Information About Gray Squirrels
The "National Audubon Society Field Guide to Mammals" states that the gray squirrel (Sciurus carolinensis) is the only large squirrel species in the northeastern United States. The gray squirrel is active year round, eschewing hibernation in favor of hunting for food, even in the snow. The gray squirrel is a common mammal in much of its range and is especially adept at raiding bird feeders as it looks for a meal.
Other People Are Reading
-
Identification
-
The gray squirrel has a long bushy tail. The gray squirrel is a gray color on its upper parts with a lighter gray on its undersides. A reddish brown under-fur is often visible on the head, back, feet and shoulders. The tail of this squirrel is bushy, flat and often tipped with silvery hairs. In some parts of its range, such as in Canada, the gray squirrel will have a burnt orange colored tail and belly, while a black phase of squirrel is not uncommon. The gray squirrel, being a rodent, has five toes on its hind feet and four toes on its front.
Size
-
The average length of a gray squirrel is between 16 and 21 inches, with much of this number comprised by the tail, which varies between 8 and 10 inches in length. The typical gray squirrel is from 2.5 to 3 inches high at the shoulder. Gray squirrels weigh between 14 and 25 ounces, with the male being the larger sex.
-
Geography
-
The range of the gray squirrel extends from southern regions of Nova Scotia, Quebec and Ontario in Canada, to the south as far as Florida. The westward border of the mammal's range is in states such as Minnesota, Kansas and Texas. The gray squirrel also now exists in Washington State and British Columbia after a successful introduction, as well as South Africa and Great Britain. Gray squirrels spend the majority of their time in trees, where they will construct a nest of twigs and leaves.
Diet
-
The varied diet of a gray squirrel allows the animal to thrive in many different ecosystems. Gray squirrels will eat the buds of trees in spring, the seeds of trees in the summer and the nuts of trees in fall and winter. Among their favorite nuts is the acorn, the hickory nut, the beechnut, the walnut and the butternut. In the winter, gray squirrels use their excellent sense of smell to find the nuts that they buried during the fall months in the ground. The squirrel can detect the scent of the nut through a foot of snow. Those nuts not found will sometimes germinate and form new trees. Gray squirrels will also devour insects such as caterpillars, bird eggs and sometimes even a baby bird.
Function
-
The tail of the gray squirrel has many functions, according to Who's Who Hinterland. One important job of the tail is to give the squirrel a sort of balancing rudder as it leaps about in the trees from one limb to the next. The tail can be a source of shade from the sun in hot weather as the squirrel can bring it up over its body; likewise, the tail may provide some warmth in the chill. Gray squirrel's can signal their mood to others of their species with movements of the tail and the tail can sometimes pull away the attention of a predator for a split second, allowing the rodent to make an escape.
-
References
- Photo Credit squirrel image by Alison Bowden from Fotolia.com Gray squirrel image by Lucy Cherniak from Fotolia.com
