50 Fun Facts About Squirrels Trivia for Kids

Which of these animals belongs to the squirrel family?

The family Sciuridae includes tree squirrels, ground squirrels such as chipmunks and prairie dogs, and flying squirrels.

The word 'squirrel' comes from an ancient Greek word meaning what?

Skiouros combined the words for shade and tail, because a squirrel's bushy tail can shade its whole body.

To which continent did humans introduce squirrels, native to the Americas, Eurasia and Africa?

Antarctica remains the only continent with no squirrels at all.

Which squirrel is the smallest in the world, weighing less than a house mouse?

It is only about 12 to 14 centimetres long, including its tail, and lives in the rainforests of Cameroon and Gabon.

Which is the longest squirrel in the world, at up to 1.27 metres from nose to tail tip?

Marmots are heavier, though, with several species weighing 8 kilograms or more.

Unlike most mammals, tree squirrels can climb down a tree in what way?

They can turn their back feet around to grip the bark on the way down.

A squirrel's big front teeth, its incisors, do what?

Constant gnawing keeps them worn down; behind them is a gap and then flat cheek teeth for grinding.

Squirrels mostly eat seeds and nuts, but many will also eat what?

Some even eat small vertebrates, and gray squirrels also eat mushrooms, buds and berries.

Where do squirrels in cooler climates usually hide their nuts for later?

In warm, wet places some squirrels hang nuts and mushrooms on branches instead so they do not go mouldy.

Two kinds of flying squirrel carve grooves into nuts so they can do what?

It works like a carpenter's mortise-and-tenon joint, so the nut stays put in the tree.

About how many little food caches does a scatter-hoarding gray squirrel make each season?

They remember where most of them are using landmarks, and the forgotten ones can grow into new trees.

How do gray squirrels find the nuts they buried months earlier?

They use both faraway and nearby landmarks, and their sense of smell helps close up.

A squirrel's leafy nest built in the fork of a tree is called what?

It is roughly ball-shaped, 30 to 60 centimetres across, and lined with moss, grass and feathers to keep warm.

Gray squirrels flick their tails and make a 'kuk' call to do what?

They also use it to announce when the danger has gone away.

In Britain, the eastern gray squirrel has largely pushed out which native squirrel?

Grays were brought over from North America and are now listed as an invasive species in Europe.

Which feature distinguishes a Eurasian red squirrel from a gray squirrel, especially in winter?

It sheds its coat twice a year, growing a thicker, darker one with bigger ear tufts for winter.

The American red squirrel mostly eats the seeds of what?

It fiercely defends its own patch of forest all year round, chattering at anyone who comes near.

Which is the largest tree squirrel native to North America?

Fox squirrels spend more time on the ground than most tree squirrels and are active only by day.

How do flying squirrels move from tree to tree?

The membrane, called a patagium, stretches from wrist to ankle; they cannot truly fly like birds or bats.

In 2019 scientists discovered by chance that flying squirrels glow which colour under ultraviolet light?

Ordinary squirrels do not glow at all, and nobody is sure yet why the flying ones do.

Flying squirrels are mostly active at what time?

Tree squirrels and ground squirrels are usually out during the day or at dusk.

Chipmunks carry food back to their burrows in what?

The seeds they store and forget help new plants and fungi grow across the forest.

Almost all chipmunks live in North America. The only one found mainly in Asia is which?

There are about 25 chipmunk species, most of them in western North America.

A groundhog is a large ground squirrel also known by which other name?

It has dozens of nicknames including whistle-pig, and it warns others by whistling.

Before hibernating, a groundhog's weight can increase by as much as what?

From June its metabolism slows and it builds up fat to survive the winter underground.

On Groundhog Day, if the groundhog sees its shadow, what is supposed to happen?

The tradition comes from the Pennsylvania Dutch and is celebrated every February 2, though studies show it does not really predict the weather.

Punxsutawney Phil, the most famous weather-forecasting groundhog, lives in which state?

He is the star of the town of Punxsutawney's Groundhog Day celebration every February 2.

Prairie dogs got their name from their habitat and their warning call, which sounds like what?

Explorer Meriwether Lewis called them 'barking squirrels' in 1806; there are five species.

Which members of the squirrel family are the heaviest and largest?

They spend the whole winter hibernating underground and live in groups in summer.

The Malabar giant squirrel, famous for its bright multi-coloured fur, lives only in which country?

It lives in the forests of the Western and Eastern Ghats and can be maroon, purple and cream.

Scrat, the saber-toothed squirrel from the Ice Age movies, is forever chasing what?

He never speaks a word and usually loses it in the end; he was the mascot of Blue Sky Studios.

Sandy Cheeks, the squirrel in SpongeBob SquarePants, comes from which state?

She lives underwater in an air-filled treedome, wears a diving suit and is a karate expert.

Rocky the Flying Squirrel starred in a 1959 cartoon alongside which animal friend?

The show was produced by Jay Ward, and Rocky's full name is Rocket J. Squirrel.

Which author wrote The Tale of Squirrel Nutkin in 1903?

Cheeky Nutkin teases an owl called Old Brown and barely escapes with his life, losing part of his tail.

Secret Squirrel, the 1965 cartoon spy, works with a sidekick who is what kind of animal?

Morocco Mole and Secret Squirrel were created by Hanna-Barbera for Saturday mornings.

In her very first comic in 1991, Marvel's Squirrel Girl defeated which famous villain?

She teamed up with Iron Man, and when he was captured she beat Doom with the help of her squirrel friends.

Disney's chipmunks Chip and Dale were named after a famous maker of what?

Thomas Chippendale was an 18th-century English furniture designer; the pair debuted in 1943.

Squirrel Appreciation Day is celebrated every year on which date?

It was created by a wildlife rehabilitator in Asheville, North Carolina, and first held in 2002.

In Norse mythology, the squirrel Ratatoskr runs up and down the world tree carrying what?

He passes insults between an eagle at the top of Yggdrasil and a dragon at its roots.

Squirrels are rodents. Roughly what share of all mammal species are rodents?

Rodents are named for gnawing, and all of them have front teeth that never stop growing.

Black squirrels are a 'melanistic' form of squirrel, meaning what?

Some scientists think the black fur keeps them warmer in cold northern places.

Twiggy, a famous animal performer, is a gray squirrel who does what?

Twiggy tows behind a tiny remote-controlled boat in a heated pool.

What do gray squirrels line their leafy nests with to keep warm?

The round nests are about 30 to 60 cm across, and squirrels sometimes share one to stay cosy.

How many toes does a squirrel have on each of its back feet?

The front feet have only four toes, which shows up clearly in squirrel tracks in the snow.

How many teeth does an eastern gray squirrel have in total?

Its big front teeth never stop growing, which is true for every rodent.

Baby gray squirrels open their eyes how long after they are born?

Their ears open at three to four weeks and they drink their mother's milk for about ten weeks.

Why are flying squirrels mostly active at night?

They are not good at escaping hawks and eagles that hunt by day, so they glide between trees after dark.

Some tame southern flying squirrels are kept as what kind of pet?

In the wild they eat fruit, seeds, buds, insects, fungi and even tree sap.

How much does a newborn red squirrel weigh?

The babies are born blind, deaf and helpless, and their fur covers their bodies by about three weeks old.

How many times a year does a red squirrel change its coat?

The thicker winter coat grows in between August and November and comes with much bigger ear tufts.