Ever watched a squirrel and found yourself both amused and a little baffled by how they manage to eat just about anything? Squirrels rely on their sharp teeth, nimble paws, and wild climbing skills to strip bark, crack open nuts, swipe eggs, and nibble on fruits or mushrooms.
They gnaw with their ever-growing incisors, grip food with their front paws, and use their agility to reach snacks in trees or down on the ground.
Let’s dig in and see what foods squirrels go for, how their diet changes by season, and the clever ways they stash snacks for later. You’ll pick up tips for spotting their feeding habits—and maybe how to keep them out of your garden or bird feeder (if that’s your thing).
What Squirrels Eat and How They Eat It
Squirrels chow down on a pretty wild mix of plant and animal foods. They use those sharp teeth, quick paws, and strong jaws to pop open shells, dig up buried snacks, or tear into soft stuff like fruit and bark.
Squirrel Diet Explained
Since squirrels are omnivores, you’ll catch them eating both plants and small animals. Most of what they eat comes from plants—nuts, seeds, fruits, buds, mushrooms, and tree bark. All that gives them fats, carbs, and vitamins.
They’ll also munch on insects like caterpillars, beetles, and grubs for a protein boost. Some types even grab bird eggs or nestlings if they get the chance.
Watch a squirrel for a bit and you’ll see it switch up tactics fast. One minute it’s chewing through a nut’s shell, the next it’s using those little hands to peel fruit. Flying squirrels, by the way, eat more fungi and insects than tree squirrels since they’re out foraging at night.
Favorite Foods and Eating Preferences
Squirrels seem to love high-fat, high-calorie foods. Acorns, walnuts, pecans, and hickory nuts are favorites because that fat helps them get through winter. Seeds like sunflower and pumpkin are top picks, especially if you’ve got a bird feeder.
Red squirrels especially go for pine nuts and conifer seeds. Fruits—apples, berries, persimmons, tomatoes—give them a quick sugar rush. You might notice they often take a bite and toss the rest, which is a bit wasteful but sure makes it easy to spot what they’ve been up to.
They’ll nibble on tree buds and flowers in spring. Strong-smelling plants like garlic and hot peppers? Squirrels avoid those.
Types of Nuts and Seeds Consumed
Squirrels really dig acorns from oaks, hazelnuts, walnuts, pecans, and hickory nuts. They go for nuts with lots of fat and calories. Red squirrels focus on conifer seeds and pine nuts. Gray squirrels eat a wider range of tree nuts.
Seeds are also on the menu—sunflower, pumpkin, and mixed birdseed. At feeders, black oil sunflower seeds disappear first. Squirrels peel seeds with their teeth and stash extras.
They use scatter-hoarding, burying small caches all over, or larder hoarding, piling food in one spot like a nest or attic.
Seasonal Changes in Diet
Squirrels change their menu with the seasons. In spring and summer, you’ll see them eating fresh greens, buds, flowers, fruits, and insects. These foods give them protein and vitamins, especially when they’re raising young.
When fall hits, they go into collection mode, grabbing and hiding high-fat nuts and seeds—acorns, walnuts, pecans—to get ready for winter. In winter, they dig up stored nuts, gnaw on bark, and eat dried mushrooms.
Some squirrels even dry mushrooms in the sun to save for later. If plant food gets scarce, they’ll eat more insects and eggs for protein.
Different Squirrel Species and Their Feeding Behaviors
Let’s look at how different squirrels eat, what baby squirrels need, and how adults find and stash food. We’ll focus on the ones you’re most likely to spot in your yard or a nearby park.
Tree Squirrels vs Ground Squirrels
Tree squirrels—like the eastern gray squirrel and red squirrel—spend most of their time up in the trees. They eat nuts, seeds, fruits, fungi, buds, and sometimes eggs from birds’ nests.
You’ll see them use those strong incisors to open tough shells and strip bark when food is scarce. Gray squirrels often visit backyard feeders and carry whole nuts to safe spots in the trees to snack.
Ground squirrels eat more plants and insects. Some will eat eggs, small frogs, or carrion if they find it. You’ll spot them foraging on the ground, digging up roots or seeds.
Tropical ground squirrels eat more bugs, while a few are almost strict vegetarians.
Feeding Habits of Baby Squirrels
Baby squirrels rely on their mother’s milk at first. Around 6–8 weeks old, they start nibbling on soft fruits and tender plants.
Mothers bring them small, easy foods and sometimes hide snacks nearby for the pups to find. By 10–12 weeks, babies practice cracking soft seeds and learn to climb for food.
If you ever find an orphaned baby, don’t feed it adult foods like cow’s milk or big nuts. A wildlife rehabilitator knows what formula to use and how to feed them safely.
How Squirrels Forage and Store Food
Squirrels rely on sight, smell, and memory to hunt for food. You’ll spot them digging shallow holes to bury nuts—scatter-hoarding, if you want the technical term.
Sometimes, they stash food in tree crevices or other sneaky spots. If a cache seems unsafe, they’ll move things around without much hesitation.
Red squirrels, for example, can get pretty defensive over their food stores. They’ll even create middens full of chewed shells.
Tree squirrels might strip bark to snack on cambium, especially when food runs low. They mix eating on the spot with caching, which gives them a better shot at making it through harsh winters or dry spells.
Curious about how tree and ground squirrels differ? Check out Understanding Squirrel Diets: Ecological Insights Unveiled (https://faunapunks.com/articles/understanding-squirrel-diets-ecological-insights/).
