GETTING SQUIRRELY AT THE HOUSTON ZOO

See our Antelope Squirrel baby Photo Album

They're small and quick and they are the newest addition to the Houston Zoo's award winning Natural Encounters Building.  They are Harris' antelope squirrels and they may be seen daily in the Natural Encounters Drylands Exhibit.  The Houston Zoo is the only zoo in the past 8 years to have bred the species.

Born on April 23, the 5 babies spent the first several weeks of their lives in an off exhibit area of the Natural Encounters Building.  About a week before the babies were born, their mom, Middlin (their father is Humphrey) started making a nest in the area using hay and feathers.  She had been seen collecting feathers from the guinea fowl that live in the Drylands Exhibit.

Keepers confirmed the birth early on the morning of April 23 when they heard squeaking and found five little pink babies squirming in the hay and feathers nest.  The babies began emerging from the nest toward the end of May and they've been scurrying around the Drylands Exhibit ever since.

Antelope squirrels are native to the southwestern United States and northwestern Mexico.  They thrive in a variety of desert habitats, including areas with cacti and desert shrubs, arid sparsely vegetated plains and lower mountain slopes.  They prefer rocky hills and rocky soils.  They are burrowing animals and will usually have several burrows in their home range, for nesting, retreat and escape.

Male and female antelope  squirrels are identical in appearance and size.  They have pale brown to grizzly black fur with one white stripe down each side and white markings that ecircle each eye, making they look like they're wearing spectacles.

Antelope squirrels are well adapted to live in the heat of the desert.  They maintain a hgher body temperature than any other non-sweating mammal (97 - 107 degrees F) and cool themselves through salivation.  They store very little body fat, probably because they are active throughout the day, including the hottest times of the day.  Activity and rest times are very delineated; they are either going full-tilt or they are at a dead stop.

Antelope squirrels are not to be confused with their chipmunk cousins.  Chipmunks are usually a redder color, and live in more wooded and rocky areas, especially in higher elevations.  Chipmunks have more stripes and also have a white stripe on their face instead of the white rings around their eyes like antelope ground squirrels.

And thanks to Natural Encounters keeper Kristin Wettermann for all the great information about antelope squirrels.

See our Antelope Squirrel baby Photo Album