Squirrels resemble rodents

Squirrels belong to the large family of small rodents known as Sciuridae sizes. Common members of the family are squirrels, chipmunks, ground squirrels, flying squirrels and marmots. They are native to Eurasia, Africa and America. They have been introduced to the Australia. Developed for the first time in the Eocene 40 million years ago. They are closely related to beavers. The word squirrel is taken from the old French escurel meaning shadow queue.

Are generally small animals ranging from 7-10 cm long and weigh about 10 g. The Alpine Marmot is one of the giant squirrels 53-73 cm in length and its weight reaches up to 5-8 kg. The squirrels are characterized by the presence of slender bodies with bushy tails and large eyes. The skin is soft and silky and is much thicker in comparison with other species. The body colour is highly variable between different species. The hind limbs are large compared to the arms and feet there are 4 or 5 on each foot. The arms legs also have thumbs but not very well developed. Each foot is also equipped with a soft pad on the bottom.

They have a distribution around the world from the tropical forests to semi-arid deserts except the polar regions and the drier areas of the desert. They are herbivores in their habit of feeding and prefers that they feed on seeds and nuts, but sometimes may also feed on small insects and other small invertebrates. They have an excellent sense of vision as indicated by their large eyes. The meaning of the vision is best developed in the arboreal species of housing. The claws are very strong adapted for climbing and grasping. Vibrissae are also present in the heads and limbs which are sensitive to the touch. Teeth in squirrels follow the same pattern of rodent with large incisor teeth that grow continuously throughout life. It is also present behind the crushing grindstones a wide gap called the diastema. The squirrels breed once or twice a year and give birth to a variable number of younger and the gestation period is from 3 to 6 weeks depending on the species. Young people who are born naked, helpless, blind and toothless.

In all species parental care is usually provided by the mothers and the young are weaned until are 6-10 weeks of age. At the end of the first year the young reach maturity. Land dwelling species are social animals that prefer to live in colonies with well demarcated Division of labour, while ground housing species prefer to live alone. Land and housing of tree species are diurnal while flying squirrels are nocturnal in habit. Similar to rabbits and deer are unable to digest cellulose by dependent on high content of proteins, carbohydrates and fat-rich diets. In the temperate region, early spring is the most difficult time for them to survive as buried nuts begin to sprout and are no longer available for them to eat. Their diets consist mainly of nuts, seeds, conifer, fruits, mushrooms and green vegetation. Some species is also known to feed on meat in conditions of hunger.