…red squirrel populations.” Saving Scotland’s Red Squirrels is a multi-partner project to secure the future of the UK’s only native squirrel species. Three quarters of the UK’s remaining red squirrels live in Scotland, but their future has come under threat from the spread of the deadly squirrelpox virus, the expansion of non-native grey squirrel populations and wider loss of habitat…. […]
…year on year comparison of red and grey squirrel distribution throughout Scotland so we can measure the progress of the project. How do you submit your sightings? It’s very easy – just head to our website and on the homepage you can see the sightings information with a button for reporting a squirrel sighting. You will be asked for… […]
…has a colourless section. The boundaries between each colour are very distinct and the hairs themselves often come to a sharp (javelin shaped) end. This is red squirrel hair. It is much finer, tapers to almost nothing, and is also quite variable in colour. The hair does, of course, have a reddish/ ginger tinge but also has white colour too…. […]
…by the presence of greys). By targeting efforts to the grey squirrels’ preferred woodland, we can create reservoirs of high quality habitat for red squirrels to reoccupy. This creates breeding populations of the native species as a source for recolonising conifer forests, should the populations there chance to come under pressure owing to seed-crop failure. In better conifer-seed years, red… […]
…from how they look in summer. Red squirrels can often show a silver, dare we say grey, colour in winter and this often leads to ‘false alarm’ reports of grey squirrels. Whilst we’re on about greys – a key feature of their coat- at any time of year- is a white halo to the tail. Q. When is a grey… […]
…feeders, squirrel feeders should be regularly cleaned and sterilised. We always welcome these sorts of enquiries from the public- you are our eyes and ears! People are concerned about the risk of squirrelpox spreading amongst the red squirrel population, but at present this is confined to the Scottish lowlands south of the central belt. Squirrelpox does not tend to cause… […]
…trail. Come and see our creations between 12-25 October. The knitadermy started when Rose Toney of the NE Scotland Biodiversity Network spotted Elmer on BBCs Winterwatch and asked if I could knit a pine marten to use as an educational aid… The request for squirrels for SSRS then followed! Each animal is unique. I use a taxidermy form… […]
…red and grey squirrels in the event of a disease outbreak. We recommend an anti-viral solution such as Virkon-S. Squirrel sightings also have an important role to play in monitoring distribution changes over time and assessing areas where both red and grey squirrels come into close proximity. Sightings of both species can be reported through our website at https://scottishsquirrels.org.uk/squirrel-sightings/. And… […]
…over these next few months, and for many squirrels it’s make or break. Autumn is the point in year when there is the most natural food available to squirrels. As trees set their seed in late summer squirrels eagerly anticipate the feast to come. They often start eating and gathering various fruits and seeds whilst they are still ripening. They… […]
…unaffected, it is believed that this particular outbreak has taken hold within Dumfries and Galloway’s red squirrel population and continues to spread between reds. A sick red squirrel spotted west of Gatehouse by Robert Lloyd What can be done to help ? Wildlife feeders typically encourage squirrels, both red and grey, to come into close contact with each other… […]
