Black Squirrels

Black Squirrel Facts

Black squirrels are a melanistic subgroup of the Eastern gray squirrel. Both black squirrels and gray squirrels have the same mating and feeding patterns. Found all across North America, they will normally live up to a year, but some have lived up to 10 years. Black squirrels will eat anything they are offered, often feeding on nuts and acorns, any kind of seed, fruit, insects, and even bird eggs. Mating occurs in winter, typically from December to the end of January.

Black Squirrel Damage

Noises are one of the biggest issues if you’ve got squirrels. Their feeding and scampering can become annoying if it is constant. If they decide to nest in vents inside your home, they may create a fire hazard, and they can also short-circuit your electrical wiring by chewing through cables. When out looking for food, squirrels may help themselves to your vegetables or flower bulbs. They’ll even strip bark off trees to use in their nests.

It is not uncommon for these rodents to be carriers of diseases. If a squirrel has mange, its coat is deteriorating because of it, often leaving the fur spotty and uneven. Cat scratch fever can be carried by squirrels, too. If you’re scratched by a squirrel carrying this disease, it will affect your lymph nodes, causing them to swell and become tender. Typhus, a disease that causes rashes and delirium, is also carried by these rascally rodents. Squirrels, in rare cases, can even carry rabies, a disease that can severely damage the nervous system if left unchecked.

Black Squirrel Infestation

During mating season, black squirrels chase each other around and create chucking noises. You might also hear chewing, scratching, or pattering if they’ve made their way inside your home. Droppings can be left wherever they enter and exit.

In trees, you’ll find their nests made of leaves, usually during the summer and fall months. Gnawed leftovers of nuts or nipped sticks and twigs can also be found in nests.

You might notice munch marks on plants in your home or in your vegetable or flower gardens. Claw marks from scratching on your siding, tunnels in your insulation, or damaged goods from urine and droppings are all signs of a squirrel infestation.

Types of Black Squirrels

Black Squirrel Identification

Black squirrels are identical to the gray squirrels, with the exception of the coloration. Their black bodies are the result of “melanism,” a phenomenon that expresses a usually repressed genetic characteristic. When including the tail, a black squirrel is approximately 15 inches to 20 inches long.

Black Squirrels in the Walls & Home

These are commonly found not only in wooded areas, but also in suburbs and cities. When they’re not scrambling up a tree, they’re hiding in rock crevices, burrows, under leaves, in chimneys, attics, and barns. Black squirrels adapt easily and have learned to live around people, so they might be closer with you than your actual neighbors.