Thanks for your question.

I am inclined to say these are mice droppings. The primary reason for asserting this is that chipmunks are very discrete about their droppings. They typically bury them in their burrows. Mice do not. See:

https://hawxpestcontrol.com/how-to-identify-mouse-droppings/ - :~:text=Mouse droppings can be difficult,usually find them in groups.

https://www.maine.gov/dacf/php/gotpests/othercritters/factsheets/chipmunk-vt.pdf

Mice do most of their foraging at night whereas chipmunks do their foraging during the day. So here’s a quick and easy experiment for you to do. Early in the morning remove all droppings from your front porch. If your porch is still devoid of droppings towards late afternoon, chipmunks are probably not the culprit. If by the next morning, droppings are present, think mice!!

If mice are present, relocation would not be effective. Most mice are breeding machines. They can have several litters in a single season. An individual litter can exceed six offspring. Young mice become sexually mature within a few weeks after birth. Trapping is the only way to make a possible dent in their population.

With respect to chipmunks, I don’t believe they are a protected species in Minnesota. Before taking action against them, you may want to consult the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources:

https://www.dnr.state.mn.us/contact/index.html

Good luck. Thanks for consulting us.

Thanks for your response.

You make a good point. From an appearance standpoint, there is some similarity with mouse droppings. Moreover bats are active at night as would be mice. There are two fundamental differences.

Mouse droppings are rather hard whereas bat droppings are more fragile and will crumble with the slightest amount of pressure. Just use some type of implement (pencil, ruler, whatever) and see if an individual pellet resists pressure (mice) or is easily crushed (bats).

Additionally, mice droppings will have little if any smell. Bat droppings will have a strong smell, often with a hint of ammonia. This may or may not be something you will want to explore!

See:

https://www.animaltrappersinorlando.com/what-does-bat-feces-look-like/ - :~:text=They are dark in color,texture when touched or disturbed.

Thanks again for consulting us.