---
title: "Red Squirrel (Sciurus vulgaris) | AnimalTracks.wiki"
description: "Double-jointed canopy acrobat that cracks a nut in seconds and buries seeds that may grow into trees."
image: "https://animaltracks.wiki/images/animals/red-squirrel-1.webp"
published: "2026-09-01"
updated: "2026-09-27"
---
# Red Squirrel (*Sciurus vulgaris*)
> **Status**: Checked against 8 sources, listed under Sources below.
> **Tagline**: Double-jointed canopy acrobat that cracks a nut in seconds and buries seeds that may grow into trees.
> **Soundtrack Vibe**: Pastoral Folk & Progressive Bluegrass // Donovan, "Catch the Wind"
> **Soundtrack Links**: [Spotify](https://open.spotify.com/track/505Pd7CPHoewIE3Io2EpWd) | [YouTube](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Iuc9_46wf7I)
> **Vibe Match**: Nimble acoustic fingerpicking for a squirrel with a practised technique of its own: using the power of its lower incisors, it can open a nut in just a few seconds.
## Biological Superpowers & Stats
- **Taxonomy**: *Sciurus vulgaris*
- **Danger Level**: Low
- **Conservation Status**: Least Concern ([IUCN Red List](https://doi.org/10.2305/iucn.uk.2024-2.rlts.t221730864a221731815.en))
- **Superpower**: Double-jointed ankles for moving up and down trees with ease, plus a jump of more than two metres.
- **Habitat**: Coniferous, broadleaved and mixed woodland across Europe and northern Asia, with UK strongholds in Scotland, pockets of northern England and Wales, and small islands off England's south coast
- **Diet**: Pine and conifer seeds, hazelnuts, fruit, fungi, tree bark and sap, and tree shoots
- **Tags**: rodent, woodland, herbivore, agile
## Natural History & Behavior
## A Small Body and a Big Tail
The red squirrel lives throughout the forests of Europe and northern Asia. In Britain it weighs around 300g against a grey squirrel's roughly 540g, and its body runs under 25cm long, with a bushy tail almost as long again. Coat colour varies more in this species than in almost any other Palearctic mammal, running from light red to black, though in some places a whole population shares one colour: in Britain only red-coated animals live, and in the Sila region of southern Italy only black ones. Wild red squirrels may live up to 12 years; one in captivity lived over 14.8 years.
## Seeds, Nuts and a Few Seconds
In Britain pine seeds are a particular favourite, along with hazelnuts and the seeds of larch and spruce, plus fruit, tree shoots, bark, lichen and fungi. It has a specialised way of opening a nut, using the power of its lower incisors, and with practice can crack one in just a few seconds. It eats the most in spring, about 80g a day, and the least in winter, about 35g a day. It buries food in the ground or hides it in tree bark, and forgotten caches may sprout into new trees.
## Built for the Canopy
A red squirrel can jump more than two metres, and double-jointed ankles let it move up and down trees with ease. On an inclined branch it flexes and retracts its limbs to bring its centre of mass close to the branch, placing its forelimbs to the side and underneath while its hindlimbs stay roughly on top. Its nests, called dreys, sit high in the trees, built from twigs and lined with moss and leaves.
> **An Unexpected Reservoir** Leprosy was considered a disease of humans, with the exception of the armadillo, so finding it in red squirrels in 2016 was highly unexpected. Researchers found leprosy bacteria in squirrels from England, Ireland and Scotland, some with leprosy-like lesions on the head and limbs, others seemingly healthy. The strain from Brownsea Island is closest to one that circulated in medieval England. Red squirrels are a reservoir for leprosy in the British Isles.
## Pox and the Grey Invasion
In Britain the grey squirrel, a North American species introduced in the early 20th century, is an immune carrier of the squirrelpox virus, which is fatal to reds. A study of red squirrels found dead between 1993 and 2005 found the disease only in areas of England also inhabited by grey squirrels, supporting a role for the grey as a reservoir host of the virus. There was a delay between greys settling an area and disease showing up in reds, implying the greys must reach a threshold number or density before passing the virus on. Largely because of the greys, which also outcompete them, reds have now disappeared from most of England and Wales. An estimated 287,000 remain in Britain against 2.7 million greys, confined to Scotland, pockets of northern England and Wales, and small islands off England's south coast. They are still found across much of Ireland, though the range is shrinking there too. In Britain, foxes, stoats, pine martens and birds of prey hunt them as well.
## Frequently Asked Questions
### Why does a red squirrel keep more than one nest?
It always keeps several nests, which it can escape to when a predator gives chase. A high-quality nest may be used for several years. *(Source: [Animal Diversity Web, University of Michigan]())*
### Do red squirrels look different in winter?
Yes. Its body hair changes twice a year, and the winter coat is thicker, has longer ear tufts and covers more of the soles of the feet than the spring and summer coat. The tail hair changes only once a year. *(Source: [Animal Diversity Web, University of Michigan]())*
### Do grey squirrels get sick from the pox that kills red squirrels?
No. Grey squirrels carry the squirrelpox virus and are immune to it. Red squirrels are not, and the virus is fatal to them. *(Source: [Woodland Trust]())*
## Sources
1. [Sciurus vulgaris (Eurasian red squirrel). Animal Diversity Web, University of Michigan.]()
2. [Red squirrel (Sciurus vulgaris). Woodland Trust.]()
3. [Sciurus vulgaris (Eurasian red squirrel). AnAge: The Animal Ageing and Longevity Database, Build 15.]()
4. [Gazzard (2024). Sciurus vulgaris. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2024: e.T221730864A221731815.]()
5. [Avanzi et al. (2016). Red squirrels in the British Isles are infected with leprosy bacilli. Science.]()
6. [Ploemacher et al. (2020). Reservoirs and transmission routes of leprosy; A systematic review. PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases.]()
7. [Sainsbury et al. (2008). Poxviral Disease in Red Squirrels Sciurus vulgaris in the UK: Spatial and Temporal Trends of an Emerging Threat. EcoHealth.]()
8. [Schmidt & Fischer (2011). The kinematic consequences of locomotion on sloped arboreal substrates in a generalized (Rattus norvegicus) and a specialized (Sciurus vulgaris) rodent. Journal of Experimental Biology.]()
*Published September 1, 2026. Last updated September 27, 2026.*
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