204 Xerus erythropusgeographic variation: Six subspecies are recognized.
X. e. erythropus—West Africa, from southern Mauritania and
Senegal to northeastern Nigeria, as well as in central Mo-
rocco. The animal is paler in color than the other subspe-
cies, with a sandy-colored back and buff forearms.
X. e. chadensis—southeastern Niger through northeastern
Nigeria, northeastern Cameroon, Chad, and Sudan. This
subspecies is relatively small and pale. The dorsal pelage
approaches a “pinkish buff ” and the forearms are “cream-
buff .” The head and upper back are highlighted with a
blacker coloration.
X. e. lacustris—northeastern Democratic Republic of the
Congo and northwestern Uganda. Its dorsal pelage is
darker than that of other subspecies, with more black,
leading to an overall browner coat color. The region be-
low the white lateral stripe is broader, and the forearms
are a cinnamon brown.
X. e. leucoumbrinus—scattered distribution through Senegal,
Cameroon, Sudan, and Ethiopia. Characteristic of spe-
cies in the Sudan woodlands, this animal is darker, with
brownish red tones, as opposed to yellowish or buff y;
and it lacks the white patch posterior to the ears of X. e.
erythropus.
X. e. limitaneus—southeastern Chad, northeastern Central
African Republic, and Sudan. This subspecies is larger
than X. e. chadensis and X. e. leucoumbrinus. The dorsal
pelage is similar in color to X. e. leucoumbrinus, and it has
two lateral lines: one pure white and the second darker
than the dorsal coat.
X. e. microdon—Senegal, Gambia, Guinea, western Nigeria,
and central Kenya. Common to the Guinea woodlands,
this form has an overall pelage that is sandy buff , with
black highlights on the crown of the head and stronger
ochraceous coloring on the base of the tail. The forearms
are a dull buff , moving into cream on the tops of the
hands and on the feet.
conservation: IUCN status—least concern. Population
trend—stable.
habitat: The striped ground squirrel is native to open
woodlands or grasslands, mangrove and swamp forests, and
coastal scrublands. It tolerates human disturbance remark-
ably well, often preferring secondary forests to primary
ones, and it can be found in cultivated lands throughout
much of its range. In eastern Africa, this squirrel lives at el-
evations between 600 and 1800 m.
natural history: The striped ground squirrel is diurnal
a nd terrest ria l, a lt houg h a n i ma ls have been obser ved cl i mb -
ing low trees. Individuals emerge from their burrows well
after dawn and return several hours before dusk. The squir-
rel’s biphasic activity patterns are greatly infl uenced by the
weather; morning activity is usually more intense than that
in the afternoon, but it can be delayed by clouds or rain.
When the midday sun becomes strong, the animals periodi-
cally retreat to the shade and press their bellies against the
cooler ground. They are attracted to areas of human distur-
bance and can often be spotted foraging in cultivated fi elds
or standing upright and alert in clearings and along road-
sides. This species is primarily vegetarian, with a diet com-
posed of soft fruits, leaves, fl owers, acacia pods, dry seeds
such as karangiya grass seeds (Cenchrus bifl orus), insects,
eggs, young birds, and small reptiles. They are adept at
cracking the shells of nuts, which they usually carry to their
burrows to open. In Kenya and many other dry regions of
their range where food is scarce, these squirrels hoard food
items in their burrows or bury them in pits scattered away
from burrow entrances and camoufl aged with a dried leaf or
stone.
Striped ground squirrels forage alone and are not par-
ticularly social. When two meet aboveground, individuals
briefl y greet one another. A strict hierarchy is maintained
during the meeting, with individuals assuming submissive
and dominant roles. This behavior may be agonistic in same-
sex encounters, although this species is not very aggressive
or territorial. Underground, conspecifi cs share burrows with
interchanging mixed-sex groups and even other smaller ro-
dent species. Unlike other colony-forming species, their so-
cial lives do not revolve around the burrow system. They
maintain large home ranges that cover a vast system of
tunnels, and the animals frequently alternate between
burrows. Females occupy home ranges varying between
1.3 and 12.4 ha in size and make occasional excursions upXerus erythropus. Photo courtesy Edwin Schuller and Gisela J.
van der Velden.