Squirrels interesting facts

Squirrels interesting facts
First of all, we love these small tree animals, with a very cute bushy tail and sharp teeth. They are fast, really intelligent and always alert! It is fun to watch them and their amusing gestures. Following are some facts about them. There are more than 300 species of squirrels in 7 families. Squirrels are of different types such as ground squirrels, tree squirrels, flying squirrels and fox squirrels. Squirrels are seen in different colors such as gray, white, red and black. They have a life span of 5 to 7 years. Squirrels have not evolved since the last 37 years. It is an amusing sight to watch them jump here and there. Here is the scientific classification of squirrels.

Squirrels start mating when they are a year old. Male is the cleaner sex in squirrels. A male squirrel makes a sneezing sound when ready to mate. The mating season for them mostly begins in the late winters where they are most active. Majority of the squirrels mate twice a year. The female squirrel gives birth to 4 or 8 offspring.

A squirrel stands motionless on two feet when it senses danger. The tail helps the squirrel to balance its body while jumping.

Squirrels have such sharp teeth that they can break the hard shells of nuts, and also chew the electric wires. They sharpen their teeth by chewing branches of trees. Their teeth continue to grow.

Squirrels are mostly vegetarian but sometimes they do eat small insects, small birds or bird eggs. They also love seeds, tree buds, berries, etc.

In addition, a squirrel has a very large appetite. In a week’s time, it eats a quantity of food that is almost equal to its body weight. Their method of food storage is interesting. They collect nuts and bury them in the soil as a provision for winters and look for them when they need food the most. Squirrels remember where they have buried these nuts as their memory increases by 15% in the fall. Now that’s another interesting fact about squirrels. As the squirrels have a habit of storing their food (nuts and seeds) in the ground, many trees have grown from them. Ground squirrels dig into the ground to hide and preserve their food.

Meanwhile, there are squirrels that are black, white, gray, brown and red. Many of the Americans have not seen a black squirrel. Black and gray squirrels are the friendliest squirrels once they get used to human beings. These squirrels are mostly found in Ontario, Canada.

However, the flying squirrel does not literally fly, but due to its skin flaps that join the front and hind legs, it can glide from one tree to another. The flying squirrel has a flat furry tail that is used while gliding. Flying squirrels are active mostly at dusk and dawn. Flying squirrels are mostly brown or black in color and have a white furred belly.

Squirrels interesting facts

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