The Storybook Squirrels

FOCUS NATURE THE STORYBOOK SQUIRRELS OF SABINO CANYON

One summer afternoon in Sabino Canyon, in the Santa Catalina Mountains overlooking Tucson, I came upon a group of roundtailed ground squirrels, little furry individuals that looked as though they had sprung from the pages of one of Beatrix Potter's storybooks. After acknowledging my presence, they bolted into their holes, leaving exposed the hind quarters of two juveniles who attempted to make their escape into the underground simultaneously. I decided to return very early the next morning to photograph them. At 6:17 A.M., armed with film, tripod, and 400mm lens, I marched toward the colony, tiptoeing the last few feet. There was no sign of the creatures. I decided to wait and watch. By 7:25 and still no sign, it dawned on me: they're still asleep! Not until 8:30 did I spy two sleepy, shiny, ebony eyes surveying the land. Soon all holes were occupied by drowsy eyes blinking in the intense morning light. One brave juvenile crawled out. Stretching luxuriantly, he delivered an impressive yawn exposing yellowed sharp teeth. When he reclined, belly flat against the warming desert floor, hind legs outstretched behind him, the others began to emerge from their holes, yawning, scratching, and stretching. Stealthily I moved my tripod without disrupting the blissful wakening of these furry creatures and focused on the one who had emerged first. He was nodding off as I pressed the release button. The shutter clacked. The motor drive roared. And the ground squirrels convulsed with alarm, fleeing toward their burrows to escape whatever it was that had stolen their tranquil morning. Soon, though, 20 furry heads popped up again, repeating the scenario. Each time I clicked, under they went. Finally, their fear dissolved, and I was able to photograph them continuously. At two months old, the juveniles are able to emerge from their underground nest to explore and forage. With instinctive deliberation, they creep, bellies almost touching the ground, tails slightly curved, swaying from left to right with each stride. Although their diet consists mainly of creosote blossoms, desert tea, cactus, cactus flowers, cactus fruit, mesquite beans, leaves, and twigs, I watched as one youngster feverishly ingested a cigarette butt. While foraging, the mother, always alert to danger, repeatedly inches up to her young and gives them a "kiss." This naso-oral contact aids the squirrel in distinguishing between kindred, friendly neighbors, and intruders. Each time family members make contact with one another, their scents are exchanged and transferred, producing an identifying odor unique to that family. Initiated most frequently by the infants, it is shared among the entire family with the exception of the father. The male, exiled after mating, mates with other females during the January to April breeding season. Sparring drills serve to establish pecking order. Young males of breeding age must reestablish themselves each season when competing for females. I observed one adolescent creeping toward a dozing sibling. Suddenly, he pounced on his unsuspecting kinsman, and they tumbled in the sand trying to pin one another to the ground. These comic characters possess a highly complex social structure. Notably affectionate, they initially express a genuine need for one another and for social bonding within the litter. As independence grows, the litter dissolves. They begin to sleep alone in their own burrows, claim their own territories, and interact with other members of the colony. When the ground squirrels reach breeding age, the cycle of life repeats itself, opening yet another chapter in the marvelous book of Nature.

Suzan Victoria lives in Tucson. A former fashion photographer, she now focuses solely on wildlife and landscapes.