European Souslik
The European Souslik or European Ground Squirrel is a rodent and a member of the squirrel family. It and the Spotted Souslik or Speckled Ground Squirrel are the only European representatives of the ground squirrels.
The European Souslik is about the size of a Brown Rat with an adult measuring 8 to 9 inches with a weight of 8.5 to 12 ounces. It has a slender build with a short bushy tail. The short dense fur is yellowish-grey tinged with red and with a few indistinct pale and dark spots on the back. The underside is pale with a sandy-coloured abdomen. The large dark eyes are placed high on the head and the small, rounded ears are hidden in the fur. The legs are powerful with sharp claws which are well adapted for digging. Males are slightly larger than females but otherwise they look alike. The European Souslik could be confused with the Spotted Souslik which is found in Poland, Romania, Russia, Belarus and Ukraine but the Spotted Souslik has dark brown fur spotted with white and a thin tail and lives in areas with coarser vegetation.
The European Souslik can be found in central and south east Europe where its range is divided by the Carpathian Mountains. Its range includes land at altitudes of up to 2,600 feet in south Ukraine, Austria, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Greece, Romania, Bulgaria, Macedonia and north as far as Poland. It has become locally extinct in Germany and Poland but was reintroduced successfully into the wild in Poland in 2005.
The European Souslik has very specific habitat requirements. It needs short turf in order to dig its tunnel system. It finds this on the steppe grasslands and in pasture and on sports fields, parks and lawns. These conditions are lost when changes in agricultural practice convert grassland into arable land and forest or grazing ceases and the grass grows coarse and scrubland develops. Other places with short vegetation that sometimes provides suitable habitat are railway embankments and road cuttings and verges.
The European Souslik is listed as being "Vulnerable" by the IUCN in its Red List since the population trend is downward. It is believed that over the last 10 years the population has decreased by more than 30%. The main threats to the European Souslik are the conversion of grassland and pasture to cultivated fields or to forestry and the abandonment of grassland and its reversion to unsuitable tall grass meadows and bushy habitats. Urbanization and road building have sometimes fragmented communities and prevented recolonisation of empty sites.
The European Souslik is a colonial animal and it is mainly diurnal. It excavates a branching system of tunnels up to 7 feet deep with several entrances. During the winter it stops up the entrances to its burrow and hibernates in a nest of dry vegetation. Each individual occupies a separate chamber and during this period the body temperature drops to 2°C and the heart rate slows to a few beats per minute. During hibernation, it may wake up briefly for a few days and uses up the fat reserves accumulated during the summer. Hibernation generally lasts from September to March.
After emerging from hibernation in the spring, mating takes place during April or May. The gestation period is about 26 days and 5 to 8 young are born in a chamber deep in the burrow. They are naked and blind and their eyes open at about 4 weeks old. The female feeds them for 6 weeks and soon after that they are ready to leave the burrow. They reach maturity the following spring and may live for 8 to 10 years.
The European Souslik has a shrill alarm call that will cause all other individuals in the vicinity to dive for cover and when it is out in the open it often sits upright and looks around for predators. These include the Weasel, Fox, domestic cat and some species of birds of prey.
The European Souslik feeds on grasses, other plants, flowers, seeds, cultivated crops, insects and occasionally the eggs of ground nesting birds or their chicks.
Date: 13th May 2018
Location: Tsenovo, Ruse Province, Bulgaria
The European Souslik is about the size of a Brown Rat with an adult measuring 8 to 9 inches with a weight of 8.5 to 12 ounces. It has a slender build with a short bushy tail. The short dense fur is yellowish-grey tinged with red and with a few indistinct pale and dark spots on the back. The underside is pale with a sandy-coloured abdomen. The large dark eyes are placed high on the head and the small, rounded ears are hidden in the fur. The legs are powerful with sharp claws which are well adapted for digging. Males are slightly larger than females but otherwise they look alike. The European Souslik could be confused with the Spotted Souslik which is found in Poland, Romania, Russia, Belarus and Ukraine but the Spotted Souslik has dark brown fur spotted with white and a thin tail and lives in areas with coarser vegetation.
The European Souslik can be found in central and south east Europe where its range is divided by the Carpathian Mountains. Its range includes land at altitudes of up to 2,600 feet in south Ukraine, Austria, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Greece, Romania, Bulgaria, Macedonia and north as far as Poland. It has become locally extinct in Germany and Poland but was reintroduced successfully into the wild in Poland in 2005.
The European Souslik has very specific habitat requirements. It needs short turf in order to dig its tunnel system. It finds this on the steppe grasslands and in pasture and on sports fields, parks and lawns. These conditions are lost when changes in agricultural practice convert grassland into arable land and forest or grazing ceases and the grass grows coarse and scrubland develops. Other places with short vegetation that sometimes provides suitable habitat are railway embankments and road cuttings and verges.
The European Souslik is listed as being "Vulnerable" by the IUCN in its Red List since the population trend is downward. It is believed that over the last 10 years the population has decreased by more than 30%. The main threats to the European Souslik are the conversion of grassland and pasture to cultivated fields or to forestry and the abandonment of grassland and its reversion to unsuitable tall grass meadows and bushy habitats. Urbanization and road building have sometimes fragmented communities and prevented recolonisation of empty sites.
The European Souslik is a colonial animal and it is mainly diurnal. It excavates a branching system of tunnels up to 7 feet deep with several entrances. During the winter it stops up the entrances to its burrow and hibernates in a nest of dry vegetation. Each individual occupies a separate chamber and during this period the body temperature drops to 2°C and the heart rate slows to a few beats per minute. During hibernation, it may wake up briefly for a few days and uses up the fat reserves accumulated during the summer. Hibernation generally lasts from September to March.
After emerging from hibernation in the spring, mating takes place during April or May. The gestation period is about 26 days and 5 to 8 young are born in a chamber deep in the burrow. They are naked and blind and their eyes open at about 4 weeks old. The female feeds them for 6 weeks and soon after that they are ready to leave the burrow. They reach maturity the following spring and may live for 8 to 10 years.
The European Souslik has a shrill alarm call that will cause all other individuals in the vicinity to dive for cover and when it is out in the open it often sits upright and looks around for predators. These include the Weasel, Fox, domestic cat and some species of birds of prey.
The European Souslik feeds on grasses, other plants, flowers, seeds, cultivated crops, insects and occasionally the eggs of ground nesting birds or their chicks.
Date: 13th May 2018
Location: Tsenovo, Ruse Province, Bulgaria
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Also in: Bulgaria
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