Ensuring an adequate supply of food for the winter is one of the primary activities carried out by chipmunks. Among the many items they often consume are nuts, berries, grains, insects, and the tender shoots of plants. Such edibles are usually stored in their distensible internal check pouches and transported to the protection of the burrow for consumption or storage. Mating takes place in the spring, and following a gestation period of 31 days, females give birth to litters of two to eight young. In some areas, a second litter may be produced late in the summer