Squirrels are a diverse group of small to medium-sized rodents. Squirrels are native to the Americas, Eurasia, and Africa and have recently been introduced to Australia. The earliest known squirrels date from the Eocene and are most closely related to living rodent families’ mountain beaver and dormouse. The majority of squirrels are omnivores, meaning they eat anything they come across. Because many species of squirrels live in trees, they frequently find nuts. They also consume seeds, berries, and pine cones. They occasionally consume bird eggs and insects. Have a look at these 33 Interesting facts about this cute mammal Squirrel.
- A squirrel comes under the category of small mammals and is part of the Sciuridae family.
- They lose more than 74 percent of their nuts they hide.
- The word squirrel is derived from a Greek word. It comes from the word skiouros, skia meaning shadow, and oura meaning “tail.”
- Squirrels are omnivores animals and usually feed on both vegetarian as well as meat.
- Male squirrels are referred to as boars, and females squirrels are called as sows.
- It’s been estimated that 100 million trees are accidentally planted by squirrels every year. They do this by searching for nuts and seeds by burying them under the soil.
- The mating season of squirrels happens once between December and February.
- Depending on the species gestation period of squirrels have a gestation period of 18 to 44 days.
- A group of squirrels is called a scurry.
- Hibernating ground squirrels’ blood has four times the amount of ascorbic acid (Vitamin C) than their blood contains when they are not hibernating.
- Squirrels have a keen sense of smell; they can smell food under a foot of snow and might dig a tunnel to grab it.
- When squirrels are born, they are born blind.
- During every autumn, they start bulking up eating many insects, nuts, fruits, and vegetables to help themselves survive in winters. They gain weight which helps them to insulate in winters and burn fat when food is scarce during the chilly season.
- Squirrels are found on every continent of the planet except Antarctica.
- They have four front teeth and which never stops growing.
- Squirrels have a lifespan of 6 to 18 years, Depending on species to species.
- There are about 200 species of squirrels which are further categorized into three main categories tree squirrels, flying squirrels, and ground squirrels.
- Out of these 200 species, about 14 are counted as endangered.
- 21 January is celebrated as squirrel appreciation day.
- Squirrels can run at the speed of 20 mph(32 km per hour).
- They can be 23-30 cm long and can weigh anywhere around 400-600 grams.
- The black giant squirrel is one of the largest species of squirrels in the world. They can be 35-50 cm long, but their tail is another 50-60 cm. They can weigh up to 1.5 kg.
- African pygmy squirrels are the shortest species of squirrels in the world. They measure just about 12-14 cm in total length and weigh just 15-18 g.
- It’s been documented that squirrels do recognize humans. They recognize that some people are not dangerous to them and are a good source of food.
- The squirrels like creatures were first originated in China about 200 million years ago.
- If squirrels found an abandoned squirrel baby, they will adopt that baby.
- Squirrels do communicate with each other by producing soft chucking sounds.
- They can eat food per week equivalent to their body weight.
- Squirrels can fall or jump from a height of 30 meters without hurting themselves an inch.
- They can see what is happening behind them as they have peripheral vision, as their eyes are big and are aligned in such a way that they can see behind them.
- Flying squirrels in actual don’t fly; they glide! They have special flaps under the skin between their arms and chest, which helps them drag in the air like a parachute or a wingsuit.
- Squirrels can hear really high frequencies, which is about 25000 hertz.
- Squirrels have good brains and can easily navigate through narrow passages in search of food. They even walk or run zig-zag to avoid their predators.
