# Where Do Squirrels Live?

> Where squirrels live: Woodlands, parks, and gardens, native range cues, and human overlap. Status Least Concern.

- **Species:** Squirrel (*Sciurus carolinensis*)
- **Conservation status:** Least Concern
- **Diet:** Omnivore (mostly nuts, seeds, fruit)
- **Habitat:** Woodlands, parks, and gardens
- **Lifespan:** About 6 years in the wild
- **Top speed:** Up to 32 km/h (20 mph)
- **Canonical HTML:** https://globalanimalguide.org/animals/squirrel/where-do-squirrel-live/
- **Parent profile:** https://globalanimalguide.org/animals/squirrel/
- **Last reviewed:** 2026-07-16

## Quick answer

Squirrels are agile tree-climbing rodents best known from the eastern gray squirrel, a familiar resident of woodlands, parks, and gardens across North America and much of Europe. They are mostly herbivorous, feeding on nuts, seeds, and fruit, and famously bury food caches to survive winter. Adults typically measure 23 to 30 cm (9 to 12 in) in body length plus a long bushy tail, and wild gray squirrels usually live around 6 years. Squirrels as a family live nearly worldwide.

## Who should skip this page

Skip this if you need a sighting hotline. This page is native range and habitat.

## Behavior and agility

Squirrels are remarkably acrobatic, leaping between branches and running headfirst down tree trunks thanks to ankle joints that rotate to grip bark. Their long, bushy tails aid balance, act as a rudder during jumps, and serve as a blanket in cold weather. They are active by day and stay alert for predators, flicking their tails and giving sharp calls when alarmed. Gray squirrels build leafy nests called dreys high in trees.

## Help protect the Squirrel

Even familiar animals lose ground as wild habitat keeps shrinking worldwide.

[Donate to wildlife protection](https://worldanimalrescuenetwork.org/donate/)

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Source: Global Animal Guide (https://globalanimalguide.org/animals/squirrel/where-do-squirrel-live/). Licensed CC BY-NC 4.0 — free for non-commercial reuse with attribution.