Chipmunks are graceful and spry, quick to dart for their underground burrows when startled. They run with their bushy tails held straight up. Their senses of sight and hearing are keen. When eating they often perch on stumps, rocks or logs, to survey their surroundings. Tamias striatus is a vocal creature.
Chipmunks are omnivorous.
They also eat mushrooms, berries, corn, and the flesh and seeds of apples, peaches, pears and garden vegetables. Birds' eggs, insects, snails, earthworms, millipedes, salamanders, small snakes, frogs and young mice and birds supplement their vegetable diet. A chipmunk uses its forepaws to manipulate food for eating or transporting. Food foraging and other above-ground activities are carried on during daylight. Chipmunks are most active in early morning and late afternoon.