Red Squirrel
The Red Squirrel is an arboreal, omnivorous rodent but unlike some other rodents it is not a direct threat to humans.
The coat of the Red Squirrel varies in colour with the time of year and location and there are several different coat colour morphs ranging from black to red. Red coats are most common in the UK whilst in other parts of Europe and Asia different coat colours co-exist within populations. The underside of the Red Squirrel is always white-cream in colour. The Red Squirrel sheds its coat 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. A lighter, redder overall coat colour, along with the ear-tufts (in adults) and smaller size, distinguish the Red Squirrel from the Grey Squirrel.
The Red Squirrel has a typical head and body length of 7.5 to 9 inches, a tail length of 5.9 to 7.9 inches and a weight of 8.8 to 12 ounces. Males and females are the same size. In comparison the Grey Squirrel has a head and body length of 9.5 to 12 inches and a weight of 14 ounces to 1.8 pounds.
The long tail helps the Red Squirrel to balance and steer when jumping from tree to tree and running along branches and may also keep it warm during sleep. Like most tree squirrels, it has sharp, curved claws to enable it to climb and descend broad tree trunks, thin branches and even house walls and its strong hind legs enable it to leap gaps between trees.
The Red Squirrel occupies boreal, coniferous woods in northern Europe and Siberia, preferring Scots Pine, Norway Spruce and Siberian Pine. In western and southern Europe they are found in broad-leaved woods where the mixture of tree and shrub species provides a better year round source of food. In most of the UK and in Italy, broad-leaved woodlands are now less suitable due to the better competitive feeding strategy of introduced Grey Squirrels.
The Red Squirrel makes a drey (nest) out of twigs in a branch-fork, forming a domed structure which is lined with moss, leaves, grass and bark. Tree hollows and woodpecker holes are also used. The Red Squirrel is generally a solitary animal and it is shy and reluctant to share food with others. However, outside the breeding season and particularly in winter, several Red Squirrels may share a drey to keep warm. Social organization is based on dominance hierarchies within 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.
Mating can occur in late winter during February and March and in summer between June and July. During mating, males detect females that are in œstrus by an odour that they produce and, although there is no courtship, the male will chase the female for up to an hour prior to mating. Usually multiple males will chase a single female until the dominant male, usually the largest in the group, mates with the female. Males and females will mate multiple times with many partners. Females must reach a minimum body mass before they enter œstrus and heavy females on average produce more young. If food is scarce breeding may be delayed. Gestation is about 38 to 39 days. Typically a female will produce her first litter in her second year. Up to 2 litters a year per female are possible. Each litter usually contains 3 or 4 young although as many as 6 may be born. The young are looked after by the mother alone and are born helpless, blind and deaf. Their body is covered by hair at 21 days, their eyes and ears open after 3 to 4 weeks and they develop all their teeth by 42 days. Juvenile Red Squirrels can eat solids around 40 days following birth and from that point they can leave the nest on their own to find food. However, they still suckle from their mother until weaning occurs at 8 to 10 weeks.
The Red Squirrel eats mostly the seeds of trees, neatly stripping conifer cones to get at the seeds within, fungi, nuts (especially hazelnuts but also beech and chestnuts), berries and young shoots. More rarely, it may also eat bird eggs or nestlings. Excess food is put into caches and is either buried or left in nooks or holes in trees and then eaten when food is scarce. Between 60% and 80% of its active period may be spent foraging and feeding. The active period for the Red Squirrel is in the morning and in the late afternoon and evening. No territories are claimed between Red Squirrels and the feeding areas of individuals overlap considerably.
Red Squirrels that survive their first winter have a life expectancy of 3 years. Individuals may reach 7 years of age and 10 years of age in captivity. Around 75 to 85% of juveniles die during their first winter and mortality is approximately 50% during winters following the first. Arboreal predators include small mammals such as the Pine Marten, Wild Cat and Stoat and birds including owls and raptors.The Red Fox, cats and dogs can also prey on the Red Squirrel when it is on the ground. Humans influence the population size and mortality of the Red Squirrel by destroying or altering habitats, by causing road casualties and by introducing non-native populations of the north American Grey Squirrel.
The Grey Squirrel and the Red Squirrel are not directly antagonistic and violent conflict between these species is not a factor in the decline in Red Squirrel populations. However, the Grey Squirrel appears to be able to decrease the Red Squirrel population due to several reasons, in particular the transmission of a disease, the squirrel parapoxvirus, that does not appear to affect their health but will often kill Red Squirrels.
The Red Squirrel is protected in most of Europe although it is listed as being of "Least Concern" on the IUCN Red List. Although not thought to be under in much of its range, the Red Squirrel has nevertheless drastically reduced in number in the UK, especially after the Grey Squirrel was introduced from north America in the 1870s. Fewer than 140,000 individuals are thought to be left, approximately 85% of which are in Scotland with other populations on the Isle of Wight and Brownsea Island, around Formby on Merseyside, in various other areas in northern England and on Anglesey in Wales.
Date: 2nd June 2009
Location: Valtavaara area near Kuusamo, Pohjois-Pohjanmaa, Finland
The coat of the Red Squirrel varies in colour with the time of year and location and there are several different coat colour morphs ranging from black to red. Red coats are most common in the UK whilst in other parts of Europe and Asia different coat colours co-exist within populations. The underside of the Red Squirrel is always white-cream in colour. The Red Squirrel sheds its coat 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. A lighter, redder overall coat colour, along with the ear-tufts (in adults) and smaller size, distinguish the Red Squirrel from the Grey Squirrel.
The Red Squirrel has a typical head and body length of 7.5 to 9 inches, a tail length of 5.9 to 7.9 inches and a weight of 8.8 to 12 ounces. Males and females are the same size. In comparison the Grey Squirrel has a head and body length of 9.5 to 12 inches and a weight of 14 ounces to 1.8 pounds.
The long tail helps the Red Squirrel to balance and steer when jumping from tree to tree and running along branches and may also keep it warm during sleep. Like most tree squirrels, it has sharp, curved claws to enable it to climb and descend broad tree trunks, thin branches and even house walls and its strong hind legs enable it to leap gaps between trees.
The Red Squirrel occupies boreal, coniferous woods in northern Europe and Siberia, preferring Scots Pine, Norway Spruce and Siberian Pine. In western and southern Europe they are found in broad-leaved woods where the mixture of tree and shrub species provides a better year round source of food. In most of the UK and in Italy, broad-leaved woodlands are now less suitable due to the better competitive feeding strategy of introduced Grey Squirrels.
The Red Squirrel makes a drey (nest) out of twigs in a branch-fork, forming a domed structure which is lined with moss, leaves, grass and bark. Tree hollows and woodpecker holes are also used. The Red Squirrel is generally a solitary animal and it is shy and reluctant to share food with others. However, outside the breeding season and particularly in winter, several Red Squirrels may share a drey to keep warm. Social organization is based on dominance hierarchies within 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.
Mating can occur in late winter during February and March and in summer between June and July. During mating, males detect females that are in œstrus by an odour that they produce and, although there is no courtship, the male will chase the female for up to an hour prior to mating. Usually multiple males will chase a single female until the dominant male, usually the largest in the group, mates with the female. Males and females will mate multiple times with many partners. Females must reach a minimum body mass before they enter œstrus and heavy females on average produce more young. If food is scarce breeding may be delayed. Gestation is about 38 to 39 days. Typically a female will produce her first litter in her second year. Up to 2 litters a year per female are possible. Each litter usually contains 3 or 4 young although as many as 6 may be born. The young are looked after by the mother alone and are born helpless, blind and deaf. Their body is covered by hair at 21 days, their eyes and ears open after 3 to 4 weeks and they develop all their teeth by 42 days. Juvenile Red Squirrels can eat solids around 40 days following birth and from that point they can leave the nest on their own to find food. However, they still suckle from their mother until weaning occurs at 8 to 10 weeks.
The Red Squirrel eats mostly the seeds of trees, neatly stripping conifer cones to get at the seeds within, fungi, nuts (especially hazelnuts but also beech and chestnuts), berries and young shoots. More rarely, it may also eat bird eggs or nestlings. Excess food is put into caches and is either buried or left in nooks or holes in trees and then eaten when food is scarce. Between 60% and 80% of its active period may be spent foraging and feeding. The active period for the Red Squirrel is in the morning and in the late afternoon and evening. No territories are claimed between Red Squirrels and the feeding areas of individuals overlap considerably.
Red Squirrels that survive their first winter have a life expectancy of 3 years. Individuals may reach 7 years of age and 10 years of age in captivity. Around 75 to 85% of juveniles die during their first winter and mortality is approximately 50% during winters following the first. Arboreal predators include small mammals such as the Pine Marten, Wild Cat and Stoat and birds including owls and raptors.The Red Fox, cats and dogs can also prey on the Red Squirrel when it is on the ground. Humans influence the population size and mortality of the Red Squirrel by destroying or altering habitats, by causing road casualties and by introducing non-native populations of the north American Grey Squirrel.
The Grey Squirrel and the Red Squirrel are not directly antagonistic and violent conflict between these species is not a factor in the decline in Red Squirrel populations. However, the Grey Squirrel appears to be able to decrease the Red Squirrel population due to several reasons, in particular the transmission of a disease, the squirrel parapoxvirus, that does not appear to affect their health but will often kill Red Squirrels.
The Red Squirrel is protected in most of Europe although it is listed as being of "Least Concern" on the IUCN Red List. Although not thought to be under in much of its range, the Red Squirrel has nevertheless drastically reduced in number in the UK, especially after the Grey Squirrel was introduced from north America in the 1870s. Fewer than 140,000 individuals are thought to be left, approximately 85% of which are in Scotland with other populations on the Isle of Wight and Brownsea Island, around Formby on Merseyside, in various other areas in northern England and on Anglesey in Wales.
Date: 2nd June 2009
Location: Valtavaara area near Kuusamo, Pohjois-Pohjanmaa, Finland
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Also in: North Finland and north Norway - May and June 2009
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