18.08.2014 change 18.08.2014

50 new European ground squirrels in the meadows of Lower Silesia

50 European ground squirrels are being released into the wild in Jemielno in Lower Silesia. For now they still live in an acclimation cage, but they have already begun to dig tunnels leading to freedom. They should dig their way out in about two weeks, and form a new colony.

European ground squirrels live in burrows in large meadows. If necessary, they can climb, but they are not as skilled as their arboreal red cousins. There is, however, an activity in which they are unrivalled. They do it with pleasure, spending even more than 80 percent of their life on it. It is... sleeping!

They disappeared from the Polish territory at the turn of the 1970s and 1980s. Few years ago they were not found in Poland at all. Work on the restoration of the species is carried out by the Polish Society for Nature Protection "Salamandra". Since 2004, naturalists breed them in the Poznań zoo and restore colonies.

Andrzej Kepel of "Salamandra" reported in the release sent to PAP, in the meadows, the owners of which have agreed to accept ground squirrels, naturalists releasing them in the acclimation cages that resemble large cages in which the animals lived before. The nets limiting the freedom do not extend underground. So when ground squirrels build their extensive burrows, new exits start to appear outside of the fenced area. After a few weeks of the cages are removed, and squirrels begin life in the wild. Colonies formed this way in Kamień Śląski and Głębowice are already quite large.

This year naturalists started populating another place: Jemielno in Lower Silesia. On last week, they brought a group of 50 animals. They include both young animals born this year, as well as adults, several years old. If they survive the winter and remain in the colony next year, naturalists continue to bring more animals to the colony for at least two more years.

"Restoration of an extinct species is a complex, lengthy, expensive process, and it not always ends successfully. It is better to protect our natural resources without waiting for them to be on the verge of extinction. We undertook to restore the European ground squirrel primarily because it also involves the protection of their habitats - dry grasslands, along with many other endangered species that live there" - explained Kepel.

Species, whose protection also means preservation of many other species of plants and animals, naturalists call an umbrella species. For the protection of its habitat, specialists from "Salamandra" in cooperation with landowners restore once abandoned meadows, remove shrubs, restore hay or grazing purposes.

PAP - Science and Scholarship in Poland

ekr/ agt/

tr. RL

Przed dodaniem komentarza prosimy o zapoznanie z Regulaminem forum serwisu Nauka w Polsce.

Copyright © Foundation PAP 2024