More Than Just Squirrels

Distance Jumpers

In Singapore tree-dwelling plantain squirrels were seen jumping almost ten feet at a stretch.

Eastern ground squirrels have been noted to jump over 8 feet between a tree stump and a feeding platform.

The best at this feat are flying squirrels who have the gift of gliding and can cover distances of up to 295 feet in midair.

Best to Be Organized

In a study done at UC Berkley campus eastern fox squirrels were found to cache their nuts according to type. They were given a variety of nuts like hazelnuts, walnuts, pecans, and almonds. The squirrels hid each type of nut in a specific place. This organization is known as “spatial chunking” and it helps the squirrels remember where a specific nut can be found when they want to retrieve it.

Helping Trees Grow

Tree squirrels are among the most important animals when it comes to planting forests. Even though they are careful about where they bury their nuts some nuts can be forgotten. In those cases, acorns will sprout and more trees will begin to grow. Later the trees that were helped by the squirrel will provide more acorns for them to eat.

Helping Truffles Grow

Truffles can depend on the digestive system of the squirrels to survive. Truffles are mushrooms that grow below ground. These mushrooms depend on hungry animals such as squirrels to spread their spores to host plants in other places.

Northern flying squirrels in the forests of North America depend largely on buried fungi for their diets. Once they eat and poop out spores on the forest floor the fungi take hold forming a symbiotic relationship with the nearby tree roots.

Ability to Come Down a Tree Head First

Squirrels are among the few mammals that can come down a tree head-first. It is a known fact that most animals can't climb vertically down head-first. What makes it possible for squirrels to do this is that their back ankles can rotate 180 degrees, turning their paws all the way around so they're able to grip the tree trunk to descend.

Towns Vying for the Title – Home of the White Squirrel

The towns looking for this title include Kenton, Tennessee, Marionville, Missouri, Brevard, North Carolina (the location of the annual White Squirrel Festival) and Exeter, Ontario Canada.

However, the city with the highest number of albino squirrels is Olney, Illinois. Every year they have an official city count of the squirrels and there is a fine of $750 for killing any squirrel. Albino squirrels have the legal right-of-way on roads.

In 2002 the city headed a 100-Year White Squirrel Celebration. A monument was erected and a “squirrel blessing” was said by a priest.

Aid Stroke Research

During the winter ground squirrels hibernate. Doing a study on the way their brains function might aid scientists in developing a new drug limiting brain damage caused by strokes.

During hibernation, the body temperature of ground squirrels drops dramatically. In the case of the arctic ground squirrel it drops as low as 26.7 F which might be the lowest body temperature of any mammal on Earth, During this time the brain of the squirrel undergoes cellular changes that help it deal with reduced blood flow. Scientists are attempting to develop a drug that could mimic this process in the human brain to prevent brain cells from dying when the blood flow to the brain is cut off during a stroke.

More Powerful Than Hackers

Energy companies worry about hackers disrupting power grids but squirrels can do this more easily. According to the website Cyber Squirrel 1 there have been over 1100 squirrel-related outages across the world dating back to 1987

Heating Their Tails to Ward Off Predators

California ground squirrels have come up with an interesting way to scare off rattlesnakes. They puff up their tails going on the defense. A squirrel waves its tail at a rattlesnake to convince the snake it is a formidable opponent. They whip their tails at their predators. Squirrels can control the blood flow to their tails keeping them warm or cooling them down. They use this advantage to pump blood into their tails and the rattlesnakes might not see the bushy tails but they sense the heat coming at them.

Good Manipulators

Gray squirrels know how to protect what is theirs. If they think someone is watching them so that they can pilfer their cache of food, the squirrel will pretend to dig a hole and bury their nuts. Instead, the nut will be tucked in their mouth and they'll bury it elsewhere.

Most Popular Pets

At one time it was usual for people to keep squirrels as pets. The 29th President of the US Warren G. Harding had a pet squirrel named Pete. The squirrel would be present at White House meetings and briefings. Members of the cabinet would bring Pete nuts.

Onward from the 1700s squirrels were popular pets and also sold in pet shops until the rise of exotic animal laws.