Franklin's ground squirrel is a medium-sized rodent from the squirrel family. It lives in burrows on meadows and prairies in the central part of North America and hibernates in winter.
Franklin's ground squirrel differs from related species by its longer tail and gray coloration. It is important for nature as a seed disperser for plants and as food for many predators.
meadows, prairies, forb glades on land
Worker
Tail size
birth time
breeding
Dogs, dolphins, lynx hang out for 9-25 years and party on their birthday three times a year
m
Map
will celebrate their {n} birthday
g
lots of rain, warm summer, snow in winter
t
When your next jubilee falls in {name} life years
Human
days
How old you would be if you lived as {name}
Theoretical maximum lifespan estimated from the Dynamic Energy Budget (DEB) mathematical model. This value reflects a biological potential derived from metabolic parameters, not from direct observation — real recorded lifespans are often significantly shorter.
adult
Maturity
plants
insects
About health
milk
When your next birthday would fall if you lived as {name}
Repro interval
results
protection from predators
Colors
Sex
Upcoming jubilees
Gremllins
mo
Uses an excavated underground tunnel or chamber for refuge or nesting.
conifer cones
Trophic type
Filters
Upcoming birthdays
Winter with snow
eggs, roe or offspring develop in a nest built on the ground or close to it
Truly long lives: 40-100 years. Bowhead whales, albatrosses, giant tortoises recall their birthday at most once a year
Lifespan
in a burrow
rains almost always, very humid
young are born live on land, not hatched from eggs or roe
Age (juvenile)
Age (from birth to death)
cones of coniferous trees with seeds
Age (embryo)
Wanderers
Food items are collected from exposed outer surfaces of substrates.
Jubilee = every 10th birthday
berries
Earliest developmental stage inside an egg or womb.
Business sausages
Lifespan average
in a terrestrial nest
leaves
live birth
What do they look like?
Maturity
emergence (insects)
end of lifespan
How do they live?
fertilization / egg laying
How do they behave?
birth / hatching
metamorphosis / end of larval stage
end of acceleration
Share
seeds
Find a pet...
Mature, fully developed individual capable of reproduction.
nest hidden in an underground burrow
hunting and foraging on the land surface
Actively hunting and capturing live prey.
Pets
Nearctic realm
juicy berries — bilberry, rowan, rosehip
Lots of rain and cool summer
Feeding occurs primarily on land or in vegetation.
{name} jubilee
Claws count
cm
Old-timers
Find an animal or breed...
small rodents
Claws size
turns
Rascals
terrestrial forest
terrestrial herbaceous
Tail color
Flooded grasslands
drink mother's milk in childhood
Litter size
grass leaves
Map data sources: Ecosystem classification — IUCN Global Ecosystem Typology (Keith et al., 2022), indicative distribution maps Keith et al. (2020), https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.3546513; Large Marine Ecosystems — NOAA LME Program; Bathymetry — GEBCO Bathymetric Compilation Group (2026), GEBCO_2026 Grid, https://doi.org/10.5285/4f68d5c7-45eb-f999-e063-7086abc036fa; Climate data — Generated using Copernicus Climate Change Service information; Species occurrence data — GBIF.org, Derived dataset "all animals", https://zveriki.com/dataset/dataset.tsv; Terrestrial ecoregions — RESOLVE Ecoregions 2017 (Dinerstein et al., 2017), CC BY 4.0
How to care for them?
Living from 25 to 40 years. Orangutans, bald eagles, African elephants celebrate their birthday twice a year
°C
Not specified
Actively searching habitats to locate food items.
Where are they found?
nest hidden in an underground burrow, only the mother provides parental care for the offspring
steppe
lots of rain, cool summer, snow in winter
Legendary longevity: over 100 years. Galapagos tortoises, Greenland sharks, ocean quahogs celebrate with family once every 4 years
Offspring
Elders
Bro
Taxons
if born as {name}
omnivore
age
birth date
small mammals — mice, shrews, bats
soil
rest
Fur color
Close
was
Career from 7 to 15 months. Dwarf hamsters, voles, field crickets celebrate their birthday twice a month
The basics
herbivory, feed only on plant food
hibernation
My weight?
Non-stop carnival: they only live a few days. Mayflies, rotifers, midges celebrate their birthday more than twice a day
surface
primary food sources
burrow
after transformation until death
Potential Habitat
lots of grass, few trees, rains are rare
d
In husbandry
On the go from 1.3 to 3.5 years. Forest mice, anoles, rainbow fish party on their birthday once a month
Mass
young shoots and leaves of plants
cold winter, lots of coniferous trees: spruce, pine
Mosquitoes, fruit flies, small crustaceans hustle for up to 7 months and throw a birthday party every week
terrestrial
Gestation
from 130 grams to 0.5 kilograms, 0.35 – 0.8 meters
small mammals
land
{name} birthday
Nearctic realm
No results found
North America and Greenland, from tundra to forests
On the map
Pleasant summer
Female ♀
all life stages
Map data sources: Ecosystem classification — IUCN Global Ecosystem Typology (Keith et al., 2022), indicative distribution maps Keith et al. (2020), https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.3546513; Large Marine Ecosystems — NOAA LME Program; Bathymetry — GEBCO Bathymetric Compilation Group (2026), GEBCO_2026 Grid, https://doi.org/10.5285/4f68d5c7-45eb-f999-e063-7086abc036fa; Climate data — Generated using Copernicus Climate Change Service information; Species occurrence data — GBIF.org, Derived dataset "all animals", https://zveriki.com/dataset/dataset.tsv; Terrestrial ecoregions — RESOLVE Ecoregions 2017 (Dinerstein et al., 2017), CC BY 4.0
Potential habitat modelled from GBIF occurrence data. Map © Zveriki.com, licensed under CC BY 4.0.
birth year
lots of grass, few trees, rains occur
Shelter used specifically for reproduction or nesting.
Maturity
Skin color
caring mother
terrestrial habitat, land surface outside water
sq mm
yr
comfortable summer, +20…+25 °C
How similar?
Male ♂
until the celebration
baby / chick
age as {name}
How do they breed?
On the go from 3.5 to 6 years. Hedgehogs, crows, lizards treat themselves to birthday snacks 6 times a year
What if eaten?
Neither
from birth to adulthood
Young offspring still dependent on parental care.
What do they eat?
Where do they live?
Immature individual that has not yet reached reproductive maturity.
Lots of rain and warm summer
much snow in winter, cold
berries
forests on land — tropical, temperate, boreal
water often floods the land, lots of grass
Temperate mixed forest
Duration
live insects
This is me
Steppe
Always very wet
Gamers
How are they built?
Temperate steppe
mm
Theoretical lifespan
ml
Stars
Link copied
My age?
wk
My size?
terrestrial
Taiga
Asexual
swap
Cheek pouches size
active predation
Rabbits, falcons, red-eared turtles hang out for 6-9 years and party on their birthday four times a year
Where do they take shelter?
Denotes a grassland or steppe habitat preference.
inhabit and develop on land, outside water bodies
celebrated their {n} birthday
When you would have been born if you lived as {name}
Daddies
Lifespan maximum
foraging
Hermaphrodite ⚥
North America and Greenland, from tundra to forests
embryo
Zucchini
summer warm, many oaks, birches, maples
Length
kg
Observations
◉{N} more on tap