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Squirrels are rodents in the Sciuridae family.
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Animals in the Sciuridae family include squirrels, chipmunks, woodchucks and prairie dogs.
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There are around 280 species of squirrel.
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Squirrels live in North America, Europe, Asia and Africa.
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The most common squirrel in America is the gray squirrel.
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The word squirrel comes from the Greek word Skiouros meaning “shadow tail.”
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Squirrels are mammals.
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Squirrels are omnivores. Omnivores are animals that eat both plants and meat.
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Squirrels like to eat nuts, fruits, seeds, tree bark, roots, insects and caterpillars. Sometimes they will eat baby birds.
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A squirrel’s four front teeth never stop growing.
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Their teeth get worn down when they chomp on nuts and tree bark.
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Squirrels have bushy tails and pointed ears.
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Squirrels have excellent eyesight.
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Their hind legs are double-jointed. That helps them run up and down trees.
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Squirrels have five toes on their back feet and four toes on their front feet.
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Their front toes are very sharp. They use their front toes to grip the tree trunk.
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Squirrels build nests called drey.
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Squirrels like to build nests in holes of tree trunks.
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Some squirrels can run up to 20 miles per hr.
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Squirrels can jump 20ft.
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Squirrels communicate with each other by making chirping sounds and by tail movements.
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Flying Squirrels don’t actually fly. They extend their arms and legs and leap and glide from tree to tree.
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Flying Squirrels can leap up to 150 ft.
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Flying Squirrels are nocturnal. Nocturnal means active at night.
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The smallest squirrel is the African Pygmy Squirrel.
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African Pygmy Squirrels are only 5 inches long and weight .5 – 1 ounce!
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Baby squirrels are called kittens.
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Kittens are born blind.
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Kittens drink milk from their mother 3 months.
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When squirrels are frightened they run back and forth and in different directions for confuse their predators.
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Squirrels predators are hawks, owls, fox, raccoons and snakes.