The Grey Squirrel
Sciuris carolinensis
Key features for Squirrel Control
Grey squirrels are distinguished from red squirrels by their grey fur, smaller ear tufts and their larger, more robust build weighing sixteen to eighteen ounces and having a total length of twelve to twenty one inches and a greyish to yellowish brown coat on their upper parts, none of the hair is totally grey and there fur is longer in the winter.
Grey squirrels climb and jump well, they are solitary animals, they have highly sensitive sense of smell, sight and hearing they are alert, particularly on the ground and are active all year round, sheltering in and around tree hollows during the winter and in the fall, the grey squirrels gather a winter food supply and bury it. When food is required, the squirrels sniff the ground to recover their supply.
Life Cycle
Grey Squirrels make nests called dreys that look superficially like birds’ nests,and are usually, built from twigs and leaves, however when they choose to nest in lofts they normally make the nest from Insulation material. Grey Squirrels have two breeding seasons a year. The female carries her young for forty five days before giving birth to three or four young. The first litters are born in February/March and are weaned at about ten weeks. The second litters are born in June/July and the young are ready to leave the nest in August / September.
Diet
Grey squirrels feed of off tree shoots, nuts, flowers, cereals and fruits. They put in the ground excess food two to five centimeters underneath the earth or in tree hollows. They normally feed on the ground, and together with their ability to digest acorns, they have a propensity to displace the red squirrel in areas of woodland where the two have come into contact.
Significance of Squirrel Control
The grey Squirrel can nest in your wall cavities, between false walls and in the loft, The squirrel may use roof insulation for nesting materials and may chew boxes and other items stored in the roof space, in some instances they have been known to chew electric cables and roof joists causing a potentially hazardous condition, at the same time causing the problem of noise hense the importance of Squirrel Control London . The Grey squirrel is prealent and is not protected in the UK.
Facts
Grey squirrels are so plentiful that they have to control their populations by shooting them, or trapping and poisoning them. They are not nocturnal, and are most lively at dawn and at dusk collecting food. They will usually spend the late morning and noon hours in the nest, coming out in mid afternoon, and then retiring for the rest of the night an hour or so prior to sunset.
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