Fox Squirrel
INTRODUCTION
The fox squirrel (Sciurus niger) is the largest tree squirrel in Indiana. Three-pounders have been routed from corn cribs where they were wintering in the lap of luxury. At times he is misnamed ‘red squirrel’ but this title should be reserve for the little “boomer” (Tamasciurus udsonicus) which weighs less than half a pound and inhabits central and northern Indiana.
Nuisance Wildlife Information
GENERAL CHARACTERISTICS
In contrast with the gray squirrel, the fox squirrel is brawny, less nervous and adjusts well to small woodlots in farmland. Upper body parts are a grizzled black-brown-orange combination. The fox squirrel has brown under parts. Those found below the Mason-Dixon Line may be black above, white below and have white ears and noses, but this color phase is not found in Indiana.
Although fox squirrels are often seen on the ground, they climb well and are seldom found far from trees. They arise and feed later than other squirrels and are more active throughout the day. Their barking and squalls often betray their presence, as these sounds carry a great distance.
FAMILY LIFE
Tree dens, many formed by woodpeckers, are remodeled for winter quarters and often serve as nurseries for late winter litters. If existing trees are too small to provide suitable dens, leaf nests are built by cutting twigs with leaves attached and weaving them into warm waterproof shelters. Similar platforms, minus the top, are build for summer loafing. Old-timers call them “cooling beds.”
Leaf nest enable fox squirrels to successfully occupy scrub growths of timber on poor soils that might otherwise produce little wildlife.
They mate in January and again in midsummer, if well nourished. Those born in later litters do not reproduce until a year later, so some fox squirrels are born in every month but December and January. The young, averaging three per litter, are well able to care for themselves when they leave the nest. Squirrels produce fewer offspring than other mammals but are more successful in rearing them. Rabbit, doves and other species reproduce faster but suffer a higher mortality rate. Squirrels may live six years in the wild and longer in captivity.
FOOD HABITS
Fox squirrels eat much the same foods as other tree squirrels. Since they live closer to cropland, corn can become a main part of their diet. White oak acorns, hickory nuts and beechnuts are also preferred, but a wide variety of seeds, berries and wild fruits are consumed when choice items fall. Spring frost, insects, droughts and other unfavorable conditions cause wild foods to fail, just as apple and peach crops occasionally suffer losses. Unless corn is available, the population drops when wild food fails.
Squirrels don’t hibernate, so they must depend upon buried acorns and nuts for winter fare. Many acorns buried in the fall are never found and later sprout to become trees. Sticky seeds and burrs lodge in the squirrels plume-like tail and are transported to new areas. Through planting and dispersal of seeds, our bushy-tailed friend serves as a forester and plant distributor of great importance.
POPULATION UPS AND DOWNS
Explorers filtering inland from the Ohio River and Lake Michigan found fox squirrels only around the prairies of northwestern Indiana. This species shunned out great forests and lived in trees scattered about the prairie fringe. As forests were cut, piled and burned, the fox squirrel expanded its range. It has been less than a century since this species moved into central and southern counties. This timber removal, which nearly spelled the end for gray squirrels, help fox squirrels into every corner of the state. Somewhere between solid virgin forests and total timber destruction, a favorable balance of cover enabled this squirrel to achieve pest sized populations. Recent trends toward elimination of all cover to provide more cropland have tipped the scales the other way. Squirrel numbers are diminishing at approximately the same rate that woodlands are being destroyed.
HUNTING
A .22 caliber rifle, with or without telescopic sight, is the proper weapon for hunting fox squirrels. This places emphasis on stalking and markmanship, and if one aims only at the head a clean hit or clean miss is scored. It is a shirtsleeve sport as American as the rail fence and has been the initial training ground for our country’s defenders since the Revolution. Each year, Hoosiers harvest over 500,000 fox squirrels.
The squirrel season opens in mid-August when hickories ripen and squirrels are active. This gives hunters a reasonable opportunity for success and allows squirrel hunting when no other game season is open.
SQUIRREL DEN BOXES
The diagram shows how to build a den box. These may be used in woodlots or lawn trees to attract and house squirrels. Sometimes squirrels invade attics and become a real problem. Scatter moth balls about or burn sulfur candles to evict them and then seal entrances with hardware cloth to prevent re-entry. In urban areas, squirrels become used to people and would appear to make good pets. Unfortunately, fox squirrels become quite vicious and are endowed with particularly efficient chisel-sharp teeth. The proper way to make pets of fox squirrels is- don’t.
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