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The animals on the cover of Learning HTTP/2 are golden-mantled ground squirrels (Callospermophilus lateralis). They are part of the Sciuridae family and are abundant in the western portion of North America where they can survive in forests, meadows, and dry flatland environments.

The golden-mantled ground squirrel can be easily confused with a chipmunk due to their similar appearances. Both have black stripes that run down their back, but those stripes do not reach the face on the squirrels. The squirrels are also larger in size (ranging from 9 to 12 inches long) and weigh between 4 and 14 ounces. The squirrels have longer tails than their chipmunk brethren, and white rings of fur around their eyes. They get their name from the brownish fur atop their heads.

Golden-mantled ground squirrels are omnivorous and collect food in pockets in their mouths. They need to store up enough fat to survive hibernation in the winter. Their diet includes seeds, fruit, insects, fungi, bird eggs, and even small veterbrates. They will save some of this food for when they wake in the spring time and emerge from their hibernation burrows.

Breeding for the golden-mantled ground squirrel typically takes place during the spring months. Males usually emerge from hibernation before females, so breeding won’t start until both parties are available. Gestation lasts around 28 days with females giving birth to hairless litters of around 5 babies. Pups will start to wean and become independent three to six weeks after birth.

Many of the animals on O’Reilly covers are endangered; all of them are important to the world. To learn more about how you can help, go to animals.oreilly.com.

The cover image is from Pictorial Museum of Animated Nature. The cover fonts are URW Typewriter and Guardian Sans. The text font is Adobe Minion Pro; the heading font is Adobe Myriad Condensed; and the code font is Dalton Maag’s Ubuntu Mono.