**1. Squirrel Biology and Behavior:**
– Squirrels range from 10-14cm to 1.27m in total length.
– They have slender bodies with bushy tails and large eyes.
– Squirrels live in various habitats and are predominantly herbivorous.
– Squirrels mate once or twice a year, and young squirrels are altricial.
– Ground-dwelling squirrels are social, while tree-dwelling species are solitary.
– Squirrels employ food storage strategies to buffer against scarcity.
– Squirrels primarily eat plants, nuts, seeds, fruits, and green vegetation.
– Some squirrel species consume meat, insects, and bird eggs.
– Squirrels cannot digest cellulose and rely on a diet rich in protein, carbohydrates, and fats.
**2. Squirrel Taxonomy and Evolution:**
– Squirrels are divided into 5 subfamilies with about 285 species.
– The oldest squirrel fossil dates back to the late Eocene period.
– Living squirrels’ phylogeny is straightforward, with main groups split into different subfamilies.
– Squirrels were kept as pets until the 19th century.
**3. Squirrel Aggression and Predatory Behavior:**
– Ground squirrels exhibit aggression and predatory behavior, preying on chickens, snakes, and small mammals.
– Squirrel attacks on humans are rare, but they have been observed capturing and eating other animals.
– Stomachs of ground squirrels have been found with bird flesh and remains of vertebrates.
**4. Squirrels and Human Interactions:**
– Squirrels cause electrical disruptions and pose a threat to infrastructure.
– Squirrel-related disruptions are hypothesized to exceed cyber-attacks.
– Squirrels have been trained for drug detection in China and are part of police dog brigades.
– Consumption of squirrel brains can lead to health risks.
**5. Squirrel Research and Conservation:**
– Studies explore squirrel behavior, habits, phylogeny, and evolution.
– Squirrels play a vital role in ecosystems by dispersing seeds.
– Conservation efforts aim to protect squirrel habitats and mitigate human-squirrel conflicts.
– Monitoring squirrel populations helps assess ecosystem health, and public awareness campaigns promote coexistence with squirrels.
Squirrels are members of the family Sciuridae (/sɪˈjuːrɪdeɪ, -diː/), a family that includes small or medium-sized rodents. The squirrel family includes tree squirrels, ground squirrels (including chipmunks and prairie dogs, among others), and flying squirrels. Squirrels are indigenous to the Americas, Eurasia, and Africa, and were introduced by humans to Australia. The earliest known fossilized squirrels date from the Eocene epoch, and among other living rodent families, the squirrels are most closely related to the mountain beaver and to the dormice.[citation needed]
| Squirrels Temporal range:
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Various members of the family Sciuridae
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Scientific classification 
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| Domain: | Eukaryota | |||||||||
| Kingdom: | Animalia | |||||||||
| Phylum: | Chordata | |||||||||
| Class: | Mammalia | |||||||||
| Order: | Rodentia | |||||||||
| Suborder: | Sciuromorpha | |||||||||
| Family: | Sciuridae Fischer de Waldheim, 1817 | |||||||||
| Type genus | ||||||||||
| Sciurus Linnaeus, 1758
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| Subfamilies and tribes | ||||||||||
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