They do not like dense forests where no sunlight reaches the ground. Burrows are made by digging and carrying away the dirt in their pouched mouths. Unlike Prarie Dogs and some other sciurids, Tamais striatus do not leave the dirt in mounds near the entrances of their burrows. This makes it harder for predators to find the Chipmunks in their homes. These burrows can be up to 30 ft. in length with several different exits and tunnels.
Chipmunks conceal the exits with leaves and rocks.
They may inhabit these burrows for several years. Over several generations a burrow may acquire up to 30 tunnels, with all but the main entrance sealed from beneath. Naturalists have dug up only a few burrows, all excavated by eastern chipmunks. Most of these consisted of a single entrance leading to an unbranched tunnel that sloped gradually down to a depth of 45-85cm and ended in a rounded nest chamber, about 15cm in diameter. In this chamber, the chipmunk had built a nest using insulating materials such as grasses, shredded leaves, or the fluffy seed heads of certain plants.