Franklin's ground squirrel

Franklin's ground squirrel was first described by Joseph Sabine in 1822, who named it in honor of the British Arctic explorer Sir John Franklin. but since DNA sequencing of the cytochrome b gene has shown Spermophilus to be paraphyletic it is now placed in its own genus. Franklin's ground squirrel is suggested to be sister to a clade containing not only the Mohave, round-tailed, spotted, and Perote ground squirrels (genus Xerospermophilus), but the prairie dogs as well. There are no commonly recognized subspecies. ==Description==

, Nebraska Franklin's ground squirrel is a typically sized squirrel, with adults measuring from in total length, including the tail. Males weigh about in the spring, and up to in the fall. In comparison, females are significantly lighter, and put on proportionally less weight through the year, being about in the spring, and up to in the fall. The fur is brownish grey marked with both light and dark speckles, and fades to yellowish white on the animal's underside. The tail is darker, almost blackish in color, while the head is a relatively solid grey. In many respects, Franklin's squirrel closely resembles the common eastern grey squirrel. However, it has a shorter, less bushy tail, shorter ears, longer claws, and a patch of slightly yellowish fur on the rump, which the eastern grey lacks. Other local squirrels with which it might be confused include Richardson's ground squirrel, which is more built, and has a longer tail, and the Columbian ground squirrel, which has noticeably reddish fur. ==Distribution and habitat==

Franklin's ground squirrel is found from central Alberta to southern Manitoba in Canada, and in the United States from North Dakota and Minnesota as far south as northern Kansas to northwestern Indiana. Within this region, it inhabits tallgrass prairies where there is dense vegetation cover, often along the boundaries of woodland or marsh. ==Biology==

Franklin's ground squirrel is omnivorous, feeding mainly on vegetation in the spring and late summer, but with meat and eggs forming a significant proportion of their diet in the early summer. In the spring, they feed on roots, new shoots, and grasses, shifting to leaves and flowers, and then to fruit and seeds as the year progresses. Plants eaten include dandelion, stinging nettle, red-berried elder, white clover, and wild peas, as well as garden vegetables. Animal material consumed ranges from insects to eggs, small rodents, fish and frogs, up to rabbits and even fully-grown mallards. The squirrel hibernates from about August to April, although this varies between individuals. Males typically enter hibernation earlier than females, and adults earlier than young-of-the-year, which need more time to build up fat reserves. Badgers are the main predators of Franklin's ground squirrels, although they are also eaten by coyotes, foxes, weasels, hawks, and snakes. ==Behavior==

Franklin's ground squirrel is diurnal, spending the night in burrows, typically built on steep slopes. The burrows are about in diameter, and extend on average below ground. They consist of a single nesting chamber lined with dried plant matter, and a number of side tunnels leading to food storage areas and latrines. Burrows typically have two or three entrances. Each burrow is home to only one or two squirrels during the spring and summer, when the animals are generally antisocial. In North Dakota, males have an average home range of and females , although the home ranges of individual squirrels do overlap, and population densities can range from . In the winter, several individuals can share the same burrow. ==References==