Squirrel

A squirrel is a small or medium-sized rodent of the family Sciuridae. more...

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In the English-speaking world, it commonly refers to members of this family's genera Sciurus and Tamiasciurus, which are tree squirrels that have large bushy tails, and are indigenous to Europe (but not Ireland), Asia and the Americas. Similar genera are found in Africa. The Sciuridae family also include flying squirrels, as well as ground squirrels such as the chipmunks, prairie dogs, and woodchucks. Members of the family Anomaluridae are sometimes misleadingly referred to as "scaly-tailed flying squirrels" although they are not closely related to the true squirrels.

Etymology

The word squirrel, first attested in 1327, comes from the Old French ésqurial, which itself comes from the Vulgar Latin word scuriolus (squirrel), a variant of the Latin sciurus. Sciurus comes from the Greek word skiouros, a compound of skia (σκιά; "shadow") and oura (ούρά; "tail"). Skiouros might be liberally translated as "That which makes a shade with its tail", or "That which sits in the shadow of its tail". The verb form (meaning "to hide or store") is first recorded in 1939.

Background

Common squirrels include the Fox Squirrel (S. niger); the Western Gray Squirrel (S. griseus); the Douglas Squirrel (Tamiasciurus douglasii); the American Red Squirrel T. hudsonicus; and the Eastern Grey Squirrel (S. carolinensis), of which the "Black Squirrel" is a variant.

Unlike rabbits or deer, squirrels cannot digest cellulose and must rely on foods rich in protein, carbohydrates, and fat. Early spring is the hardest time of year for squirrels, since buried nuts begin to sprout and are no longer available for the squirrel to eat, as well as new food sources have not become available yet. During these times squirrels rely heavily on the buds of trees, in particular, those of the Silver Maple. Squirrels are omnivores; they eat a wide variety of plant food, including nuts, seeds, conifer cones, fruits, fungi, and green vegetation, and they also eat insects, insect larvae, eggs, and even small birds, smaller mammals, frogs, and carrion. In tropical areas, these foods often replace nuts.

Ground and tree squirrels are typically diurnal, while flying squirrels tend to be nocturnal -- except for lactating flying squirrels and their offspring, who have a period of diurnality during the summer.

Read more at Wikipedia.org