBIF) by month of year, 2000–2026. Shows when the species is recorded, not a guarantee of presence.

Monthly Oregon records (table)
MonthRecords
January26
February52
March136
April291
May470
June425
July449
August723
September588
October292
November137
December57

Monthly townsend's chipmunk occurrence records (iNaturalist and GBIF) in Oregon, 2000–2026.

Seasonality

Year-round in Oregon, with recorded sightings peaking in July–September, with a smaller rise in May.

Occurrence map

Where Townsend's Chipmunk has been recorded in Oregon

300 records mapped · zoom and drag to explore

300 Oregon records mapped

Notable places to look

Park, forest, or monumentiNaturalist records
Mt. Hood National Forest 57
Siuslaw National Forest 38
Cascade Range 16
Lewis and Clark National Historical Park 16
Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area 15
McDonald-Dunn Research Forest 14
Mark O. Hatfield Wilderness 13
Oregon Islands National Wildlife Refuge Wilderness Area 13

Protected places with the most townsend's chipmunk 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 Oregon

CountyRecords
Lane County 589
Linn County 368
Washington County 359
Tillamook County 306
Douglas County 274
Multnomah County 271
Clackamas County 216
Clatsop County 193
Benton County 190
Coos County 181
Marion County 149
Hood River County 117
14 other counties 447

The complete county distribution, spread across 26 Oregon counties. Every occurrence record falls in one county, so these sum to the total. Counties from GBIF and US Census boundaries.

Townsend’s chipmunk records run through the forested Cascades at Mt. Hood National Forest and westward into the Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area. Documentation rises in spring and stays strongest from April through August before falling later in the year. This pattern captures the combination of chipmunk activity and observer effort, not population abundance.

Occurrence data from iNaturalist.

Neotamias townsendii
Full species profile Townsend's Chipmunk Neotamias townsendii Size 15 cm5.9 in Weight 79 g2.8 oz Lifespan Up to 9.3 yr View the full profile

More mammals in Oregon 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"