Urocitellus

Urocitellus is a genus of ground squirrel in the tribe Marmotini of the squirrel family Sciuridae, containing fourteen currently identified species. Its members were formerly classified within the genus Spermophilus, until DNA sequencing showed that genus was paraphyletic relative to prairie dogs and marmots and Urocitellus was separated as an independent genus. Most species inhabit northern and western North America, ranging from California and Minnesota through the northwestern United States and western Canada; exceptions are the Arctic ground squirrel, found on both sides of the Bering Strait, and the long-tailed ground squirrel, found only in Asia. The genus name derives from the Latin uro, meaning tail, and citellus, meaning ground squirrel.