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A drey is the nest of a tree squirrel, flying squirrel or ringtail possum. [1] Dreys are usually built of twigs, dry leaves, and grass, and typically assembled in the forks of a tall tree. [2] They are sometimes referred to as "drey nests" to distinguish them from squirrel "cavity nests" (also termed "dens").
In Norse mythology, the squirrel Ratatoskr is a messenger who scurries up and down the trunk of the world-tree Yggdrasil, carrying malicious gossip and insults back and forth between the dragon Níðhöggr, who sits at the bottom of the tree gnawing on its roots, and the hawk Veðrfölnir, who sits at the top of the tree keeping watch.
Nests are also excavated from witches' broom – abnormally dense vegetative growth resulting from a rust disease – or cavities in the trunks of spruce, poplar, and walnut trees. American red squirrels rarely nest below ground. Each individual squirrel has several nests within its territory, and females with young move them between nests.
Squirrels eat a variety of nuts, berries, fruit, conifer tree cones, greens, and fungi. ©Dmitry Potashkin/iStock via Getty Images Squirrels are masters at storage and also deception.
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The fox squirrel (Sciurus niger), also known as the eastern fox squirrel or Bryant's fox squirrel, [3] is the largest species of tree squirrel native to North America. It is sometimes mistaken for the American red squirrel or eastern gray squirrel in areas where the species co-exist , though they differ in size and coloration.
Eastern gray squirrels also use dens for protection from predators and to help them look after their young. Young survive 40 percent less if they lived in a leaf nest compared to a den. Squirrels tend to claim 2-3 dens at the same time. Canopy and midstory trees are used by squirrels to hide from predators such as hawks and owls.
Learn which scents squirrels and chipmunks hate in this video. Chipmunks and squirrels are lovable creatures and fun to watch – but they can ruin your carefully tended landscape by digging holes ...