A short quiz about squirrels

Are You a Squirrel Expert? Back to Squirrel House index

Are you a squirrel expert? You might be surprised! Take the quiz below to find out what you know—and don’t know—about squirrels. (Answers are at the bottom of the page.)
1. Most squirrels are active early in the morning and late in the afternoon. But one of the following squirrels is nocturnal (active at night). Which one is nocturnal?
	(A) gray squirrel (B) red squirrel (C) fox squirrel (D) flying squirrel
2. Squirrels don’t always live in a den tree. They often live in
	(A) a leaf nest in a tree (B) a limestone cave (C) a dog house (D) in tall grass at the edge of a pond
3. Squirrels store nuts in their dens, but they also
	(A) bury many nuts (B) store nuts in empty cans (C) hide most of their nuts in people’s cars (D) give nuts to other animals
4. Some gray squirrels
	(A) are striped (B) are curly haired (C) are all white or all black (D) have blue eyes
5. Squirrels eat many foods other than nuts. Which food do squirrels NOT eat?
	(A) acorns (B) dogwood buds (C) mushrooms (D) wild cherries (E) pine seeds (F) small frogs (G) tulip bulbs
6. Baby squirrels are born
	(A) without tails (B) naked and blind (C) able to climb (D) upside down
7. Squirrels
	(A) have no voice (B) chatter all of the time (C) make "chuck" sounds and barking sounds (D) howl
8. Squirrels never
	(A) hang upside down on the trunk of a tree (B) leap from branch to branch (C) do somersaults when they play (D) sleep on the ground
9. Which of the following is NOT a predator of young squirrels?
	(A) blue jays (B) owls and hawks (C) foxes (D) tree-climbing snakes
10. In winter, squirrels
	(A) hibernate (B) hole up and sleep for a few days when it is extremely cold (C) go south (D) are active every day of the year

How many acorns can a squirrel "squirrel away"? Harry Pederson, a reader of the magazine Birds & Blooms, watched a squirrel bury acorns in a pile of dirt. He was curious to know how many acorns the squirrel buried, so he counted them! How many acorns do you think he found? (Answer at the bottom of the page.) From "Squirreling Away for the Winter" by Harry Pederson, Birds & Blooms, Dec/Jan 2001.








Answers: 1. (D) 2. (A) 3. (A) 4. (C) 5. (F) 6. (B) 7. (C) 8. (D) 9. (A) 10. (B) Harry Pederson counted 3,161 acorns! They were all buried by a single squirrel.