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The fox squirrel is one of four squirrel species in Ohio; gray, red, and flying squirrels are the other three. Of the four, the fox squirrel is the largest. Fox squirrels were not originally inhabitants of Ohio. The extensive, heavily wooded forest of pre-settlement Ohio was not their preferred habitat. Only when settlement cleared some of the dense woods away and provided open areas and fewer dense woodlots did the fox squirrel start to make Ohio home, moving into the area from the geographical Midwest prairie edge.
Fox Squirrel Track
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Fox Squirrel
Sciurus niger
At-a-Glance
• Mating: Polygamous
• Peak Breeding Activity: At two periods: December-February & May-July
• Gestation: 44 days
• Young are Born: February-April and June-August
• Litter Size: 2-5, 3 average
• Young Leave Parents: 14-15 weeks
• Number of Litters per Year: 1 or 2, multiple litters are usually produced by females 2 years old
• Migration Patterns: Year-round residents
• Typical Foods: Nuts of hickory, oak, and beech; fruits of blackberry, dogwood, wild cherry, and wild grape; corn; buds of maple, elm and willow; and insects
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Description
The fox squirrel is much more orange in appearance than the gray squirrel with which it is sometimes confused. Its body is a yellowish- gray with reddish-yellow cheeks, face, and feet. The belly is pale yellow to orange in color. Tufts behind the ears and the tips of its tail are yellowish-brown. The tail itself is a reddish-orange with a mixture of dark gray or black hairs throughout.
Habitat and Habits
The primary range of the fox squirrel is in the woodlot country of agricultural western Ohio. These woodlots are 10 to 20 acres in size with a sparse understory and separated from one another by large acreages of agricultural croplands. Fox squirrels make use of hickory, oak,beech, black walnut, maple, elm, and buckeye trees for food and shelter. Timber management practices that create broken stands of middleaged and mature trees provide the needed den and food sites for fox squirrels.
Like gray squirrels, fox squirrels use two types of nests: leaf and den. Leaf nests are constructed from leaves and twigs and are located in the crotches of tree branches. Dens are formed in hollow tree trunks or branches. Nests are used for shelter and rearing young.
Reproduction and Care of the Young
Male fox squirrels initiate the chase of the female that leads to mating. Fox squirrels are polygamous, meaning the male will mate with more than one female. The male will play n role in rearing the young. Female fox squirrels carry the young for about a month and a half (44 days). The young are born blind and will rely on their mother’s milk for at least the first five weeks of life--this could be significantly longer as young fox squirrels generally don’t leave the nest to forage on the ground until they are about three months old. |
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