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Glite Dictionary
Citellus lateralis

Citellus lateralis

9.9
A ground squirrel with black stripes and reddish brown fur from western North America
  • noun
  • Specialized
translation icon : citellus lateral
  • The Citellus lateralis is often mistaken for a chipmunk because of its black stripes.

Examples

  • Researchers observed a group of Citellus lateralis gathering food before winter.

  • Hikers in the Rockies frequently spot the Citellus lateralis darting between rocks.

  • Look at that Citellus lateralis!

  • What a beautiful Citellus lateralis!

  • Hikers in the Rockies frequently spot the Citellus lateralis darting between rocks.

  • Researchers observed a group of Citellus lateralis gathering food before winter.

  • The Citellus lateralis is often mistaken for a chipmunk because of its black stripes.

Synonyms

mantled ground squirrel
vsCitellus lateralis
  • US
7.2

A small brown animal with black stripes on its back that lives on the ground in western North America

uses a formal scientific name rather than everyday language

Surface Forms

Citellus lateralis singular
Citellus laterales plural

Morphology

Citellus + lateralis

This is a standard Latin binomial combining the genus 'Citellus' (ground squirrels) with the species epithet 'lateralis' (side-related trait); a learner who knows these constituent meanings can infer it denotes a species of ground squirrel with a lateral/side characteristic. Taxonomic genus+species composition is a regular, compositional pattern found across languages, so the overall referent is derivable from the parts.

Etymology

Citellus lateralis comes from Latin words. The word Citellus means 'squirrel' and lateralis means 'side', because this ground squirrel has dark stripes along its sides, so the name points to its striped look.