Squirrels are agile, bushy-tailed rodents that we can find in all corners of the world. They belong to the Sciuridae family, which includes prairie dogs, chipmunks, and marmots.
There are more than 200 species of squirrels, according to the Integrated Taxonomic Information System (ITIS), and they are classified into three types: tree squirrels, ground squirrels, and flying squirrels. These three categories are divided into many types of squirrels, such as North American gray squirrel, southern squirrel, rock squirrel, white and black squirrel …
Generally, any of the 50 genera and 268 species of rodents whose common name is derived from the Greek skiouros , which means “shadow tail” , describes one of the most recognizable characteristics of these small mammals: their fantastic tail . These animals occupy a variety of ecological niches around the world, practically anywhere there is vegetation. The red squirrel ( S. vulgaris ) is considered in northern Europe an animal highly valued for its soft and thick fur. Inhabitants of tropical forests keep squirrels as pets.
All tree squirrels are diurnal and arboreal, but the vertical activity range of the species differs widely, especially among those that live in tropical rainforests. Some, such as the eastern giant squirrels (genus Ratufa ) and African giant squirrels (genus Protoxerus ), rarely descend from the upper canopy. Others, such as the Sulawesi pygmy squirrel ( Prosciurillus murinus) , travel and feed at intermediate levels between the ground and the canopy. Some large tropical squirrels, such as the Sulawesi giant squirrel ( Rubrisciurus rubriventer) and the northern Amazon red squirrel ( Sciurus igniventris) , nest at medium levels, but travel and forage in the understory or on the ground. African palm squirrels (genus Epixerus ) are long-legged runners that feed only on the ground. Certain species, such as the red-tailed squirrel ( S. granatensis ) of the American tropics and the African pygmy squirrel, are active with a greater range of action. In the United States, the eastern fox squirrel ( S. niger) runs along the ground from tree to tree, but others, including the eastern gray squirrel ( S. carolinensis ), prefer to travel through the treetops and cross rivers regularly by swimming with head up and tail flat on the surface of the water. Each one is more fabulous.
Today we will know some of its characteristics.
