Eurasian Red Squirrel
Sciurus vulgaris
Also known as: Red Squirrel, Ardilla Roja, Ecureuil D'eurasie, Ardilla Roja de Eurasia
Habitat
Canopy
Diet
PlantSeed
Active Time
Diurnal
Size
333 g
About This Species
Look for this squirrel in mature conifer and mixed woodland, where it spends most of its time in the canopy feeding on seeds, cones, nuts and fungi, caching food for winter. It is active by day and most visible in early morning and late afternoon, particularly in autumn when it is busy gathering and burying stores. Its red-brown coat and prominent ear tufts distinguish it from the introduced grey squirrel where their ranges overlap.
Ethical Viewing Guidelines
- A distance of around 10 metres is generally enough to observe natural behaviour without causing it to flee up a tree trunk and out of sight.
- It receives legal protection from deliberate disturbance and killing in parts of its European range, including specific protections in the UK, though the degree of protection and enforcement varies by country.
- Avoid hand-feeding, which can habituate animals to people and increase their vulnerability to traffic and predators near paths.
LCMammaliaRodentiaSciuridae
Seasonal Activity
879,223 sightings · 2000–2026
Citizen science records via GBIF
All monthsThis month
Classification
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Mammalia
- Order
- Rodentia
- Family
- Sciuridae
Traits
- Diet
- PlantSeed
- Foraging
- Canopy
- Activity
- Diurnal
- Body mass
- 333 g
- Home range
- 5 ha
Photo
(c) hedera.baltica, some rights reserved (CC BY-SA)
CC-BY-SA-4.0
Occurrence data from GBIF.