It turns out, squirrels keep their ears open as well.
Once they feel the coast is clear based on what they hear, the squirrels relax.
to get to prove their point, the scientists evaluated 54 Eastern gray squirrels in a park in Ohio.
Photo:Stock Photosfrom Stubblefield Photography/Shutterstock
First, they played a recording of a red-tailed hawk’s call.
Once the squirrels headed for safety, the scientists waited 30 seconds before playing one of two recordings.
In one instance, the playback included bird chatter.
This chatter corresponds to calls made from one bird to another when not under threat.
Instead, the second recording was ambient noise containing no bird chatter.
The results were striking.
These behaviors include standing, fleeing, freezing, and looking upall clear signs that the squirrels felt threatened.
And, the time to return to normal was much longer.
Perhaps in some circumstances, cues of safety could be as important as cues of danger.
h/t: [IFL Science!]
