Red Squirrel (Sciurus vulgaris)
Description
Coat colour varies with time of year and location. Red coats are most common in Great Britain, but can vary, particularly in the bushy tail, from deep red to very pale and almost white. The underside is always white-cream in colour. Red squirrels shed their coats twice a year, switching from a thinner summer coat to a thicker, darker winter coat with noticeably larger ear-tufts (a prominent distinguishing feature of this species) between August and November.
Behaviour
An animal of woodland, often favouring native pinewoods in Scotland but also at home in native broadleaved woodlands. Builds dreys in trees by laying down twigs to make a domed structure about 25 to 30 cm in diameter, then lining it with moss, leaves, grass and bark. The red squirrel is shy, solitary animal and is reluctant to share food with others. However, outside the breeding season and particularly in winter they sometimes share a drey to keep warm. Social organization is based on dominance hierarchies among and between sexes; although males are not necessarily dominant to females, the dominant animals tend to be larger and older than subordinate animals, and dominant males tend to have larger home ranges than subordinate males or females.
Size
Typical head-and-body length of 19 to 23 cm (7.5 to 9 in), a tail length of 15 to 20 cm (5.9 to 7.9 in) and a mass of 250 to 340 g (8.8 to 12 oz). Males and females are the same size.
Where to see them
Loch of the Lowes, Ayr Gorge Woodland, Falls of Clyde, Gight Wood. Also various locations within Strathspey area
When to see them
Can be seen all year round, but most active in spring, summer and autumn.
What they eat
Seeds, especially Scots pine but also larch and spruce. Also shoots and fruits of shrubs and trees, fungi, and sometimes birds' eggs.
Status
UK BAP Priority Species and on the SNH Species Framework list.
Distribution
Occur across much of the Palaearctic from the British Isles in the west, south to the Mediterranean, and in the Caucasus, where they were introduced, through to the southern Urals and Altai mountains in Russia in the North to central Mongolia and northeast China. They are also found on Sakhalin Island off the coast of Russia and in Hokkaido, the most northerly island of Japan.
Threats
Were persecuted to extinction in Britain historically before being reintroduced some time ago. Now the main threats are from habitat loss, and displacement through the indirect effects of incursion by the larger, North American grey squirrels which also carry squirrelpox virus which reds have very little immunity to.
Fascinating facts
Do not hibernate and store fungi in trees to eat over winter months. They do their best to put on weight in the autumn to help them through the winter when food is scarce. For females of breeding age this is especially important so that they will be in good condition to produce young.