62 



HARD WICKE 'S S CIENCE- G OSSIP. 



THE SQUIRREL. 



THE squirrel (Sciurus vulgaris) belongs to the 

 order of animals called Rodents, wliich order 

 comprises nearly one-third of the mammalia. The 

 squirrels in themselves are a numerous family, and are 

 spread over almost the whole of the globe ; the Javan 

 squirrel (Sciurus Javensis) and the long-eared squirrel 

 (Sciurus macrotis), inhabiting respectively China and 

 Borneo, are among the most remarkable of the tribe. 



one, and wounded it slightly. A long time elapsed 

 before I could get a second sh ot, as it kept dodging 

 from one side of the tree to the other. Keepers de- 

 stroy them, as they are said to suck eggs and carry 

 off young birds, but I should think they very seldom 

 manage to rifle a pheasant's nest. They are far more 

 likely to suck the eggs of the carrion cxovf (Corz'us 

 corone), or the hawks Accipiter nisus and Tinnunculus 

 alaudarius, as these birds build in trees. Squirrels 

 also bite off the tops of young fir-trees in spring ; this 



■- r - > 



Fig. 45. — Common Ground Squirrel \^Tamias striaUts]. 



Our European squirrel is found plentifully in England 

 and Scotland, but is not, I believe, known in any part 

 of Ireland. Keepers generally consider this little 

 animal as one of their greatest foes, and accordingly 

 they shoot them whenever they have the chance, which, 

 I am glad to say, is not so often as they perhaps wish, 

 as the squirrel is a very cunning fellow, and when once 

 shot at, or wounded, he will hardly give you a second 

 chance. I once wanted a specimen, and going out into 

 a well-known haunt, almost immediately got a shot at 



they seem to do from love of mischief, as you may fre- 

 quently see the ground quite strewn with these tender 

 tops. The squirrel has also other enemies, which, 

 however, he generally manages to evade. Boys who 

 work in the woods love to hunt squirrels in the winter 

 and springtime, and in fact it is most exciting sport. 

 I must own that, in former days, I have frequently 

 indulged in it myself ; though cruel, it is hardly as bad 

 as fox-hunting, as the hunted squirrel far more often 

 escapes than does the fox ; he is driven from his nest 



