Feature Article October 30, 2002
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When Gray is Black;When can gray be black? Or when can black be gray? The answer to these riddles is - when it is an Eastern Gray Squirrel!
The Eastern Gray Squirrel can commonly occur in two colour phases, gray and black (both of which can occur in a single litter), but is also found in small, isolated populations as a creamy white (one near Chaffeys Locks), or is listed as albino populations in a few small pockets in the United States. Here in Ontario the black phase seems to be the dominant one, though black is not found at all in the southern United States. Is the gene responsible for the black phase adapted to cold weather?
One of the most notable features of the gray squirrel is its large, bushy tail. Its Latin name, sciurus, is derived from two Greek words, skia, meaning shadow, and oura, meaning tail, so sciurus means loosely one who sits in the shadow of its own tail. That tail is important - as a rudder and for balance when the animal jumps, as a warm covering during winter, as a signal to other squirrels, as a sunshade, and also to distract a pursuing predator. If you see a gray squirrel with only a partial tail, it has probably lost its tail sheath to escape a predator.
The gray squirrel is a rodent, and rodents are born to gnaw; so its incisor teeth never stop growing, and, in order to wear down their teeth, it constantly gnaws. If not on acorns or hard nuts, they will gnaw on trees, your bird feeders, phone or electrical wires, or, when living in town, even on buildings. An opportunist, the gray squirrel will eat buds in spring, seeds, fruits and nuts in summer, and acorns, walnuts, etc in fall. Industrious hoarders in the fall, you may often see them burying nuts and seeds in anticipation of scarcity in winter. Do they remember where they have buried them? No, but their highly developed sense of smell will help them rediscover many buried items. Those nuts and seeds that are not found help reforestation. They also eat mushrooms, flowers, insects, birds eggs, sometimes nestlings, and maple sap.
Squirrels enjoy bird feeders - where else is there such a convenient supply of food? They can eat all day long, as on average they need a pound and a half of food a day. Squirrels are extremely cunning and physically equipped to negotiate the most challenging of obstacles. Anyone who has ever tried to outwit a squirrel with a mechanical device knows how difficult this can be. Squirrels can climb polished steel poles. They can leap more than 6 feet. Their tails give them phenomenal balance, allowing them to cross long lengths of thin wire effortlessly. They can dig and, yes, they can even swim. Building a moat to protect your feeder from squirrels is not the answer. If you have outwitted the squirrels, please share your success!
Observations: Share your sightings. Call Jean Griffin at 268-2518.
