Ground Squirrels: One of the cutes animals?

There are a lot of interesting animals out there, but by far one of the cutest ones are the ground squirrels that live here in Lower Austria and Burgenland. During the last Years I visited them several times and also found them on different places here in Austria. I am always very happy when I meet them. They usually live from grass and seeds they find in their habitat, and during the day they are outside their holes they build in the soil. Because they are pretty used to humans it is easy to get very close to them.

Ground squirrel eating a seed. Picture: Florian Glechner.

The ground squirrels live in groups of different sizes and typically prefer higher grass where they can hide easier from predators like foxes and bigger birds of prey. As typical, ground squirrels live in open habitats like grasslands, meadows, steppe and semideserts, feed on the low plants, and use burrows as nests and refuge. Unfortunately there are only a few Places like these left here in Austria and also in other Countries. I know that they can also be found in Hungary near Lake Balaton, for example.

I want to visit them there too and also want to see several nice birds that live at Lake Balaton. Also, there should be a lot of nice places for birdwatching. There should be places with a lot of reed, wich is perfect for numerous bird species. -- I am dreaming again. 😄

Can I eat this flower? Probably yes. Picture: Florian Glechner.

Yummy seed. Picture: Florian Glechner.

A group of ground squirrels. Picture: Florian Glechner.