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Red
Squirrel and Grey Squirrel
The
Red Squirrel is our native species of squirrel. It's actually better
adapted to the conifer woodland of a colder Europe just after the
Ice Age, but in the absence of competitors when the land bridge
to France was flooded 10,000 years ago it was able to adapt to the
broadleaved woodlands that came to dominate much of the British
Isles when the climate warmed as the glaciers retreated.
When
the Grey Squirrel was introduced in the 19th century, the Red Squirrel
met its match. The Grey Squirrel had evolved in North American broadleaved
woodland and was well adapted to what it found here. It also carried
viruses to which the Red Squirrel had no natural immunity.
For
more indepth information and how to get involved with Red Squirrels
click here
Grey
squirrels first appeared in Pendle, Lancashire, in 1954. Today
red squirrels survive only in parts of North Merseyside and the
extreme southwest of Lancashire, with a recent report of a small
population in the western edge of Greater Manchester.
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