Identifying an unusual squirrel

[starbase1]

I found this site using Google - I hope someone can advise me.

I was recently in Moldova, Eastern Europe, where I noticed some squirrels in the Rose Park, Chisinau.

I was curious as they looked very different from the squirrels I know from the UK.

They are very dark, (particularly the tail and ears), but with a definite reddish colouring. Some look almost black.

They also have very distinctive long tufts of dark hair on their ears.

Poking around the web I found references to ground squirrels in Moldova, (very short, light brown fur, not these). By the look of them, they are very similar to oriental squirrels, but these are only meant to live in Japan.

Here's a photo of one, (if I get it right!)

http://www.starbase1.co.uk/M/Parks/DSC00729.JPG

Can anyone identify the beasty?
Thanks,
Nick

[Hannah]

Can anyone identify the beasty?
Thanks,
Nick
starbase1, :wave123.

It looks like a Eurasian Red Squirrel (Sciurus vulgaris).

I believe they exist in the UK as well, but are being replaced by the gray squirrels (Sciurus carolinensis) in places.

[Cleo_13]

That's a Eurasian Red Squirrel, right? I've always wanted to see one in real life, but as I don't live in Europe I can only see pictures. Lucky!

[stosh2010]

He's a Beaut....

[starbase1]

starbase1, :wave123.

It looks like a Eurasian Red Squirrel (Sciurus vulgaris).

I believe they exist in the UK as well, but are being replaced by the gray squirrels (Sciurus carolinensis) in places.

Looks very different the the British Red Squirrels I have seen, (At the British Wildlife Centre, south of London - highly recommended to animal lovers!)

If people are interested, I could put up some more shots?

Nick

[squillgurl]

Are you kidding? We LIVE for pictures around here!! :Welcome

[starbase1]

OK, here are some more from the same visit:

http://www.starbase1.co.uk/M/Parks/DSC00714.JPG

http://www.starbase1.co.uk/M/Parks/DSC00718.JPG

http://www.starbase1.co.uk/M/Parks/DSC00720.JPG

Nick

[starbase1]

And while I am at it, here are some shots from the British Wildlife Centre I mentioned earlier. For comparison, note how different the ears are.

http://www.starbase1.co.uk/s1.jpg

http://www.starbase1.co.uk/s2.jpg

http://www.starbase1.co.uk/s3.jpg

http://www.starbase1.co.uk/s4.jpg

By the look of this shot, I'm guessing they don't read very well...


http://www.starbase1.co.uk/s5.jpg

http://www.starbase1.co.uk/s6.jpg

http://www.starbase1.co.uk/s7.jpg

[Chipmunk_lover]

starbase1, they are amazing aren't they :D
I got to see them in the wild aswell, brilliant experience, i'd always wanted to see them wild after seeing some in a breeding programme many years ago. Some time we hope to go back

Heres a pic, i have more in a thread on here.

Loved your photos and the one you saw in Moldova does look darker, a different subspecies maybe?

[Hannah]

starbase1, great pictures. I would like to see one of these animals up close, some day perhaps. The one squirrel looks like he's enjoying the lime-light, even if he probably only cares about the nut.

I remember a member a long time ago who worked with red squirrels, let's see, here's a link to the site:

http://www.eichhoernchen-findelkinder.de/2010/2010.html.

It's in German, but I remember some of the squirrels were lighter red, some had dark tails, and some were all black. I presume they were all the same species.

The tuffs may be absent in some of the animals pictured if they grow long in response to cold weather.

In a similar way, the gray squirrels in North America are mostly gray, but some are pure black, and some are inbetween. I wounder if there are black versions of the gray squirrel in the United Kingdom.

[Kristal]

starbase1, great pictures. I would like to see one of these animals up close, some day perhaps. The one squirrel looks like he's enjoying the lime-light, even if he probably only cares about the nut.

I remember a member a long time ago who worked with red squirrels, let's see, here's a link to the site:

http://www.eichhoernchen-findelkinder.de/2010/2010.html.

It's in German, but I remember some of the squirrels were lighter red, some had dark tails, and some were all black. I presume they were all the same species.

The tuffs may be absent in some of the animals pictured if they grow long in response to cold weather.

In a similar way, the gray squirrels in North America are mostly gray, but some are pure black, and some are inbetween. I wounder if there are black versions of the gray squirrel in the United Kingdom.

Yes, the darker greys are more common in southern England and dominate in some areas - especially in London, I hear.

And like the "grey", "reds" come in a lot of different colours, from white to black with chestnut, tan, blonde, mahogany and vibrant, carrot orange in between... and all combinations thereof. They are absolute beauties, indeed. I hear that they are mostly black or shades of dark brown and mahogany in Germany, but they are still Red Squirrels.

[Hannah]

Yes, the darker greys are more common in southern England and dominate in some areas - especially in London, I hear.

And like the "grey", "reds" come in a lot of different colours, from white to black with chestnut, tan, blonde, mahogany and vibrant, carrot orange in between... and all combinations thereof. They are absolute beauties, indeed. I hear that they are mostly black or shades of dark brown and mahogany in Germany, but they are still Red Squirrels.
Krystal, I was curious about black gray squirrel (Sciurus carolinensis) in Britian because the British population was founded with a small number of member brought over from the US, I don't know the number, but perhaps only a few pairs. Because the number was small, the genetic diversity would also be smaller than the diversity of the gray squirrels in the US, so I was just curious if this limited the diversity in coloration. From what you say, it does not seem that it has. Thanks for the reply.

[Kristal]

There may well have been more brought over later, though. The Victorian English were really fond of exotic flora and fauna. It seems likely to me that the first ones would not be the last, but maybe not :dono

[Hannah]

Good point, Krystal.

Releases occurred from 1876 to the 1930's according to http://www.red-squirrels.org.uk/Squirrels_in_the_UK.pdf. I seem to remember a story that Benjamin Franklin gave someone in England a gray squirrel as a pet, which would have been in the 1700's, so releases were probably occurring before 1876 as well. I don't know how many, and it may be that some of the introduced animals were black.