California mammals

Uinta Chipmunk in California

Neotamias umbrinus

Native to California SNR Unranked in California

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

Uinta Chipmunk in natural habitatUinta Chipmunk (Neotamias umbrinus)Uinta Chipmunk (Neotamias umbrinus)Uinta Chipmunk (Neotamias umbrinus)Uinta Chipmunk (Neotamias umbrinus)
Photo: Daughter Dad · CC BY 4.0Uinta Chipmunk in natural habitatPhoto: lchaney · CC BY 4.0Uinta chipmunk on open rockPhoto: lchaney · CC BY 4.0Uinta chipmunk in high, rocky terrainPhoto: Daughter Dad · CC BY 4.0Uinta chipmunk moving through leaf litterPhoto: Daughter Dad · CC BY 4.0Uinta chipmunk paused on gravel

Uinta Chipmunk in California, by the numbers

Rare in California 195th most recorded of 241 mammals logged in California

16 occurrence records

Records from 2000–2026.

When to look for the Uinta Chipmunk in California

Most sightings fall in August.

16 California occurrence records (iNaturalist and GBIF) by month of year, 2000–2026. Shows when the species is recorded, not a guarantee of presence. Based on a small number of dated records; the seasonal pattern may not be representative.

Monthly California records (table)
MonthRecords
January0
February0
March0
April0
May0
June2
July2
August4
September1
October4
November3
December0

Monthly uinta chipmunk occurrence records (iNaturalist and GBIF) in California, 2000–2026.

Seasonality

Year-round in California, with recorded sightings peaking in August, with a smaller rise in October–November.

Occurrence map

Where Uinta Chipmunk has been recorded in California

16 records mapped · zoom and drag to explore

16 California records mapped

Notable places to look

Park, forest, or monumentiNaturalist records
White Mountains Wilderness 1

Protected places with the most uinta 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 California

CountyRecords
Inyo County 14
Mono County 2

The complete county distribution, spread across 2 California counties. Every occurrence record falls in one county, so these sum to the total. Counties from GBIF and US Census boundaries.

California’s combined state files contain 20 Uinta Chipmunk records: 20 from iNaturalist and 0 from GBIF. It ranks 195th among 243 mammals in this California record comparison, placing it in the lower third. That’s a ranking of submitted records, not a head count of animals.

The monthly series reaches its high point in August and October, with 4 records in the busiest months. Records appear in 6 of 12 months, so the pattern shows when sightings were documented, not when the species must be present or absent.

California accounts for about 1% of the mapped GBIF records summarized on the national Uinta Chipmunk page. That’s a small share of the known record footprint, though differences in survey effort can strongly shape the percentage.

Occurrence data from iNaturalist and GBIF.

Uinta Chipmunk in natural habitat
Full species profile Uinta Chipmunk Neotamias umbrinus Size 14.2 cm5.6 in Weight 52 g1.8 oz Lifespan Up to 7.3 yr View the full profile

More mammals in California 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"