- Squirrels can find food buried beneath a foot of snow.
Food is important during the cold winter months for squirrels. It makes sense, therefore, that some species are able to smell food under a feet in snow . The squirrel will then dig a tunnel under the snow, following the scent to their (or another squirrel’s) buried treasure.
- A squirrel’s front teeth never stop growing.
This is a common characteristic of other rodents, as well. The word “rodent” actually derives from the Latin “rodere,” which means to gnaw.
- Squirrels may lose 25 percent of their buried food to thieves.
And that’s just from members of their own species! Scatter hoarders (squirrels with multiple caches of food) have a difficult time keeping an eye on all of their hidden food. Fellow squirrels or birds often take advantage of this for a free meal.
- Squirrels may pretend to bury a nut to throw off potential thieves.
Squirrels have been observed engaging in “deceptive caching.” This is where a squirrel digs a hole and vigorously covers it up again, but without depositing the nut. It seems this is done to throw off potential food thieves.
