We spotted this squirrel while we were having lunch in a pull-off beside the road. At first we didn't recognise it as a squirrel, it was so big and fat! It was literally as big as a sheep, but with a long, fluffy tail. It was only when it sat up on it's hind legs that I realised it was a squirrel. A ground squirrel, because this one could not climb a tree. I also suspect she is pregnant.
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| This one is tiny, about the size of a rat. But it sure moves fast. |
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This one is a chipmunk, and is also tiny and fast. It is trying to get into a bird house.
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Hi Janet,
ReplyDeleteAlways loving your posts!
Are you sure the fat one isn't a marmot or groundhog?
Peter
Thanks, Peter.I know marmots don't have tails like this one had. I'm not sure about the groundhog. I did look up fat squirrels, Oregon, images, on the net and found some almost identical to this animal. I also found out that they can have ten or twelve babies which made it seem more possible. I really didn't think this was a squirrel until it sat up on it's hind legs, and used it's front paws to nibble on a pine cone. It acted like a squirrel. I did take some other photos, but this was the clearest one, although one of the others did show the tail.
ReplyDeleteI think it is an Oregon Ground Squirrel, because of the orange belly. I just looked up groundhogs and they certainly had the right shape and characteristics except for the orange belly.
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