10 Types of Squirrels in Utah (With Pictures and Identification)

Utah’s numerous terrain presents the right setting for lots of squirrel species to thrive. From mountain forests to rocky canyons, these animals are full of life and visible year-round.

Each type of squirrel has distinctive choices and behaviors. Some glide by treetops, others dig burrows or chatter from the branches. Finding out to ascertain them makes outdoor exploration way more pleasurable.

This textual content introduces 10 squirrels you can discover in Utah. With photographs and clear descriptions, you’ll know what to seek for and the place to hunt out every.

Frequent Squirrels Current in Utah

Rock Squirrel (Otospermophilus variegatus)

The Rock Squirrel is doubtless one of many commonest and widespread ground squirrels found all by means of southern and jap Utah. It has a sturdy physique lined in a mix of gray and brown fur with a speckled, mottled look. Its bushy tail, normally edged in white, is way much less full than that of tree squirrels. Adults normally develop to about 17 to 21 inches in dimension, along with the tail, and weigh between 1 and a few kilos.

These squirrels are acknowledged for his or her burrowing habits, normally digging difficult tunnel applications under rocks, cliffs, or dry hillsides. They’re most full of life in the midst of the early morning and late afternoon, significantly in scorching summer season months. In distinction to tree squirrels, Rock Squirrels spend an extreme period of time on the underside nonetheless are fantastic climbers when essential. All through winter, they enter a state of torpor or hibernation in colder areas.

Their weight reduction program is omnivorous, consisting of seeds, fruits, nuts, inexperienced vegetation, and generally small bugs or chook eggs. They’re steadily observed shut to abandon washes, rocky outcrops, canyons, and scrublands, the place they forage and protect watch from elevated perches. In Utah, they’re normally seen in Zion Nationwide Park and completely different arid southern areas.

Gratifying actuality: Rock Squirrels have cheek pouches that they use to carry meals once more to their burrows, they normally’ve been observed “sunbathing” on rocks to warmth up throughout the morning.

Pink Squirrel (Tamiasciurus hudsonicus)

The Pink Squirrel is a small, energetic tree squirrel current in Utah’s coniferous forests, significantly in mountainous areas. It is merely acknowledged by its reddish-brown fur, white underbelly, and distinguished white eye ring. Its tail is fluffy nonetheless not as prolonged or broad as that of the Jap Fox Squirrel. Adults measure spherical 11 to 14 inches in full dimension and weigh between 5 and 9 ounces.

This squirrel may be very territorial and vocal, normally chattering loudly to warn intruders away from its space. It builds large nests in tree branches or tree hollows and caches meals in middens — piles of cones, nuts, and seeds — to survive harsh winters. Pink Squirrels keep full of life year-round, even in snowy conditions.

Their weight reduction program is centered spherical conifer seeds, considerably from spruce and fir bushes, nonetheless moreover they eat mushrooms, buds, berries, and chook eggs. They’re usually current in high-elevation forests all by means of Utah, such as a result of the Uinta Mountains and the Wasatch Fluctuate. They avoid deserts and open sagebrush plains, preferring dense, cool woodlands.

Gratifying actuality: Pink Squirrels are acknowledged to dry out mushrooms by hanging them on tree branches — primarily creating “mushroom jerky” to retailer for winter!

Jap Fox Squirrel (Sciurus niger)

The Jap Fox Squirrel is a very powerful tree squirrel in Utah and is characterised by its reddish-orange abdomen, gray-brown once more, and prolonged, bushy tail. It may develop as a lot as 20 to 27 inches in full dimension and weigh over 2 kilos. No matter its title, this species is native to jap North America nonetheless has been launched and established in parts of Utah.

These squirrels are tree dwellers, usually seen foraging on the underside or leaping from division to division in metropolis parks, farmlands, and deciduous forests. They assemble leafy nests extreme in bushes and as well as take shelter in tree cavities. Energetic year-round, they’re normally observed all through daytime looking for meals or burying nuts for later use.

Fox Squirrels primarily feed on acorns, walnuts, fruits, grains, and even corn, making them frequent company to agricultural lands. In Utah, they’re commonest alongside the Wasatch Entrance and in metropolis areas like Salt Lake Metropolis, the place they’ve tailor-made properly to human-altered environments.

Gratifying actuality: No matter being non-native to Utah, Jap Fox Squirrels have become so frequent in some cities that they’re normally mistaken for a neighborhood species.

Golden-mantled Ground Squirrel (Callospermophilus lateralis)

The Golden-mantled Ground Squirrel resembles a chipmunk nonetheless is noticeably greater and lacks facial stripes. It has a golden or reddish-brown “mantle” all through its shoulders and neck, with two black stripes down its sides bordered by white. Adults develop to about 9 to 12 inches prolonged and weigh 5 to 10 ounces.

These ground squirrels are diurnal and solitary, spending a whole lot of their time foraging for meals or sunning themselves on rocks. They dig intensive burrows beneath logs, tree roots, or boulder piles and hibernate in the midst of the chilly months. They’re normally observed darting all through climbing trails or sitting upright to take care of watch.

Golden-mantled Ground Squirrels eat seeds, berries, bugs, and generally fungi. They’re frequent in Utah’s mountain forests and rocky slopes, significantly at mid to extreme elevations equal to Bryce Canyon and the Wasatch Mountains. In distinction to tree squirrels, they are not professional climbers and spend virtually all their time on the underside.

Gratifying actuality: These squirrels will sometimes “play ineffective” when threatened, lying motionless until the hazard passes.

Uinta Ground Squirrel (Urocitellus armatus)

Endemic to parts of the Intermountain West, the Uinta Ground Squirrel is a species distinctive to areas like northern and central Utah. It has a quick, stocky physique with grayish-brown fur and a quick tail. Adults develop to about 11 to 12 inches prolonged and weigh between 8 and 14 ounces.

These squirrels are among the many many earliest risers in spring, rising from hibernation as shortly as a result of the snow melts. They’re full of life in the midst of the day and keep in colonies with overlapping burrow applications in open meadows, sagebrush flats, and grassy fields. By late summer season, they begin retreating to their burrows and keep underground for as a lot as 8 months.

Uinta Ground Squirrels feed on grasses, seeds, flowers, and the occasional insect. They’re significantly prevalent in areas identical to the Uinta Basin, Cache Valley, and grassy clearings all by means of northern Utah. Their transient full of life season makes them a lot much less seen than completely different squirrels in the midst of the 12 months.

Gratifying actuality: These squirrels are terribly vocal and use a set of chirps and whistles to alert others of their colony to potential hazard — sort of like a prairie canine’s warning system

Least Chipmunk (Neotamias minimus)

The Least Chipmunk is the smallest of all chipmunks in North America and a typical sight in Utah’s forests, shrublands, and rocky outcrops. It has a slender physique with tan to grayish-brown fur, accented by 5 distinct darkish stripes working alongside its once more and sides. A white stripe above and beneath the eyes makes it merely distinguishable from comparable species. Adults measure about 7 to 9 inches prolonged, along with their tail, and weigh spherical 1 to 1.5 ounces.

Agile and alert, these chipmunks are full of life in the midst of the day and are significantly busy throughout the early morning and late afternoon. They’re fantastic climbers and would possibly normally be seen scurrying up low shrubs or small bushes trying to find meals. They spend a whole lot of the 12 months preparing for winter by storing seeds and meals in underground caches. All through winter, they go into a light-weight hibernation, periodically waking to feed.

Their weight reduction program is omnivorous and consists of seeds, berries, nuts, fungi, and bugs. Least Chipmunks inhabit a wide range of habitats, along with sagebrush flats, open forests, and rocky slopes in every excessive and low elevations. In Utah, they’re frequent in areas identical to the Uinta Mountains and the Wasatch Plateau.

Gratifying actuality: Least Chipmunks can carry meals of their cheek pouches which is perhaps virtually the equivalent dimension as their heads, allowing them to transfer large portions once more to their burrows in a single journey!

Cliff Chipmunk (Neotamias dorsalis)

The Cliff Chipmunk is a contemporary, agile species that thrives in Utah’s rocky cliffs, canyon partitions, and extreme desert mesas. It has a grayish-brown physique with delicate undersides and a number of other different faint black and white stripes alongside its once more. Its tail is prolonged and bushy, normally held erect when working. Adults develop to about 8 to 10 inches in full dimension and weigh between 2 and three ounces.

In distinction to further terrestrial chipmunks, the Cliff Chipmunk prefers vertical terrain and is normally seen bounding all through boulders, ledges, and rocky crevices with ease. It is solitary by nature and spends a whole lot of its time foraging alone. These chipmunks are diurnal and keep full of life even in cooler temperatures, though they retreat to burrows in harsh winter conditions.

They primarily devour seeds, nuts, berries, and cactus fruit, and likewise will eat small bugs when accessible. In Utah, they’re most steadily observed throughout the southern part of the state, considerably in Zion Nationwide Park, the Grand Staircase–Escalante space, and completely different rugged canyonlands.

Gratifying actuality: Cliff Chipmunks are expert climbers and would possibly scale steep rock faces with ease, normally nesting in cracks or crevices the place predators cannot attain them.

Uinta Chipmunk (Neotamias umbrinus)

The Uinta Chipmunk is a high-elevation species acknowledged for its daring striping and vibrant coat. It has reddish-brown to darkish gray fur with three daring black stripes separated by two white stripes alongside its once more. Its face is marked with additional darkish and lightweight stripes, and its tail is bushy and multicolored. Adults measure 8 to 10 inches prolonged and weigh spherical 2 to 3 ounces.

This chipmunk is current in coniferous forests, subalpine meadows, and rocky forested slopes all by means of Utah’s mountain ranges. It is diurnal and spends a whole lot of the day foraging, climbing shrubs, and navigating fallen logs. Uinta Chipmunks are fantastic climbers however moreover create burrows beneath logs or stumps for nesting and storing meals.

They feed on seeds, pine nuts, fruits, bugs, and fungi, and play an important ecological place by dispersing seeds and spores. Their fluctuate in Utah consists of the Uinta Mountains, the Wasatch Fluctuate, and higher parts of central and southern Utah. They hibernate all through winter nonetheless generally wake to snack on saved meals.

Gratifying actuality: Uinta Chipmunks may make quick trilling alarm calls that alert completely different chipmunks and squirrels to shut by predators like hawks or foxes.

Yellow-bellied Marmot (Marmota flaviventris)

Though not an actual squirrel, the Yellow-bellied Marmot belongs to the squirrel family (Sciuridae) and is doubtless one of many largest members of this group in Utah. It has a sturdy, cumbersome physique with yellowish-brown to rusty fur and a lighter, practically golden abdomen. Adults normally measure 18 to 27 inches prolonged and weigh between 5 and 11 kilos, counting on the season.

Yellow-bellied Marmots are extraordinarily social and generally keep in colonies inside high-altitude meadows, talus slopes, and rocky outcroppings. They’re most full of life throughout the morning and late afternoon, spending a whole lot of the rest of the day basking on warmth rocks. Marmots hibernate for better than half the 12 months, normally from September to April.

Their herbivorous weight reduction program consists of grasses, flowers, forbs, and completely different alpine vegetation. In Utah, they’re usually current in mountainous areas identical to the Wasatch and Uinta ranges and the La Sal Mountains throughout the southeast. Their loud, high-pitched whistle has earned them the nickname “whistle pig.”

Gratifying actuality: Yellow-bellied Marmots can double their physique weight all through summer season to rearrange for his or her prolonged winter hibernation.

Northern Flying Squirrel (Glaucomys sabrinus)

The Northern Flying Squirrel is a unusual and elusive nocturnal squirrel species found throughout the dense forests of northern Utah. Whatever the title, it doesn’t actually fly nonetheless glides using a membrane generally known as a patagium, which stretches between its wrists and ankles. Its clean fur is grayish-brown above and white beneath, and it has large black eyes tailor-made for night imaginative and prescient. Adults measure 9 to 12 inches in dimension, along with the tail, and weigh about 3 to 5 ounces.

Flying squirrels are strictly nocturnal and are usually not usually seen by individuals. They keep in old-growth coniferous and blended forests, nesting in tree cavities or abandoned woodpecker holes. They glide silently from tree to tree trying to find meals and are extraordinarily agile throughout the air, sometimes gliding over 100 ft in a single leap.

Their weight reduction program consists of fungi (significantly truffles), lichens, seeds, berries, and sometimes chook eggs or bugs. In Utah, they’re current in restricted areas with mature forest cowl, considerably throughout the northern mountains and isolated patches of acceptable habitat. Habitat fragmentation makes them increasingly prone.

Gratifying actuality: Northern Flying Squirrels play a vital place in forest ecosystems by dispersing truffle spores, which help bushes take up water and nutritional vitamins by symbiotic fungi.

FAQs About Squirrels in Utah

What types of squirrels could also be current in Utah?

Utah is home to a variety of squirrels, along with every tree and ground-dwelling species. Quite a few the largely found squirrels embrace the Rock Squirrel, Pink Squirrel, Jap Fox Squirrel, Golden-mantled Ground Squirrel, and Uinta Ground Squirrel. Completely different species like chipmunks and even Northern Flying Squirrels may additionally be observed in acceptable habitats.

Are flying squirrels current in Utah?

Certain, the Northern Flying Squirrel (Glaucomys sabrinus) is current in Utah, nonetheless it is unusual and primarily inhabits dense, mature coniferous forests throughout the northern parts of the state. They’re nocturnal and elusive, so sightings are uncommon.

The place are squirrels largely seen in Utah?

Squirrels in Utah are usually seen in a variety of environments, along with metropolis parks, mountain forests, rocky canyons, and desert scrublands. Tree squirrels identical to the Jap Fox Squirrel need wooded and suburban areas, whereas ground squirrels and chipmunks are generally seen in open meadows and rocky slopes.

What do squirrels in Utah eat?

Squirrels in Utah have a varied weight reduction program counting on the species. Frequent meals embrace seeds, nuts, berries, fruits, fungi, bugs, and even small vertebrates or chook eggs. Some species, identical to the Pink Squirrel, moreover feed carefully on conifer seeds and mushrooms.

Do squirrels hibernate in Utah?

Many ground-dwelling squirrels in Utah, such as a result of the Uinta Ground Squirrel and Yellow-bellied Marmot, hibernate in the midst of the winter months. Tree squirrels identical to the Pink Squirrel and Jap Fox Squirrel do not hibernate nonetheless maintain full of life year-round, relying on cached meals gives.

Are any squirrel species in Utah thought-about invasive?

The Jap Fox Squirrel (Sciurus niger), although not native to Utah, has established populations in metropolis areas equal to Salt Lake Metropolis and the Wasatch Entrance. Whereas not aggressively invasive, it competes with native species and will displace them in some areas.

Are squirrels protected by laws in Utah?

Normally, squirrels are thought-about non-game wildlife in Utah. Nonetheless, positive restrictions would possibly apply counting on the species and placement. It’s best to hunt the recommendation of the Utah Division of Wildlife Sources sooner than making an attempt to entice, relocate, or hunt any wildlife.

Can squirrels carry illnesses?

Certain, squirrels can carry illnesses equal to tularemia, leptospirosis, and parasites like ticks or fleas which is able to unfold illness. Nonetheless, they not usually pose an enormous threat to individuals besides handled or provoked. It’s always good to observe wildlife from a distance.

What’s the excellence between chipmunks and squirrels?

Chipmunks are actually a type of ground squirrel and are normally smaller with distinct facial stripes. Tree squirrels, identical to the Pink or Fox Squirrel, have greater our our bodies and bushy tails, whereas ground squirrels and chipmunks are sometimes further slender and keep in burrows.