Paraxerus cooperi 237the seeds and fl owers of aloes. It also feeds on termites. In
East Africa the animals eat bulbs, nuts, seeds, insects, bird
eggs, aloe and euphorbia leaves, and the fruits of Sclerocarya,
Pterocarpus, and Kigelia. Smith’s bush squirrels are tolerant
of disturbed areas and generally prefer to forage on vegeta-
tion that grows quickly and produces many fruits and seeds,
such as mangoes and other cultivated fruits found in gar-
dens and plantations. The animals store food items at the
bases of tree trunks and thus play a central role in the dis-
persal of savanna species. Foods are eaten while held with
the forefeet. The squirrels actively drink water, which they
obtain from tree holes in the wild.
Smith’s bush squirrels are social and live in groups com-
posed of one or two adults and several juveniles. The groups
nest in trees, rocky crevices, house roofs, or on the ground in
holes lined with grass and leaves. The animals clean out and
reline their nests often, which may reduce the number of
parasites. The social hierarchy is obvious within groups, par-
ticularly during feeding and interactions with conspecifi cs,
such as allogrooming, chasing, and fi ghting. Scent-marking
play is utilized in establishing social organization. These
squirrels are highly territorial, and they mark areas 0.3–1.26
ha in size with scent by mouth-wiping, urinating, and anal-
dragging. They express aggression frequently with vocaliza-
tions, chases, and fi ghts, which occasionally result in the
death of one individual. Territories are defended, except dur-
ing mating season, when foreign squirrels are permitted to
enter. Smith’s bush squirrels utilize numerous vocalizations
to communicate. Most calls consist of a “click,” “rattle,” or
whistle of decreasing intensity and descending pitch, and
many types may be combined in diff erent situations. When
disturbed in their nests, the squirrels emit grunts and growls.
Courting individuals and females communicate with “clicks,”
and males give a low-pitched nasal murmur during mating.
They have a low-intensity alarm call composed of a series of
three “chir” or “click” sounds spaced over several seconds,
which indicates alertness, warning, or aggression for territo-
rial defense. Their high-intensity alarm call consists of six to
seven high-pitched notes emitted at one-second intervals,
and it resembles a bird call or whistle.
Mating occurs only in the morning and is initiated by the
female, which emits rattlelike calls. The male responds with
his own mating call and chases the female, during which time
both sexes make clicking noises and fl ick their tails. The male
allogrooms the female during the mating process, and both
individuals autogroom once copulation is complete. Females
gestate for 56 days. They produce one litter each year in the
wild, but up to three litters in captivity, with the captive in-
terbirth interval lasting 60–63 days. The timing of breeding
diff ers regionally through this species’ range. Females in Bo-
tswa na tend to give bir t h during t he wa rm wet mont hs rat her
than the cold dry months, and they do not produce any
young during May and September. In South Africa the squir-
rels reproduce seasonally, with most females giving birth
from October to January. The young are born precocious and
develop at a typical rate, opening their eyes by day 8, climbing
beyond the nest by day 19, consuming solid foods by day 21,
weaning between days 29 and 42, and reaching sexual matu-
rity within 6–10 months. At this time, the subadults are
evicted from the group. Both parents care for and groom their
young, although males sometimes practice infanticide in or-
der to mate again with the females more quickly. Smith’s bush
squirrels are preyed upon by raptors, snakes, and carnivorous
mammals. They are also vulnerable to ectoparasites, includ-
ing one species each of chigger and louse, two species of
mites, four species of fl eas, and seven species of ticks, as well
as the parasitic nematode Syphacia paraxeri and bacteria trans-
mitted by ticks.general references: Ansell and Dowsett 1988; de Graaff
1981; de Villiers 1986; Kingdon 1974; Smithers 1971, 1983; Vil-
joen 1975, 1977a, 1977b, 1977c, 1983a, 1989, 1997b.Paraxerus cooperi (Hayman, 1950)
Cooper’s Mountain Squirreldescription: Cooper’s mountain squirrel is a medium-
sized dark brown animal, distinguished by its golden rufous
thighs and feet. The dorsal pelage is dark brown grizzled