Texas A&M class examines campus squirrel population
COLLEGE STATION (U-WIRE) — Squirrels running around with tracking collars will become a familiar site at Texas A&M University, as research on the ecology of fox squirrels in urban settings is expected to continue for at least two more years.

Students enrolled in the department of wildlife and fisheries sciences’ Animal Ecology 403 course spent the past three months trapping fox squirrels on campus, fitting them with radio-transmitter collars and tracking them using basic wildlife techniques like radio telemetry and census methodology.

They applied classroom principles to the data collected to find information like average survival rate, mortality, litter size and range movement, said Dr. Roel Lopez, Texas Agricultural Experiment Station wildlife researcher.

The project began on the main campus in February, and Lopez said the response has been overwhelming and positive.

The class trapped 10 squirrels during the research, Lopez said, and from the data students estimated there are 125 to 150 squirrels on campus.

Lopez said the squirrels use the ledges on buildings as superhighways, moving around more than he had anticipated.

“These suckers really move quite a distance,” Lopez said. “They just run and run in circles.”

Jennifer Cearley, a research technician for the class and a junior rangeland ecology major, said the project has two purposes.

“Wildlife departments are criticized because the courses are so strenuous and there’s not alot of time for field work,” Cearley said. “We need data on fox squirrels because nothing like this has been done before and we’re allowing students to get good experience.”

— The Battalion

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