Gray Squirrel (Sciurus carolinensis): Trailcam Fail

The bushy tail in the center of the bottom edge of this trialcam
photo is enough to identify this animal as a
gray squirrel.
Photo by Brad Sylvester, copyright 2011. Do not copy.

In my last post, I talked about setting up my trailcam to try to catch some photos of what I presumed would be a squirrel that had left some telltale signs at the base of a tree. I worried that the trigger time of the camera would be too slow to catch a fast-moving squirrel as it scooted up and down a tree trunk. It appears that I was correct to worry. Although the trailcam captured 20 very nice pictures of a tree trunk, it appears to have captured only one single picture of a bushy tail at the lower edge of the frame.

Fortunately, this is enough to make a positive identification of the pine seed eating visitor as a Gray Squirrel (Scuirus carolinensis), also known as the Eastern Gray Squirrel. I was also able to catch some pictures of a gray squirrel in my yard with my regular camera during the daytime so that we can compare the tail captured by the trailcam with a known gray squirrel. I can't tell whether this is the same gray squirrel in both locations, about fifty yards apart.

Although naturally skittish, gray squirrels may
become acclimated to human presence by regular
feeding. This is generally a bad idea as they often
become quite inistent and may become pests.
Photo by Brad Sylvester, copyright 2011. Do not copy.

Unlike many animals, gray squirrels don't tend to be particularly territorial over their feeding range, especially outside of breeding season. During breeding season, they'll defend their nesting locations from other squirrels fiercely with loud, aggressive vocalization and physical attacks, driving intruders away and chasing them until they are far enough away to pose no threat.

Even during this time, however, they will eat side by side near a bird feeder or other source of food without too much issue, it is only the home base that seems to instill territoriality instincts in the gray squirrel. This shouldn't be mistaken for the courtship chases as the male often chases the female through the branches of trees as well. Gray squirrels are opportunistic breeders and don't form mated pairs.

The gray squirrel gets its name from its color as you would expect. It is predominantly gray, but has some brown or reddish patches, commonly on top of its back, on its face, and on its legs or feet. Despite these reddish markings, it is quite different in appearance than the red squirrel which is predominantly reddish in color, almost fox-red, and which is much smaller than the gray squirrel.

The gray squirrel is the largest of the eastern tree squirrels and adults are typically 1-1.5 lbs in weight and about 20 inches long, half that length comprised of the tail. In New Hampshire (and many other states), gray squirrels are considered a game animal and may be hunted in season (September 1st- December 31st in New Hampshire). In this state, hunters are permitted to take as many as 5 gray squirrels each day as per information published on the NH Fish & Game website. Despite this, gray squirrels are abundant and thriving throughout New England.

Gray Squirrel looking for dropped birdseed under a feeder.
The brownish-red patch on its back is visible here.
Photo by Brad Sylvester, copyright 2011. Do not copy.

Gray squirrels have adapted well to a suburban lifestyle, raiding gardens and bird feeders at every oipportunity. Gray squirrels will tend to store their food for the lean winter months by caching or hiding it away. They are known as scatter cachers because they make many hundreds or thousands of food stores rather than storing it all in one central location. They'll bury acorns and other seeds all thoughout the spring, summer, and early fall or place them in tree cavities for retrieval when the snow is deep. When winter arrives, they'll seek out these hidden stores and eat them, but they don't find all that they've hidden making them a prolific planter of new forest trees. It's not clear whether they remember the locations as well as the Clark's Nutcracker, a scatter caching bird that is well known for its ouistanding spatial memory, or if they just go back to areas where they found food during the summer and then sniff our buried seeds.

Gray squirrels are quite fond of acorns and, as previously mentioned, pine seeds, but they will eat many varieties of seeds, nuts, and fruit as well as insects and defenseless animals such as baby birds. In New England maple seeds are plentiful and are also a part of the diet of the gray squirrel. They'll raid gardens from time to time as well.

Squirrel nest made of leaves, twigs, and pine needles
Phot by Brad Sylvester, copyright 2011. Do not copy.

Squirrels build nests out of leaves, pine needles, and twigs in the crook of the branches of a tree, generally quite high above the ground. The squirrel nest in the photo to the left was located about 40 feet up in my yard. These types of gray squirrel nests are fairly large, often measuring 18 inches or more in diameter. They are usually easily visible in the fall and winter after the leaves have fallen from deciduous trees or coniferous trees have shed some of their needle mass for the winter.

On the other hand, though, gray squirrels will also nest inside tree cavities that either occur naturally or were carved out by birds like woodpeckers. These can be much more difficult if not impossible to spot from the ground. When these kinds of nests are used, they'll alos be lined with soft materials like leaves and pine needles, presumably for comfort as well as insulation.

During rain, snow or very cold weather, squirrels will curl up in their nests for protection from the elements.

Gray squirrel babies are born in mid-summer and are blind and hairless like baby rats. They'll be cared for by their mothers in the nest that both parents helped to build until they are old enough to find or build their own places.

Quick Facts about the Gray Squirrel (Sciurus carolinensis):

Lifespan: The Adirondack Ecological Center puts the average lifespan of a gray squirrel at 1-2 years, but if they make it to adulthood, six years is more typical. The reords, says the AEC, is 12 years in the wild and 20 years in captivity.

Lifecycle: Baby Gray squirrels are born in the summer, usually in small litters of 2-3 babies after a gestation period of about 6 weeks, plus or minus a couple of days. They may stay in the nest for as little as 56 days or until the follwoing spring, depending upon when in the summer they were born. They'll be ready to start their own families in the summer following the one in which they were born.

When is it here? Gray squirrels live in New Hampshire all year round.

Where does the Gray Squirrel go in the winter? Gray squirrels are active all winter long, but will hide in their nests during periods severe weather or extreme cold. They survive on hidden foods stores buried during the bountiful summer. They'll even burrow under the snow to find buried caches of food.

Are gray squirrels dangerous? While it is theoretically possibel for a squirrel to catch and transmit rabies, this is rare to the extreme and, according to eMedTV.com, there are no recorded cases of a human catching rabies from a squirrel bite. However, they should still be treated as wild animals that will inflict a painful bite subject to infection.

Notes: Gray Squirrels belong to the order of Rodentia (Rodents) characterized by their large front incisors which have a chisel shape for efficient gnawing. Sometimes squirrels will gnaw their way into a house and set up residence inside the wood-framed walls or in the attic.