Bouncing bundles of bushy-tailed energy. The flash of a red squirrel leaping from branch to branch is an unforgettable, but increasingly rare sight in the UK’s woods. These charismatic creatures depend on woodland to survive.
Common names: red squirrel, Eurasian red squirrel.
Scientific name: Sciurus vulgaris.
Family: Sciuridae.
Habitat: coniferous, mixed and broadleaved woodland.
Diet: nuts, seeds, tree shoots and other plant matter.
Predators: pine marten, birds of prey, foxes and stoats.
Origin: native.
The red squirrel is famed for its orange-red fur, but is actually quite variable in colour, ranging from vivid ginger to dark brown. In winter, the fur is often tinged with grey and large tufts develop above the ears. Red squirrels have a large bushy tail that is almost as long as their body.
Not to be confused with: the grey squirrel. Colour is the obvious difference here, but there can be some overlap between the species, with greyish-red squirrels and reddish-grey squirrels sometimes occurring. Grey squirrels never have tufted ears and are significantly larger, weighing around 540g, compared to just 300g for red squirrels. The tail of red squirrel is always exclusively one colour, while a grey squirrel tail often contains several colours.
Credit: Anne-Marie Kalus / WTML
Red squirrels rely on trees for food, with their diet mainly made up of seeds and nuts. Pine seeds are a particular favourite, but they will also take hazelnuts, and the seeds of larch and spruce. Also eaten are fruit, tree shoots, bark, lichen and fungi. Young birds and eggs may be taken, but this is rare. In autumn, squirrels will bury seeds and nuts, ready to be eaten in winter when food is scarce.
Red squirrels do not hibernate, although they may be less active in winter.
Before mating, males will follow females in prolonged chases through the trees and females will often mate with more than one partner. The young are born in a nest known as a drey. Dreys are located high up in trees and made from twigs and lined with moss, leaves and other soft materials. Up to six young are normally born in spring and they will begin foraging for their own food after around 10 weeks.
Credit: John Bridges / WTML
Red squirrels need woodland to survive and can be found in coniferous, broadleaved and mixed woodland. They were once found across the UK, but have disappeared from most of the country due to the introduction of grey squirrels. Now red squirrels are confined to Scotland, pockets of northern England and Wales and small islands off England’s south coast. The species can still be found across much of Ireland, but its range is shrinking there too.
Double-jointed ankles mean red squirrels can move up and down trees with ease.
The best time to spot red squirrels is in autumn, when they are busy searching for food to see them through the winter. Be prepared to look up, as red squirrels spend most of their time in trees, coming down to ground level far less often than their grey counterparts.
Red squirrels have undergone one of the most drastic declines of all UK mammals.
This is largely due to the introduction of non-native grey squirrels in the early 20th century. The larger greys can outcompete reds and they also carry the squirrelpox virus, which they are immune to, but which is fatal to reds. Reds have now disappeared from most of England and Wales. There are an estimated 287,000 red squirrels in Britain, compared to 2.7 million greys. We are helping to conserve the red squirrel by protecting its habitat and we support grey squirrel management in red squirrel areas. We have also backed research that suggests the recovery of pine martens could help boost red squirrel numbers.
A new study in conjunction with the Woodland Trust has discovered major differences in gut bacteria between grey and red squirrels, offering a potential explanation for how greys outcompete their native red cousins in the UK. In the study, published in the Journal of Medical Microbiology, researchers found grey squirrels have a wider range of gut microbes compared to red squirrels, potentially giving them an edge in health, immunity and even bark digestion. This could explain why grey squirrels thrive on a broader diet, including tree bark, which damages native trees. The study highlights the importance of understanding gut bacteria in species competition and conservation efforts.
Woodland wildlife is fading before our eyes. Please support our appeal to save rare and threatened species.
Donate nowRed squirrels can jump more than 2m – not bad for an animal with a body length of less than 25cm!
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In October 2019 we partnered with conservation charity Trees for Life and together relocated red squirrels from populations in Moray and Inverness to this Ledmore & Migdale woods.
Watch the relocation film
