Squirrel life in nature takes place, as a rule, in forests. The basis of the animal’s nutrition is the seeds of tree species.
That is why squirrel settles in mixed forests, where it can easily get its own food. He loves the animal and mature coniferous plantations, which are cedar forests and spruce forests.
Where do squirrels winter? Animals do not leave their habitable places. In the cold season, they can also be found in forests. However, some of them move closer to a person in the hope of surviving snowstorms and cold with his help. These guests from the forest in winter appear in city parks. They come to people not from a good life. More bread places they are forced to look for lack of food. That is why in difficult winter time, city parks are more suitable for them than their native forests.
Natural barometer
At a time when there is no snow, squirrels are often found on the ground. At the same time they move irregularly. However, when the first signs of bad weather appear, the animal immediately hides in its nest. The squirrel plugs a hole in it and waits for the cold, curled up in a lump. The animal very well feels the approach of frost. They will surely strike if, in the clear and clear sky during the daytime, the squirrel is in no hurry to leave its nest.
How do squirrels winter in large frosts? Animals almost always hide in their nests, being in a half-drowsiness state. They leave them only for the period of feeding.
Animal nests
How do squirrels winter? For longer periods of the day, in the cold period, the animal prefers to be in the hollows of trees or in the large big nest created by it, which is also called the guinea. At the same time, the rodent's shelter is located only at high altitude.
If the squirrel is lucky enough to occupy the hollow of a large tree, then it lines it with soft litter, for which it uses dry leaves, grass or wood lichens. Animals living in coniferous forests build spherical nests from dry branches. This guyo is also lined with moss, leaves, wool or grass. The diameter of the spherical nest can be from twenty five to thirty centimeters. It is located, as a rule, in thick branches or in forked branches. At the same time, the distance of the shelter from the earth is about fifteen meters. Likes the squirrel to winter in birdhouses.
Males do not build nests. They prefer to settle in empty finished dwellings. At the same time, they can occupy the nests of ravens, magpies or blackbirds. Squirrels are single animals. They usually have several nests. Every two to three days, the protein changes its place of residence. Thus, she is saved from parasites. How do squirrels winter in their nests? Usually, in the cold season, several animals can settle in one house at once.
Nutrition
What do squirrels eat in winter? About to heartily survive the cold, the animals take care in advance. If you visit the forest in the fall, you can see a nimble rodent clutching a bunch of berries or nuts in his teeth. It should be said that animals can easily determine which fruits are suitable for winter harvesting.
Squirrels hide their reserves in deep hollows. This allows them to easily find food during the hunger period.
In winter, the squirrel eats seeds with pleasure, which it obtains from cones of coniferous trees. If the year is fruitful, then the animal has no problems with food, because in many fir trees you can find whole garlands of cones. Scientists-zoologists found that in order to get enough, the animal must gnaw seeds from three hundred eighty pine or twenty-eight fir cones. A rodent can cope with each of them in two to three minutes.
How do squirrels winter if the year is lean? In the nourishment, when autumn supplies end, they feed on spruce buds or thin tree branches.
If in order to survive the hungry winter, the animals moved to the city park, then for them you can make a temporary feeding trough. She will serve as an ordinary stand. The food poured into it will help the red rodent survive.
Useful Tips
For squirrels, it is best to put seeds and a mixture of hazelnuts, walnuts and pine nuts, as well as a small amount of peanuts in the trough. An integral part of such a menu will serve as seeds of melon, pumpkin, sunflower and watermelon. Moreover, the constituent components should not be salted or fried. Putting nuts in the feeder should only be in the shell.
When feeding protein in the winter, remember that crackers, chips and almonds, all fried, salted and smoked, are poison for them.
Breeding
Squirrels are highly prolific animals. During the season, a rodent living in a temperate climate zone can bring two litters. The mating season begins in rodents in February. At this time, on the snow there are many traces of the restless animal. The front paws leave two small dots, and the hind legs are thin elongated strips with tenacious fingerprints. It is during the mating season that squirrels run a lot, play hide and seek and make acrobatic jumps. At the same time, several males take care of one female at the same time, who show open aggression towards their competitors.