Spiny-tailed squirrel (SciiFii)

The spiny-tailed squirrel (Acanthosciurus sylvaticus) is a species of squirrel that originally did not exist, but has since been created by SciiFii and introduced throughout the eastern broadleaf forests of North America to help boost biodiversity. The spiny-tailed squirrel has a typical head-and-body length of 19 to 23 centimeters (7.5 to 9 inches), a tail length of 15 to 20 centimeters (6 to 8 inches), and a mass of 250 to 340 grams (8.8 to 12.0 oz). Males and females are the same size. The long tail helps the squirrel to balance and steer when jumping from tree to tree and running along branches and may keep the animal warm during sleep, however, with a spiny tail (in which the animal got its name), it is also used to protect the squirrel from predators when foraging on the ground. The spiny-tailed squirrel is an arboreal, primarily herbivorous rodent, feeding mostly on the seeds of trees, neatly stripping conifer cones to get at the seeds within, fungi, nuts (hazelnuts, beech, chestnuts, etc), berries, and young shoots. More rarely, spiny-tailed squirrels may also eat bird eggs or nestlings. Mating can occur in late winter during February and March and in summer between June and July. Up to two litters a year per female are possible. Each litter averages three young, called kits. Gestation is about 38 to 39 days. The young are looked after by the mother alone and are born helpless, blind, and deaf. They weigh between 10 and 15 grams. Their tails grow defensive spikes and their body is covered by hair at 21 days, their eyes and ears open after three to four weeks, and they develop all their teeth by 42 days. Juvenile spiny-tailed squirrels can eat solids around 40 days following birth and from that point can leave the nest on their own to find food; however, they still suckle from their mother until weaning occurs at 8 to 10 weeks. The conservation status of the spiny-tailed squirrel is Least Concern due to successful conservation efforts, the spiny-tailed squirrel's wide range and its tolerance to many of the human activities.