New England experiences explosion in chipmunk population

(AP) — There were plenty of acorns this spring, and now the chipmunks are driving people….. nuts.

Their frenetic activities can be entertaining.

But this summer in New England, the varmints are making a nuisance of themselves, darting to and fro, digging holes in gardens, and tunneling under lawns.

A bumper crop of acorns last fall meant there was still plenty of food on the ground when the chipmunks emerged from winter and got busy breeding this spring.

People needn’t get too alarmed over the bumper crop of chipmunks because small mammal populations are prone to boom-and-bust cycles.