Basic introduction
Squirrel (Squirrel Family) is a family of mammals, including Squirrel Family and African Ground Squirrel Family, which is characterized by its hairy tail. Animals closely related to other animals are also collectively called Dendrolimus. Squirrels are generally small and herbivorous, and their food is mainly seeds and nuts. Some species will feed on insects and vegetables, and some tropical species will migrate to prey on insects. Squirrels are native to northeast, northwest and Europe of China, and are distributed in other parts of the world except Oceania and Antarctica.
English name: squirrel
Scientific name: squirrel
Squirrel map (20 photos)
Genus: Animal kingdom, mammals, rodents, Squirrel suborder, Squirrel family, Squirrel genus.
Personality: gentle, cute, well-behaved, docile, cute, hardworking, totally, smart, dexterous, unwilling to go into the water.
Life span: At present, the variety is generally 4- 10 years, but it may be less than 4 years under special circumstances.
Distribution: Squirrels are widely distributed and can be seen in the whole cold temperate forest area. In China, it is mainly distributed in the mountainous areas of three northeastern provinces, northeastern Inner Mongolia, Hebei and northwestern Shanxi, Ningxia, Gansu, Xinjiang and other provinces; Sometimes there will be more than one foreign country from the Russian Far East, Japan, North Korea and northern Mongolia and their own tree nests. Naturally, female squirrels also raise their young in their nests, each with two babies, usually one or two a year. Red-bellied squirrels mainly feed on fruits, flowers and leaves of plants, and occasionally eat some animal food. In Taiwan Province Province, the sudden loss of habitat biodiversity may be due to the felling of low-altitude broad-leaved forest trees and the large-scale afforestation of Cryptomeria fortunei in the past, which led to the destruction of Cryptomeria fortunei afforestation by squirrels. The bark of a tree is bitten, which can be deformed to death and cause huge losses. Therefore, the red-bellied squirrel was named as a forest pest, which attracted much attention.
The living habits of squirrels
Squirrels have very long ears and tails, which can adapt to life in trees; They hang upside down from the branches with claws and tails like long hooks. At dawn and evening, they also leave the trees and hunt on the ground. After finding abundant food in autumn, squirrels will use tree holes or dig holes in the ground to store fruits and other foods, and at the same time block the holes with dirt or fallen leaves.
Squirrels are covered with red hair in summer, and in autumn they will be changed into black and gray winter hair to tightly wrap their bodies. The newborn squirrel, with no hair and unclear eyes, began to grow long hair 8 days after birth, opened its eyes 30 days later, and could eat hard fruit 45 days later, becoming very agile. Squirrels are very docile to their owners, so we should treat them gently, so that they will be dead set on you and will never hurt you with their teeth. Of course, they will gently chew your fingers with their teeth, tease you and feel itchy, which is their friendly performance to you. Squirrels sleep with their tails as quilts.
Squirrels build nests on dense branches, or use nests abandoned by other birds, sometimes in tree holes; They eat not only wild fruits, but also twigs, buds, leaves, insects and eggs. As soon as autumn comes, squirrels begin to store food. A squirrel often stores several kilograms of food in several places, and sometimes sees squirrels drying food in the trees to prevent food from going bad and moldy. In this way, in the cold winter, squirrels have nothing to eat.
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type
Squirrels have strong fertility. Squirrels, like other rodents, have the characteristics of early maturity and rapid reproduction. From January to February every year, the male squirrel and the female squirrel begin to fall in love. The male mouse swings its thick tail and jumps into the canopy to chase the female mouse. At this time, the mother mouse is also very excited and enthusiastic. Estrus lasts about two weeks, during which almost both sexes have a strong appetite. For male individuals, strong sexual desire and mating ability are required; For females, it requires individuals to have a strong maternal instinct, a large number of fetuses and adequate lactation. When mating, one male and one female or one male and many females mate. Squirrels are pregnant for about 35-40 days, and enter lactation in early April. They can give birth about three times a year, and each time they can give birth to 4-6 squirrels. As long as there is enough food, female squirrels can breed more individuals and have strong fertility. Newborn babies take mother's milk as the source of all nutritional needs, so special attention should be paid to the nutritional status of lying-in women at this time. The little squirrel was very small when it was born, unable to see things, and developed slowly. It took nearly 30 days to open its eyes after birth. It was not until a month and a half that the little squirrel was willing to go outdoors.
When the little squirrel's eyes are not open, if it is kept away from the mother squirrel, it will become very close to people. At first, hot milk (30-40℃) was fed through a straw, 3-5 times a day. Gradually change to bread or other soft food soaked in milk. Even if you start breeding when you grow up, as long as you train patiently, you will be very close to the people and climb on your master.
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Species category
According to different living environments, the Squirrel Family is divided into tree squirrels, ground squirrels and stone squirrels. There are nearly 35 genera and 2 12 species in the world, and there are 24 species of1kloc-0/genus in China, of which 2 species are endemic to China.
There are many kinds of squirrels, about 240 in the world and 26 in China. Among them, squirrels living in the Woods are very common in Northeast China and North China, so they are also called ordinary squirrels. Its body is slender and its hair is gray, dark brown or reddish brown, so it is also called gray squirrel.
There are three kinds of common squirrels.
1. Red-bellied squirrel
Red-bellied squirrel is also called "red-bellied squirrel", and people in mountainous areas also call it "hanging mouse". It is a medium-sized arboreal squirrel.
Size: 19 ~ 25cm
Weight: 280 ~ 420g
Features: short kiss, small and round ears, thick neck and red abdomen.
Red-bellied squirrels mainly live in dense forests, and their living habits are somewhat similar to those of gray rats. I like to get up in the morning and get sleepy. My diet is mainly nuts, such as pinecones, chestnuts and berries, but also leaves, shoots, buds, eggs, chickens and insects. It can reproduce twice a year, producing 3~4 offspring each time, with 2 offspring in the majority. Red-bellied squirrel Red-bellied squirrel is another common posture, which has the same characteristics as red-bellied squirrel except that its abdomen is yellow or light yellow, and is called Huangshan squirrel.
2. Long-nosed squirrel
The long-nosed squirrel is also called the red-billed squirrel. Size: 20 ~ 25cm
Features: the limbs are slightly shorter, the tail is slender, the tail hair is short and fluffy, the back hair is grayish brown, and the abdominal hair is grayish white.
Long-nosed squirrels generally live in dense forests, and their habits are not much different from those of ordinary squirrels, but they are not completely arboreal. They often feed on the ground, dump trees and haystacks, and are most active in the morning and evening.
3.rock squirrel
Rock squirrels, also known as "stone rats", "tail-sweeping rats" and "fur-sweeping rats", look like red-bellied squirrels.
Size: 20 ~ 25cm Tail length: 15cm.
Features: The ears are large and obvious, with a circle of white around the eyes, slightly shorter limbs, fluffy and sparse tail hair, blue-gray back hair, yellow-gray hair on the abdomen and inside limbs, and white chin.
Rock squirrels inhabit rocky areas in mountainous areas. Although rock squirrels can climb trees, they mainly inhabit rocks and generally nest in cracks in rocks. Rock squirrels are active during the day and mainly feed on wild fruits or plant seeds, such as nuts, walnuts and apricots. But sometimes they also eat crops, which are pests in the mountains.
chippy
Size: the body length is about 15cm, and the tail length is about 12 cm.
Features: There are five black hairs on the back of the body, also known as five eyebrows.
Origin: Northeast Asia, Hokkaido
Eating habits: omnivorous food dominated by plants.
Little squirrel with several vertical stripes on its back. Small squirrels that have just left their nests are easy to tame if they are raised separately from their parents. Because it moves very fast, it should be noted that it escaped while foraging. It is necessary to prepare a very high cage, and at the same time, in order to avoid insufficient exercise, a sucker cart should be prepared in the cage for squirrels to play with. At the same time, the nest box should be installed. As a hiding place, there is hibernation in nature. If you put it in a warm room, there is no need to hibernate. Due to poor heat resistance, the cage should be moved to a well-ventilated place in summer.
5.squirrels and squirrels
Size: about 25cm in length and 20cm in tail length.
Origin: Hokkaido
Eating habits: omnivorous food dominated by plants.
Distributed in Hokkaido, Japan, it is a subspecies of Japanese squirrel distributed in the south of Honshu, Japan, and its size is slightly larger than that of Japanese squirrel. Coat color will change in summer and winter. In winter, the back is gray, the abdomen is white, and the ears are long; In summer, the whole body is light reddish brown, and there is no long hair in the ears. Feeding in the same way as chipmunks. Because they are big, they need big and strong cages. You don't need to hibernate in winter, you can move as usual.
6. Groundhog and Mouse
Size: about 30cm in length and 8cm in tail length.
Origin: North America
Eating habits: Plant-based omnivores vary in color from yellow to brown. Stout, with a short tail. People live in interconnected caves dug on the grassland. Because I am used to living in groups, I won't fight even if I have one more. It often appears in eco-movies and is a very popular and lovely animal. In particular, the movements of standing and sitting are particularly cute and easy to tame. At the same time, the tail will swing like a dog, which is very popular. The food is mainly plants, and hamster artificial feed and dog food are also good choices. Although there are pairs on the market, it is still very difficult to breed.
7. Japanese flying squirrel
Size of Japanese flying squirrel: body length is about 15cm, and tail length is about 12 cm.
Origin: Asia
Eating habits: omnivorous food dominated by plants.
The back is grayish brown and the abdomen is white. There is a skin membrane between the limbs, which can slide in the air after opening. Nocturnal Animals's unique big eyes are very cute in appearance. Mainly active at night, it is the most suitable pet for night owls. A bird's nest box is prepared in the cage for sleeping during the day. After training, you can let it out and slide indoors. They belong to the same family as squirrels, and their feeding methods can be compared. Usually, fruit and squirrel's artificial feed are the staple food, and occasionally some animal food is fed.
8. European red squirrel
Size: about 30cm long and 20cm long at the tail.
Origin: Central Europe to West Asia
Eating habits: omnivorous food dominated by plants.
Big squirrel. The whole body is bright reddish brown and the abdomen is white. Ears have long hair. Large size, lively movements, need to have a considerable cage when raising.
9.tricolor squirrel
Size: about 20cm long, tail length 15cm.
Origin: Malay Peninsula, Sumatra
Eating habits: medium-sized squirrels, omnivorous, live in tropical rain forests. The back and tail are dark reddish-brown, with striped leucorrhea from cheeks to both sides, the forelimbs and ventral sides are yellowish brown, and the abdomen is white. Among the squirrels whose fur is generally simple and monotonous, they belong to a lower gorgeous one. Living in trees, but most of the food is obtained from the ground. The feeding method is the same as other squirrels such as chipmunks.
Squirrels (Figure 1 1) There are six kinds of animals, namely three kinds of squirrels and three kinds of flying squirrels, namely red-bellied squirrels, striped squirrels, Herzog squirrels, red squirrels, white-faced squirrels and small squirrels.
In addition, in recent years, squirrels kept as pets are called devil squirrels, which belong to the northeast region. They have strong limbs and strong jumping ability, and mainly have black and red fur.
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Feeding and management
I. Construction and preparation of farmhouses
Squirrels live alone in the wild, so the environmental conditions provided should enable them to have enough solitary conditions and contact with each other to facilitate reproduction.
(a) closed conditions
It is an open three-wall type, facing south, with brick walls on three sides, with an area of 5 meters long, 3 meters wide and 3 meters high. On the concrete surface, there is a door (1.8m high and 7m wide) leading to the north operation corridor, but there should be a small partition outside the door, about 2m2, and a side door leading to the corridor, mainly to prevent animals from running out directly. Nail several rows of small wooden boxes on three walls of the house, and nail the first row when it is off the ground 1 m. The size of the wooden box is 25 cm long and 25 cm wide, with openings on one side (height 15 cm, width 12 cm) and the spacing between boxes is 30 cm. The distance between rows (the top of the lower row and the bottom of the upper row) is 30 cm, and the two rows of wooden cases can be staggered. You can go all the way to the top. After breeding, it can be adjusted according to the actual situation. In the middle of the room, put a big dead tree or two or three medium dead trees for them to move.
(2) Sports field conditions
Directly connected with the open pen house, the area is 36 meters long, 3 meters wide and 3 meters high. The three sides and the ceiling are made of fine barbed wire, and the mesh is not more than 1.5 cm. Under the net, there are brick walls 20 cm from the ground. Similarly, properly place 1 ~ 2 dead branches and concrete floor.
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A book about squirrels
Squirrel is a beautiful little animal, smart, docile and very cute.
Although they sometimes catch birds, they are not carnivores. They often eat almonds, hazelnuts (zhēn), beech nuts (jǔ) and oak chestnuts (l ǔ). Their faces are comely, their eyes are bright, their bodies are healthy, their limbs are brisk, and they are very agile and alert. Linglong (lóng) small face, lined with a beautiful tail in the shape of a hat tassel (yóng), looks particularly beautiful. My tail has been sticking up to my head, and I'm hiding below to cool off. They often sit upright, like people, with their hands and their front paws to send food to their mouths. It can be said that squirrels are the least like quadrupeds.
Squirrels don't hide underground. They often move high, live at the top of trees like birds, run around in the Woods and jump from tree to tree. They build nests in trees, pick fruits and drink dew. Only when trees are blown too hard by the wind can they fall to the ground. Squirrels are rarely seen in plain areas. They don't live near people's houses or stay in small bushes. They just like to live in tall old trees. On a sunny summer night, squirrels can be heard jumping and screaming in the trees, chasing each other. They seem to be afraid of strong sunlight. They hide in their nests during the day and come out to run, play and eat at night.
Squirrels are afraid of getting into the water. Some people say that when a squirrel crosses the water, it uses a piece of bark as a boat and its tail as a sail and rudder. Unlike mountain rat, squirrels don't sleep in winter. They are very alert. As long as someone touches the big tree where squirrels are, they run out of their nests and hide under branches, or escape to other trees. Squirrels pick up hazelnuts in autumn and stuff them into the hollow cracks of old trees. They are full and ready for winter. In winter, they often pry open the snow with their claws and look for hazelnuts under the snow. Squirrels are extremely brisk, always jumping forward and sometimes jumping and running. Their claws were so sharp and their movements were so agile that they climbed a very smooth tree in an instant. Squirrels cry loudly, more sharply than weasels. If you are upset, there will be very unhappy hatred.
Squirrels' nests are usually built where branches diverge. They are clean and warm. When they build a nest, they first move some small pieces of wood, mix them together, then weave them with some dry moss (tái) and moss (xi m: n), and then squeeze the moss tightly and flatten it to make the building spacious and strong enough. So they can live in it with their children, which is comfortable and safe. The nest mouth is up and straight. Very narrow (xi×) and strong (mi m 4 n) can enter and exit. There is a conical cover at the nest mouth, covering the whole nest. When it rains, the rain will flow around and will not fall into the nest.
Squirrels usually have three or four at a time. The little squirrel's hair is grayish brown and will change after winter. The new hair is darker than the lost hair. They comb their hair with claws and teeth. They are always naked and clean.
From: "Squirrel" (by Buffon), the ninth volume of primary school Chinese textbook, lesson 10.
Lesson 17 of Chinese Book for Grade Six in Shanghai