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You are here: Home > Wildlife > Mammals > Ground squirrel
WILDLIFE: MAMMALS: GROUND SQUIRREL
Class: Mammals
Order: Rodents
Family: Sciurids
Genus and species: Xerus rutilus
Common name:
English: Unstriped/pallid ground
squirrel
Swahili: Kidiri
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Identification
Body coat rufous grey. Hair more sparse, coarse and bristly than in tree squirrels. Belly almost naked. Hind limbs elongated, claws long and slightly curved. Small ears. Bushy tail black and white, of same length as body. Males larger than females. Weight: 0.65 kg. Length: 20 cm. Tail: 20 cm.
Distribution and ecology
Distributed throughout the country. Prefers open habitats, arid savannah and semi-desert scrubland, but it has invaded farms in fertile lands and mountain forests. In certain regions it is a pest for crops such as maize and cassava.
Food
It feeds on several types of vegetal matter: roots, bulbs, grass, leaves, seeds, nuts and fallen fruit. It also eats insects, scorpions, and even small reptiles, eggs and chicks. It stores food to withstand the dry season.
Behaviour
Strictly diurnal and terrestrial, rarely climbs trees. Very sociable, lives in colonies of a dozen or more, in burrows built by themselves and sometimes shared with other rodents. Burrows vary from simple straight tunnels to networks of up to 2 m in length, with several entries from where squirrels survey the surroundings standing on their hind legs. They usually leave the burrow in the early morning and late evening, spending the hottest hours inside the tunnels. When they are outside the burrow, they can be easily seen in open land, though they keep in constant alert and race home at the least threaten. Their movement is distinctive, jumping with the tail arched. They often keep the tail folded over the body, possibly to protect themselves from sunlight. They communicate through acute whistles, that become growls in danger situations. Their main predators are small felines, as well as jackals, mongooses, eagles and snakes. Their longevity is 6 years. The squirrel's bite is painful and hazardous, since the large amount of bacteria (streptobacillae) in their salivary glands can produce severe infections and even septicaemia, reason why in some places they are considered poisonous animals.
Reproduction
Gestation lasts 6 weeks and a half. The female gives birth inside the burrow. The litter is composed of 3 or 4 youngs, naked and with eyes closed, that never leave the burrow until 6 weeks after birth.
Related species
Striped or Geoffrey's ground squirrel (Xerus erythropus): distinguished by the white stripe along the flanks.
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Wildlife