Red squirrel
Species of tree squirrel common in Europe and Asia / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Dear Wikiwand AI, let's keep it short by simply answering these key questions:
Can you list the top facts and stats about Red Squirrel?
Summarize this article for a 10 year old
The red squirrel or Eurasian red squirrel (Sciurus vulgaris) is a species of tree squirrel in the genus Sciurus common throughout Europe and Asia. The red squirrel is an arboreal, primarily herbivorous rodent.
This article needs additional citations for verification. (October 2021) |
Red squirrel | |
---|---|
Near Alverstone, Isle of Wight | |
Scientific classification | |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Chordata |
Class: | Mammalia |
Order: | Rodentia |
Family: | Sciuridae |
Genus: | Sciurus |
Species: | S. vulgaris |
Binomial name | |
Sciurus vulgaris | |
Subspecies[2] | |
23 recognized, see text | |
Red squirrel range |
In Great Britain, Ireland, and in Italy numbers have decreased drastically in recent years.[3] This decline is associated with the introduction by humans of the eastern grey squirrel (Sciurus carolinensis) from North America. However, the population in Scotland is stabilising[4] due to conservation efforts, awareness and the increasing population of the pine marten, a European predator that selectively controls grey squirrels.[5][6]