SQUIRRELS

There are nearly 400 different species of squirrel-like rodent found in the world today. These animals were capable to adapt and colonise all over the world.

Fossil rodents  found date back to some 60 million years. The primitive squirrel-like animals known as paramyids

The squirrel-like rodents nowadays ranging in seize from a mouse to beavers.

All squirrels hold their food in their front feet sitting on their hind haunches.   Their long front incisors grow constantly throughout their lives. It is know that they hide their food and then forget therefore they unintentional sowing seeds and it will grow into trees or bushes.

Squirrels eat mainly nuts and seeds. It is also known that they eat other plants material, fungi, insects, birds’ eggs, young birds and small reptiles.

The mountain beaver living along the northern Pacific coast of North America is the closest descendant of these early rodents. Many of the squirrel-like rodents descended from 25-30 million years ago. The terrestrial squirrel, it is assumed, appeared later than this.

There are seven families of squirrel-like rodents. They are the squirrels, beavers, the mountain beaver, pocket gophers, scaly-tailed squirrels, pocket mice, kangaroo rats and springhares.

Their only claims to be one of the families are a primitive arrangement of the jaw muscles.

The squirrel family is the largest and most diverse of all mammals. It is also the only group which is active during the day. The squirrel family also includes ground squirrels, tree squirrels, flying squirrels as well as the family of chipmunks, prairie dogs, marmots and the woodchuck.

The habitats range from lush tropical forests to temperate woodlands, from high mountains to open grassland and deserts.  Their homes are to be found from treetops branches to the burrows of 4m underground.

RED SQUIRRELS

The red squirrel is well known across Europe. After years of decline it has now made a come-back in its numbers. For many years the introduction of the grey from America was blamed but recently it was discovered that a virus was the cause. Now, since the red squirrel increase its number again the grey squirrel is in decline. To the joy of the people because the grey squirrel never got their love as the red squirrel.

GREY SQUIRRELS

The grey squirrel is found in the woodlands of eastern North America and since it was introduced in the 19^th century also in Britain and South Africa.

The grey squirrel builds several nests (dreys) in the branches or hole in trees. It uses them randomly. In winter they are often shared for warmth.

TREE SQUIRRELS

Tree Squirrels live mostly among the branches of trees. They have sharp claws to climb up and down the trees and bushy tails which give them both a balance and to steer as they leap from branch to branch. The tails also serves as a balance as they bound over the ground and at night it wraps around their body to keep them warm. The animals spread over the world and large numbers are found in Central America, Mexico and Southeast Asia.

They make their nest, called drey amongst branches. Sometimes they make bird nests larger with twigs and line them with grasses.

FLYING SQUIRRELS

Flying squirrels are capable to glide up to 100m between trees. To enable them to do so they have a furred folds of skin along the sides of their bodies which spread out to act like parachutes as they launch themselves into the air. They mostly live in the tropical forests of Southeast Asia.

GROUND SQUIRRELS

Ground squirrels look very much like their tree-dwelling cousins. However they have shorter ears and shorter, less bushy tails. They mostly live underground and therefore developed shorter, sturdier legs. especially their front legs. They also have powerful feet and large claws to scrape the earth.

The desert-living ground squirrel developed hairs on their soles to enable them to move over hot  without being burned. Ground squirrels are found in open country through North America, Europe, Asia and Africa.