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Siberian chipmunk

Siberian chipmunk     Tamias sibiricus

  • Appearance: Small yellow/brown rodent, has five dark and four light bands down its back and a white chest.
  • Behaviour: Active during the day
  • Diet: Seeds, fungi, fruit, insects, small reptiles and birds.
  • Impact: Outcompetes native species and can impact ground and nesting birds and crops.
  • Pathway: May have escaped or been deliberately released into the wild.
  • Legal status: Species of special concern listed under the retained EU Regulation 1143/2014 and the Invasive Alien Species (Enforcement & Permitting) Order 2019.
  • Unless you have a licence or permit or an exemption applies you must not:
    • keep them in your house, garden or business
    • sell them to other people
    • exchange them for goods
    • release them into the environment
    • let them breed or escape
    • import them into the UK
    • transport them within the UK
    • export them to other countries

 

  • What to do if you see Siberian chipmunk for sale or other offences being committed: Make a report by following the guidance here.

 

  • What to do if you see this animal in the wild: This is an alert species, record it with a photograph (where possible).