October 9, 1998

     Red Squirrels

Red squirrels prefer evergreen forests and aren't as abundant in southern Minnesota as in the north.  They store cones and nuts under tree roots or in underground burrows.  Also, they'll tunnel through snow to search for food.  Generally, they're vegetarian, but some may eat eggs, young birds, or baby cottontails.

The territory of a red squirrel is small, seldom more than 400 feet in diameter.  Like the blue jay, it is a sentinel of the forest.  If anything unusual is going on in its territory, it responds with loud chattering and scolding.

Like the gray squirrel, the red prefers to nest in a hollow tree, but will build a nest of leaves if necessary.  Since they often line their nests with red cedar bark, cedars stripped of their bark indicate a squirrel's nest is nearby.  Sometimes it may dig a burrow under a tree stump for a nesting site.  Also, like the gray, the red is active all winter except during extreme weather.