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Litter Size

How many babies does a European ground squirrel have at once? (litter size)

How many baby European ground squirrels are in a litter?

A European ground squirrel (Spermophilus citellus) usually gives birth to around 6 babies.With 1 litters per year, that sums up to a yearly offspring of 6 babies.

Each of those little ones spend around 27 days as a fetus before they are released into the wild. Upon birth, they weight 6 grams (0.01 lbs) and measure 5.6 cm (0′ 3″). They are a member of the Sciuridae family (genus: Spermophilus). An adult European ground squirrel grows up to a size of 19.8 cm (0′ 8″).

To have a reference: Humans obviously usually have a litter size of one ;). Their babies are in the womb of their mother for 280 days (40 weeks) and reach an average size of 1.65m (5′ 5″). They weight in at 62 kg (137 lbs), which is obviously highly individual, and reach an average age of 75 years.

The average litter size of a European ground squirrel is 6

The European ground squirrel (Spermophilus citellus), also known as the European souslik, is a species from the squirrel family, Sciuridae. It is among the few European species in the genus Spermophilus. Like all squirrels, it is a member of the rodent order. It is to be found in eastern Europe from southern Ukraine, to Asia Minor, Austria, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Serbia, Greece, Romania, Bulgaria, North Macedonia and north as far as Poland but the range is divided in two parts by the Carpathian Mountains.The European ground squirrel grows to a length of approximately 20 cm (8 in) and a weight of approximately 300 grams (11 oz). It is a diurnal animal, living in colonies of individual burrows in pastures or grassy embankments. The squirrels emerge during the day to feed upon seeds, plant shoots and roots or flightless invertebrates. The colonies maintain sentinels who whistle at the sight of a predator, bringing the pack scurrying back to safety.Breeding takes place in early summer when a single litter of five to eight young is borne. The European ground squirrel hibernates between autumn and March, the length of time depending on the climate. In preparation they will build up reserves of brown fat during the late summer.

Other animals of the family Sciuridae

European ground squirrel is a member of the Sciuridae, as are these animals:

Animals that share a litter size with European ground squirrel

Those animals also give birth to 6 babies at once:

Animals with the same weight as a European ground squirrel

What other animals weight around 396 grams (0.87 lbs)?

Animals with the same size as a European ground squirrel

Also reaching around 19.8 cm (0′ 8″) in size do these animals: