Squirrels gain weight to stay warm during the winter months.
:)
September 23, 2015
September 22, 2015
September 21, 2015
Squirrely Fact #28
Squirrels use their tail as a blanket when it gets cold, and as an umbrella when it rains or snows.
Weekly Squirrel- The Flying Squirrel
This week's squirrel is... the Flying Squirrel (Pteromyini)!
Description
The Flying Squirrel is usually silvery grey to brown in color. Their underside is always white. Their head is brown, and they have huge, round eyes so they can see better at night. They have a furry flap of skin in between their fore- and hind paws, so that they can glide, hence their name, the Flying Squirrel. They are usually 8-12 inches long, from tail to nose. Sometimes they are called Gliders or Flyers.
Range
The Flying Squirrel is classified by two different types, depending on where it lives. The Southern Flyer lives in the eastern U.S., while the Northern Flyer lives in Canada, the northwestern U.S., and southeastern Alaska. They like to live in deciduous and coniferous forests. They make their dens in snags, nest boxes, abandoned woodpecker holes, and abandoned squirrel and bird nests.
Diet
Flying squirrels are omnivores, meaning they eat both plants and animals. The Flyer's diet includes: Seeds, nuts, fungi, fruit, and insects. Southern Flying Squirrels also eat eggs, birds, and carrion (personally, I like the Northern Flyers better- they don't eat that stuff). If you set out some sunflower seeds and wait until night, you may be able to find a Flying Squirrel, if any live in the area.
Behavior
The Flying Squirrel is nocturnal, and is only out at night. They can glide over 150 ft. To steer during their flight, they move their legs. By moving their right leg down, they go right, and vice versa. Predators of Flying Squirrels include owls, hawks, and climbing mammals (such as the domestic cat). Northern Flying Squirrels mate once per year and Southerns mate twice. The babies are born blind, furless, and deaf, and stay with their mothers for two months. They are not endangered, although you probably don't see them often. There is one subspecies of the Northern Flying squirrel that is endangered due to habitat loss.
Flying Squirrel leaping and landing
Some people keep flyers as pets! This one is wearing
the customary acorn hat
We humans like the flying squirrel's gliding abilities so
much that we have engineered a Wingsuit, so that we can
be one with the squirrels!
Check out this video of someone that has a Flyer as a Pet!
September 20, 2015
September 18, 2015
Squirrely Fact #26
Chipmunks are in the same family as squirrels
(Scuridae)
Didn't know that, did you?
Squirrely Fact #25
Unlike what most people say, Squirrels don't hibernate. In fact, during the Winter they stay in their hollow keeping warm with their buddies, only venturing out to collect some of the food they have stored up.
Announcing: Catch Up Days!
So, you all know how I haven't been very up to date with all of the posts? Well, I am now announcing: Catch Up Days! These will be days when I have a lot of free time and good internet. It will probably only be on Fridays, Saturdays, or Sundays. I will be posting ANYTHING, including Weekly squirrels that have been missed and a whole lot of Squirrely facts! So get ready to learn, because today's going to be nuts!
September 2, 2015
Weekly Squirrel- The Indian Giant Purple
This weeks squirrel is... the Indian Giant Purple (Ratufa Indica)!
Description
The Indian Giant Purple is, as their name says, purple. Their back is varying shades of purple and their legs and underside are yellow/orange. The tip of their tail is yellow, and they have a thin yellow stripe going down it. Their face is usually the same color as their underside. They are very big (Hence the word "Giant" in their name). Their body is about a foot long, and their tail is 2 feet long.
Range
The Indian Giant Purple squirrel has also been called the Malabar Giant Squirrel, for the reason that it mainly lives in the Malabar Region of India. Its name looks like this: शेकरू in Hindi, which is one of the many languages of India. The Indian Giant Squirrel lives in many different, spread out regions in India. Each region of these squirrels has a different color scheme. In Gavi, Pathanamthitta district, Kerala, they are a black-purple color. They like to live in deciduous, mixed deciduous, and moist evergreen forests, which are native to India. They will live as far North as the Satpura hill range of Madhya Pradesh.
Diet
The Indian Giant Purple's diet consists of multiple varieties of fruit, depending on where they live. They are omnivores, and also eat bugs and small animals.
Behavior
The Indian Giant Purple is a diurnal (meaning it is up and about during the day) and arboreal (tree-dwelling), like most squirrels. It hops from one tree to the next with leaps reaching the distance of up to 6 meters (20 feet). They like tall trees with lots of branches for their nests. Their main predators are the Birds of Prey and the Leopard. Like nearly all squirrels, the Indian Giant Purple is born hairless, sightless, and deaf.
The Indian Giant Purple is Various Colors
Depending on Where it Lives
The Indian Giant Purple is HUGE!
Some People Keep These Magnificent
Creatures as Pets!
Indian Giant Purples Are Great Climbers!
Squirrely Fact #24
What day is it?
HUMP DAY!
Happy Hump Day!
Hump Day is ALWAYS celebrated
on WEDNESDAYS!
Now, go annoy some people by
asking them what day it is.
September 1, 2015
Squirrely fact #23
Squirrel Poem
By Libby Adams
The squirrel,
The squirrel,
In the tree,
Look at him,
How CUTE is he?
He looks around,
Then stares at me
He waves his tail,
Goes up the tree
Squirrels are so cute,
Don't you agree?
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