Red Squirrel (Tamiasciurus hudsonicus)

Red squirrels are commonly seen around the Jewel Cave National Monument visitor center.

NPS/ Quentin Bucker

 

Red squirrels perch in pine trees and eat pinecones, dropping their scraps into large piles at the base of the tree called a midden. These can be seen throughout the monument.

NPS/ Kent Miller

Red Squirrel
Tamiasciurus hudsonicus

• According to its species name “hudsonicus” the red squirrel was probably first documented in the Hudson Bay.
• Has many common names across its range: red squirrel, pine squirrel, barking squirrel, spruce squirrel, and chickaree.
• Extremely territorial and will chatter loudly at passers-by to announce its presence and its territory.
• Maintain large piles of leaf litter and pinecone scraps called a midden, which are used to store food for winter. A red squirrel midden is used for years and can be 15 by 30 feet in size.

Size and Description

• On average, red squirrels are 11–15 inches long including their bushy tails and may weigh as much as 6–7 ounces.
• Brownish-red on its upper half, dark stripe above white ventral side, white eye ring and bushy tail which energetically flicks back and forth when the squirrel is announcing its presence.

 

Red squirrels are extremely territorial and will chatter and flick their tail rapidly when a person or animal walks through their territory. Their chattering is commonly heard at Jewel Cave National Monument in the late summer and fall.

NPS/ Robbie Hannawacker

Behavior

• Red squirrels breed February through May. Females will bear one litter of 3–5 young per year.
• One of the park’s most territorial animals which helps it maintain its winter food supply from other squirrels or chipmunks.
• Often will be seen using storm drains, gutters, or other man-made areas that stay generally damp as a midden, which can cause a lot of issues for the people that share the area.

Diet

• Red squirrels cut pinecones from trees and stash what they don’t eat in their midden for the winter.
• Summer food includes buds, flowers, fruits, insects, mushrooms, and occasionally small mammals and bird eggs/nestlings.

Interactions with other animals

• The red squirrel, like most rodents, is a prey animal. At Jewel Cave National Monument, they are hunted by coyotes, foxes, long tailed weasels, hawks and owls.