Tamiasciurus hudsonicus
| North American Red Squirrel
(Tamiasciurus hudsonicus) | |
|---|---|
| Range | |
 | |
| Taxonomic classification | |
| Order: | Rodentia |
| Suborder: | Sciuromorpha |
| Family: | Sciuridae |
| Subfamily: | Sciurinae |
| Tribe: | Sciurini |
| Genus: | Tamiasciurus |
| Binomial details | |
| Tamiasciurus hudsonicus (Erxleben, 1777) | |
| Other resources | |
| Full taxonomic details at MDD | |
The North American Red Squirrel (Tamiasciurus hudsonicus) is a small squirrel found in boreal coniferous forests.
Description
Description from Steele (1998) prior to Hope et al. (2016) splitting the species (see Taxonomic notes section below); however, the description remains valid: "a diurnal tree squirrel that is easily recognized by its small size (200-250 g), reddish dorsum, and white venter (usually demarcated by dark lateral lines, especially in summer), slightly tufted ears (in winter), and a white eye ring. Dorsal surface is reddish, feruginous brown, or olivaceous gray, usually with a distinctive reddish or brownish median band (Hall, 1981). The tail is smaller and flatter than that of other tree squirrels and varies in color from yellowish-gray to rusty red and is often grizzled (Flyger and Gates, 1982; Hall, 1981); a dorsal median band of black often extends the entire length of tail."
Museum specimens
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Holotype: 193638. Tamiasciurus hudsonicus abieticola. Adult female. Highlands, Macon County, North Carolina. Collected 9 March 1886. -
Holotype: 193638. Tamiasciurus hudsonicus abieticola. Adult female. Highlands, Macon County, North Carolina. Collected 9 March 1886.
External measurements
Length measurements are in millimeters (mm) and weight measurements are in grams (g), unless stated otherwise. If available, the sample size (n=) is provided. If a range is not provided and n= is not given, then the listed measurement represents an average.
| Part of range | Reference | Total length | Tail length | Hindfoot length | Ear length | Mass |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Carolinas, Virginia, Maryland | Webster et al. (1985) | 300–350 | 120–130 | 227 | ||
| Colorado | Armstrong et al. (2010) | 300–350 | 115–135 | 45–55 | 19–30 | 190–260 |
| Minnesota | Hazard (1982) | 284–343 | 113–130 | 42–50 | 19–25 | 162.8–246.2 |
| North Dakota | Seabloom et al. (2020) | 314 | 122 | 46 | 23 | 200–300 |
| Virginia | Linzey (1998) | 250–350 | 100–150 | 200–250 |
Color variation
From Steele (1998): "Pelage aberrations are relatively rare... although melanism (Allen, 1898; Linzey and Linzey, 1971; Mengel and Jenkinson, 1971), albinism (Wood, 1965), and white spotting are recorded (Layne, 1954). A completely melanistic population is reported from New Brunswick (Adams, 1873)."
Skull
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Holotype: 193638. Tamiasciurus hudsonicus abieticola. Adult female. Highlands, Macon County, North Carolina. Collected 9 March 1886. Dorsal view of the skull. -
Holotype: 193638. Tamiasciurus hudsonicus abieticola. Adult female. Highlands, Macon County, North Carolina. Collected 9 March 1886. Ventral view of the skull. -
Holotype: 193638. Tamiasciurus hudsonicus abieticola. Adult female. Highlands, Macon County, North Carolina. Collected 9 March 1886. Lateral view of the skull. -
Holotype: 193638. Tamiasciurus hudsonicus abieticola. Adult female. Highlands, Macon County, North Carolina. Collected 9 March 1886. Dorsal view of the mandible. -
Holotype: 193638. Tamiasciurus hudsonicus abieticola. Adult female. Highlands, Macon County, North Carolina. Collected 9 March 1886. Lateral view of the left mandible.
Taxonomic notes
The Fremont's Squirrel (Tamiasciurus fremonti) was split from Tamiasciurus hudsonicus by Hope et al. (2016), stating: "Through testing of competing systematic and niche-based divergence hypotheses, we recognize three species, Tamiasciurus douglasii, T. hudsonicus, and T. fremonti." According to Hope et al. (2016), they recognize Tamiasciurus fremonti as "consisting of the Southern Rockies, Sacramento Mountains, and Southwestern Sky Islands lineages and the American red squirrel, T. hudsonicus consisting of the remaining 5 lineages" that were attributed to that species.
Similar species
References
Armstrong DM, Fitzgerald JP, Meaney CA. 2010. Mammals of Colorado, Second Edition. Denver (CO, USA): University Press of Colorado.
Flyger V, Gates JE. 1982. Pine squirrels: Tamiasciurus hudsonicus, T. douglasii. Wild mammals of North America (JA Chapman and GA Feldhamer, eds.). John Hopkins University Press, Baltimore, 1147 pp.
Hall ER. 1981. The mammals of North America. 2 vols. New York (NY, USA): John Wiley and Sons.
Hazard EB. 1982. The mammals of Minnesota. Minneapolis (MN, USA): University of Minnesota Press.
Hope AG, Malaney JL, Bell KC, Salazar-Miralles F, Chavez AS, Barber BR, Cook JA. 2016. Revision of widespread red squirrels (genus: Tamiasciurus) highlights the complexity of speciation within North American forests. Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 100: 170-182.
Linzey DW. 1998. The mammals of Virginia. McDonald & Woodward Publishing.
Seabloom R, Hoganson JW, Jensen WF. 2020. The mammals of North Dakota. Fargo (ND, USA): North Dakota State University Press.
Steele MA. 1998. Tamiasciurus hudsonicus. Mammalian species (586):1-9.
Webster WD, Parnell JF, Biggs WC. 1985. Mammals of the Carolinas, Virginia, and Maryland. Chapel Hill (NC, USA): University of North Carolina Press.