Chipmunks are common in many North American gardens, known for their energetic movements and distinctive striped backs. These small, agile rodents frequently interact with human environments, leading to curiosity about their behaviors, especially concerning their diet. Understanding what attracts chipmunks to certain areas can help explain their foraging habits.
Do Chipmunks Eat Cucumbers?
Yes, chipmunks eat cucumbers, especially when readily available in gardens. While not a primary component of their natural diet, chipmunks are opportunistic feeders and consume what they find accessible. Their high water content makes them appealing, particularly during hot and dry periods when natural water sources are scarce. Chipmunks may consume the leaves or the developing cucumbers themselves.
Despite their high water content, cucumbers offer minimal nutritional value to chipmunks. Cucumbers are approximately 95% water, providing very few calories, proteins, or fats. While they contain small amounts of vitamins and minerals, their overall nutrient concentration is low compared to other food sources chipmunks seek. Therefore, while safe to consume, cucumbers do not provide the diverse nutrients necessary for sustained health.
A Chipmunk’s Natural Diet
In their natural habitats, chipmunks are omnivores with a varied diet of both plant and animal matter. Their primary food sources include seeds, nuts, fruits, and grains, which they often store in their cheek pouches for later consumption. They also forage for fungi, tender plants, and various insects like worms and arthropods. Some species may even eat bird eggs or small amphibians.
This diverse diet provides the fats, proteins, and carbohydrates required for their energy-intensive lifestyles and winter preparation. Nuts and seeds are rich in calories and essential nutrients, crucial for building fat reserves. While chipmunks do not truly hibernate, they rely on cached food to survive periods of torpor during colder months, occasionally emerging to forage on warmer days. Their natural diet is significantly more nutrient-dense than garden vegetables.
Keeping Chipmunks Out of Your Garden
To humanely deter chipmunks from consuming garden produce, various preventative measures can be employed. Physical barriers are effective; use hardware cloth or chicken wire to cover plants and beds, burying material at least 12 inches underground to prevent burrowing. Fences should also be buried and be tall enough (around 30 inches) to prevent climbing. Netting can also be placed over plants.
Modifying the garden environment reduces its appeal. Remove fallen fruits and seeds, secure trash cans, and trim dense vegetation, brush piles, and rock piles to eliminate hiding and nesting spots. Natural repellents can also be used. Chipmunks reportedly dislike strong scents, so sprinkling cayenne pepper or chili powder around plants can deter them, though reapplication after rain is needed. Planting aromatic plants like daffodils, marigolds, lavender, or mint around garden perimeters may also help.