An uprising of killer squirrels? Scientists filmed shocking footage of cute animals eating small rodents
A new study has shown that, at first glance, mimicry creatures are not always kind and fluffy. Scientists have filmed shocking footage of California ground squirrels, often confused with squirrels, hunting, killing, and then eating small rodents.
Until now, biologists have considered these gophers to be "grain-eating" animals that can only hunt grasshoppers at most. But new observations show that these California furries are evolving to become carnivorous, writes DailyMail.
California gophers are often confused with squirrels because of their similar size and fluffy tail.
Source: Sonia Wilde
"It was shocking. We've never seen anything like this before. However, this behavior, which has not been seen in science before, sheds light on the fact that there is still much to learn about the nature around us," said study leader and adjunct professor of biology at the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire, Dr. Jennifer Smith.
Scientists have never seen gophers eat small rodents before.
Source: Sonya Wilde
Scientists were observing California gophers in Briones Regional Park in Contra Costa County when they noticed their unusual behavior. The researchers saw these creatures of all ages and sexes hunting, eating, and competing for voles.
The vole or common vole is a subspecies of rodent of the rat family. It is a small animal, 9-14 centimeters long, weighing no more than 45 grams, according to Wikipedia.
The common vole is gray and brown in color.
Source: Getty
Of the 74 observations of interactions between California gophers and voles, 42 percent involved active hunting, the researchers said. According to the researchers, the hunting behavior of the gerbils arose along with an increase in the availability of prey.
California gophers evolved from herbivores to predators.
Source: Sonia Wilde
"The fact that California gophers are flexible in their behavior and can respond to changes in food availability may help them to persist in environments that are rapidly changing due to the presence of humans," said study author Sonia Wilde.
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