…but does not affect eye colour. “Chris’s pictures are some of the best images we’ve seen of a leucistic red squirrel. Its distinct ear tufts and delicate body shape and size clearly distinguish this animal from its non-native cousin, the grey squirrel.” Tayside is an important area for red squirrel conservation. Work in the region is vital to prevent invasive… […]
…much prefers these over most other foods, and will eat them in preference to shop-bought nuts. He has a natural mistrust of strangers and anything else that is unfamiliar, which we hope will stand him in good stead for his life in the wild. He has never been caged, so has developed good strength and agility. Rusty tucks into a… […]
…their own situation carefully and consider personal and family risk levels. If you are satisfied that you can resume safely, make sure you have all the required personal protective equipment and other measures in place before you start. We understand that nature has an important role to play in health and wellbeing during this time but the health and safety… […]
…and buds in spring. For females to produce 2 broods they must maintain their body mass and heavy losses of young can occur if they can’t find enough food to keep lactating. Grey squirrels are food cache thieves and this causes big problems for our small reds. The loss of winter food stores can mean red squirrels don’t successfully rear… […]
…hair samples. As our stalwart volunteer brigade starts on this year’s Spring Surveys, you may not be aware of the stupendous amount of work that goes into setting them up each year. Project Officers start to make the first contact with the previous year’s volunteers from late in December to check availability, then ensuring feeder boxes hair-traps are disinfected… […]
…we have visiting our gardens over the course of a month. Some individuals look identical, so this counting method will probably also produce an underestimate of the actual number visiting your patch. Reds do change in their appearance when they moult and grow a new coat (twice a year), so over a period of several months you could be misled… […]
Original Author: Emma Rawling, Project Officer for South West Scotland How many different red squirrels are visiting your garden, park or wood? Have you ever tried to distinguish and identify them? Well, here’s how you can – why not give it a try this winter? How many different red squirrels are visiting your garden, park or wood? Have… […]
…plan to return for seconds. We’ve been thinking about cones because this week is National Tree Week, the UK’s largest tree celebration annually launching the start of the winter tree planting season. With a plentiful supply of one of their favourite food sources, conifer woods such as the great Scots Pine forests of north Scotland make perfect homes for red… […]
…tree – what tell-tale signs can we look for to distinguish between Scotland’s native red squirrel and the non-native grey squirrel? © Raymond Leinster Red Squirrels Let’s start with red squirrels! Because their fur colour varies so much (generally a chestnut coat, but also can include black, or even grey), it’s helpful to try and distinguish other identifiable… […]
…Scottish Squirrel Group have been tasked with drafting an ambitious 50-year vision for red squirrel conservation in Scotland. The revised Strategy will cover a 10-year timeline (2025 – 2035) informed by this vision, and will be developed using the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Guidelines for Species Conservation Planning, the gold standard for species conservation planning which… […]
