The grey squirrel , in scientific jargon called “ Sciurus carolinensis Gmelin” , is a rodent belonging to the sciuridae family. It is often portrayed in cartoons and illustrations as a cute and lively animal, and indeed it is, but there is a lot to discover about it, distinguishing it from its red counterpart with which it doesn’t get along very well.
The grey squirrel is in fact spreading in our country as it enters into competition with our (native) red squirrel for food resources, risking causing its extinction.
Another danger posed by the gray squirrel to the red squirrel is the Parapoxvirus which can cause up to 100% mortality in red squirrels, while the gray squirrel is a healthy carrier of the virus.
The grey squirrel can also have negative consequences for our forests as it attaches itself to the bark to feed on the underlying tissues or the sap, unlike the red squirrel.
Gray Squirrel: Origins
The grey squirrel is native to the forests of eastern North America from the Gulf of Mexico to Canada (Quebec-Ontario). In Europe it has been introduced in Great Britain, Ireland and Italy. In our country there are therefore the only populations of this species in continental Europe. The first introductions of the grey squirrel in Italy occurred with intentional releases in 1948 in Piedmont, in 1966 in Genoa and more recently in Lombardy without considering the potential damage to the ecosystem.
While the Ligurian population has been almost eradicated in recent years, a dangerous population was created in Perugia a few years ago, from animals that escaped from captivity, which could thus spread to Central Italy. Other expanding nuclei have been reported in Veneto.
Gray Squirrel: Characteristics
Half a meter long in total, including what is inside, the Gray Squirrel is almost half made up of the tail itself, as in cm, while in weight, not really. The body certainly has a greater weight, the total on average touches 500 grams. It would be banal to say that the coat is gray , we can specify that it is a rather light color and that it can often show the most acute observers, or photographers, reddish shades on different parts of the body.
For this reason, it can sometimes be confused by inexperienced observers with the Red Squirrel but in any case the Gray Squirrel is … gray and at most has red reflections, like us when we use henna. The belly area and also the throat of this acrobat animal are white or in any case lighter than the rest of the body.
Grey squirrel what does it eat
This rodent is active mainly during the day and, in the sunlight, better if in the shadows of the branches of a verdant forest, it searches for food . It feeds on seeds and dried fruit, it does not always eat them immediately, it usually finds them and hides them in the cavities of tree trunks or in holes in the ground that it then covers. As mentioned above, however, it also feeds on the sap that flows under the bark of trees, risking causing damage to the plants.
The Gray Squirrel does not hibernate during the winter months.
As for the reproduction rate of this animal, we take into account that the female goes into heat twice a year and during these periods the competition between the males becomes very fierce. The pregnancy lasts a month and a half and each time four puppies are born, on average, which, once weaned, reach adult size within 9 months of life.
Gray Squirrel: Price
The Gray Squirrel is priceless and on the contrary it is a breed considered an invasive exotic species for the damage it can cause.
Grey Squirrel: European Regulations Against Pest Species
On 14 February 2018, the Legislative Decree, published in the Official Journal on 30 January 2018 , came into force . The measure establishes the rules aimed at preventing, minimising and mitigating the negative effects on biodiversity caused by the introduction and spread, both deliberate and accidental, of invasive alien species within the European Union, as well as minimising and mitigating the impact that these species may have on human health or the economy.
The interventions envisaged in the decree have as their guidelines:
- prevention
- early detection and rapid eradication
- management in the case of species that are already widely spread.
In Europe, grey squirrels are controlled with methods that involve the removal of the animals from the natural environment, usually by capture in cages or direct killing with a firearm. In Great Britain, where the damage caused by invasive alien species in 2015 was estimated at around 2 billion Euros, poisoned bait dispensers have also been used where the red squirrel is not present. In Liguria, the eradication of a small urban population has begun with surgical sterilization and subsequent release of the animals. A similar activity has been started in Umbria where some of the animals have been sterilized.
Article 6 of Legislative Decree 230/2017 expressly prohibits the deliberate or negligent introduction into the European Union, reproduction, cultivation, transport, purchase, sale, use, exchange, possession and release of invasive alien species of Union concern, such as the grey squirrel.
Legislative Decree 230/2017 establishes in Articles 18-23 the measures for early detection and rapid eradication or, for species already widely spread, management measures aimed at containing their impacts, expressly providing that these measures must be proportionate to the impact on the environment and save the pain, anguish and suffering of the animals that can be avoided during the eradication process.