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Home - Other Field Guides
- Kingdom - Animals - Animalia
  - Phylum - Vertebrates - Craniata
    - Class - Mammals - Mammalia
      - Order - Rodents - Rodentia
        
        Family - Squirrels - Sciuridae
        
        Species - Wyoming Ground Squirrel - Urocitellus elegans

Wyoming Ground Squirrel - Urocitellus elegans

Potential Species of Concern
Native Species

Global Rank: G5
State Rank: SU
(see State Rank Reason below)

Agency Status
USFWS:
USFS:
BLM:
FWP SWAP: SGIN

External Links

Listen to an Audio Sample

Copyright Jeff Rice and the Acoustic Atlas at Montana State University. Audio file courtesy of the Acoustic Atlas at Montana State University (www.acousticatlas.org)

State Rank Reason (see State Rank above)

Species is distributed across portions of Southwest Montana. It is easily confused with other ground squirrel species. Data to assess habitat use, current distribution, trends and threats is lacking.

Wyoming Ground Squirrel (Urocitellus elegans) Conservation Status Summary
State Rank: SU
Review Date = 09/16/2024
See the complete Conservation Status Rank Report

How we calculate Conservation Status Ranks

General Description

We do not yet have descriptive information on this species. Please try the buttons above to search for information from other sources.

Species Range

Montana Range Range Descriptions

Native

Western Hemisphere Range

Observations in Montana Natural Heritage Program Database

Number of Observations: 91

(Click on the following maps and charts to see full sized version) Map Help and Descriptions

Relative Density

Recency

(Observations spanning multiple months or years are excluded from time charts)

Migration

Non-migratory, although dispersal movements may be observed.

Habitat

Primarily valley bottoms and foothills.

National Vegetation Classification System Groups Associated with this Species

Alpine

Alpine - Vegetated

Alpine Turf and Fellfield

Forest and Woodland

Deciduous Forest and Woodland

Rocky Mountain Aspen Forest and Woodland

Montane - Subalpine Forest and Woodland

Interior PNW Douglas-fir Forest and Woodland

Rocky Mountain Douglas-fir Forest

Shrubland

Foothills - Montane Shrubland

Mountain Mahogany Woodland and Shrubland

Sagebrush Shrubland

Basin and Wyoming Big (Threetip) Sagebrush Shrubland

Low - Black Sagebrush Shrubland

Mountain Big Sagebrush Shrubland

Grassland

Lowland - Prairie Grassland

Intermountain Sand Grassland

Rocky Mountain Low Elevation - Dry Grassland

Montane - Subalpine Grassland

Montane - Subalpine Dry Grassland

Montane - Subalpine Mesic Grassland and Meadow

Wetland and Riparian

Alpine Riparian and Wetland

Alpine - Subalpine Herbaceous and Dwarf-Shrub Riparian and Wetland

Riparian and Wetland Forest

Montane - Subalpine Riparian Forest

Montane Forested Wetland

Riparian Shrubland

Montane - Subalpine Riparian and Seep Shrubland

Wet Meadow and Marsh

Montane Wet Meadow and Marsh

Recently Disturbed or Modified

Recently Burned

Recently Burned Sagebrush

Recently Burned Shrubland

Human Land Use

Agriculture

Cultivated Crops, Dryland

Irrigated Agriculture

Pasture/Hay, Dryland

Developed

Developed - Low and Medium Intensity

Developed - Vegetation

Food Habits

Forbs apparently a primary food. Also uses grasses, shrubs, insects, and other arthropods. Cannibalism of road-killed conspecifics and consumption of other carrion has been observed.

Ecology

Can hybridize with S. richardsonii. Males emerge from hibernation before females and establish a behavioral dominance. Hierarchical distribution of territories. May consume agricultural crops.

Reproductive Characteristics

Adult and yearling females produce 5 to 7 young per litter. Appear above ground at 4 to 5 weeks of age. Yearlings may not reproduce when in poor condition. Breeding probably occurs late March to mid-April.

Stewardship Responsibility

References

Additional ReferencesLegend: View Online Publication
Do you know of a citation we're missing?
- Atkinson, E.C. 1992. Ferruginous hawk (Buteo regalis) inventories on the Dillon Resource Area of southwest Montana: 1992. Montana Natural Heritage Program for Bureau of Land Management, Dillon Resource Area. 34 pp.
- Davis, W.B. 1937. Some mammals from western Montana and eastern Idaho. The Murrelet 18(2): 22-27.
- Foresman, K.R. 2001. The wild mammals of Montana. American Society of Mammalogists, Special Publication Number 12. Lawrence, KS. 278 pp.
- Foresman, K.R. 2012. Mammals of Montana. Second edition. Mountain Press Publishing, Missoula, Montana. 429 pp.
- Hanauska-Brown, L., B.A. Maxell, A. Petersen, and S. Story. 2014. Diversity Monitoring in Montana 2008-2010 Final Report. Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks. Helena, MT. 78 pp.
- Hendricks, P. and M. Roedel. 2001. A faunal survey of the Centennial Valley Sandhills, Beaverhead County, Montana. Report to the U.S. Bureau of Land Management and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Montana Natural Heritage Program, Helena, MT. 44 p.
- Joslin, Gayle, and Heidi B. Youmans. 1999. Effects of recreation on Rocky Mountain wildlife: a review for Montana. [Montana]: Montana Chapter of the Wildlife Society.
- Koeppl, J.W. and R.S. Hoffman. 1981. Comparative postnatal growth of four ground squirrel species. Journal of Mammalogy. 62(1): 41-57.
- Koeppl, J.W., R.S. Hoffmann and C.F. Nadler. 1978. Pattern analysis of acoustical behavior in four species of ground squirrels. Journal of Mammalogy. 59(4): 677-696.
- Oechsli, L.M. 2000. Ex-urban development in the Rocky Mountain West: consequences for native vegetation, wildlife diversity, and land-use planning in Big Sky, Montana. M.Sc. Thesis. Montana State University, Bozeman. 73 p.
- Reid, F. 2006. Peterson Field Guide to Mammals of North America, 4th Edition. Houghton Mifflin Company: Boston and New York, 608 pp.
- Zegers, D.A. 1984. Spermophilus Elegans. Mammalian Species. 214: 1-7.
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Citation for data on this website:
Wyoming Ground Squirrel — Urocitellus elegans. Montana Field Guide. Montana Natural Heritage Program and Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks. Retrieved on December 18, 2025, from https://FieldGuide.mt.gov/speciesDetail.aspx?elcode=AMAFB05190