Fox Squirrel (Sciurus niger) - Profile | Facts

(Last Updated On: April 15, 2021)

There are more than 280 different species of squirrel and the fox squirrel is one of them. This is not an aggressive kind of squirrel unless they do not aggressively need to defend their nests and food.

With the scientific name Sciurus niger, this squirrel has big eyes and bushy tails. It is also known as the eastern fox squirrel or Bryant’s fox squirrel and is considered the largest species of the native tree trunk in North America.

Fox Squirrel Sciurus niger profile and facts

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Distribution

The natural range of fox squirrel extends to most parts of the eastern United States, Canada, and European countries.

Habitat

Fox squirrel is often found in forested areas of 40 hectares or less, with open underground or with trees in urban areas.

These grow best in oak, hickory, walnut, pecan, and pine plants and preserve their nuts for the cold days of winter.

The ideal habitat is a small stand of large trees that are surrounded by farmland. The size and spacing of pine and oak are among the important features of the fox woodland habitat.

The fox squirrels have two types of shelter: the leaf nest and the thick of the tree. They can have two tree cavities or a tree cavity and a leaf nest.

In winter and overgrowth, nests are preferred for tree growth. When the Dan tree is scarce, leaf nests are used throughout the year.

Fox squirrel uses leaf nests or tree trunks for shelter and litter rearing.

Description

The size of the fox squirrel is 45 to 70 cm (17.7 to 27.6 inches), whereas the tail length is 20 to 33 cm (7.9 to 13.0 inches)

The weight of a mature fox squirrel is 500 to 1,000 grams (1.1 to 2.2 pounds).

There is no sexual haze in the size or appearance of the fox squirrel.

Individuals tend to be smaller in the west. Even the female is significantly smaller in size compared to the male.

In order to assist with climbing, the fox squirrel has sharp nails, stretched forearms, and abdominal muscles.

The fox squirrel has excellent visions and well-developed sensations of hearing and smell. These skills help them to avoid predators, and each food well.

They use scented marks to communicate with other fox squirrels.

Fox squirrels have sets of sensitive hairs in order to enable them to sense the environment.

Fox squirrels are found on the eyes and bottom of their eyes, on their chin and nose, and on each group.

The dental formula is 1.0.1.31.0.1.3। 2 = 20

Behavior

With their large eyes and sharp senses, the squirrels can easily skilfully climb trees and avoid predators.

The fox squirrels are strictly diurnal, non-territorial, and often spend more time in the ground than other tree squirrels.

They are still clever climbers. They build two kinds of homes called “dreys” depending on the season.

Fox Squirrel will form a cache of burial items, acorns, and almonds to eat later, particularly during winter when the amount of food is scarce.

Shelled foods are favorable because they are less likely to be spoiled than shellless foods, and fatty foods are valuable for their high energy density.

They are not particularly gregarious or intriguing, in fact, they are described as solitary and outstanding animals, only assembling during the breeding season.

They also make high-level whines when combining. When threatening another fox squirrel, the fox squirrel straightens its tail over the back and shakes it.

They are impressive jumpers, easily fifteen feet wide in the horizontal jump, and fall over twenty feet in a soft landing on a limb or trunk.

Color

The upper body part of the matured fox squirrel is brown-gray to brown-yellow, usually, with a brownish-orange lower part, it can be, however, a darker brown with blackface and tail with white bands in some other regions.

Diet

Fox squirrel lives on the nuts, tree trunks, insects, tubers, bulbs, roots, bird eggs, mast, buds, pine seeds, and spring-fall plants, acorn, fungi, agricultural crops such as corn, bookworms, soybeans, oats, walnut, corn, wheat, corn, oranges, avocados, strawberries, tomatoes, seeds of eucalyptus, tree trunks and flowers, butternuts, hazelnut cons, berries, wheat, eastern cottonwoods, insect larvae, honey locust, fruits, and bark.

Lifespan

In captivity, fox squirrels survive as many as 18 years, but in the wild, most fox squirrel dies before they become old, mostly by 12 years because of health issues, cold, and predators.

Reproduction

Males are bigger in size and are dominating females during breeding.

Female fox squirrels arrive in estrus in mid-December or early January, again in June.

They usually produce two liters a year; However, women of the year can produce only one.

Women mature sexually from 10 to 11 months of age and usually make their first litter when they are one year old.

Pregnancy occurs between 44 and 45 days. The first litters appear in late January; Most births take place between March and July.

The average litter size is 3 but can be less or more depending on the season and diet conditions.

They make the wooden next, leaf, or tree holes as warm and waterproof shelters. Similar thin platforms are built for summer litters and are often referred to as “cool beds.”

At birth, kittens are blind, dumb, deaf, naked, and helpless.

The eyes are opened at 4 to 5 weeks of age and the ears open at 6 weeks. Eastern fox squirrels are weaned within 12 to 14 weeks, but may not be self-supporting until 16 weeks.

Adolescents usually spread out in September or October but may refuse their first winter together or with their mother.

The outside world is full of danger for the juveniles, as they are susceptible to vulnerability to the cunning and mighty predators

Predators

Relatively few natural predators can capture regular adult fox squirrels because of their intelligence, speed, carefulness, use of senses, and safe hiding places.

Foxes, bobcats, Red-legged flute, red-headed thunderbolt, great horned owl, wild dogs, home dogs, wild cat, raccoons, opossums, rattlesnakes, and pine snakes, birds of prey, weasels, etc.

Fox Squirrel (Sciurus niger) – Profile | Facts | Description