# Are these squirrel dens?



## longbow (Mar 31, 2009)

It was 14 degrees today while I was be-bobbing through the forest, minding my own biddness, just lookin' at stuff, when I noticed holes with frost around them. There's lots of holes in the ground, everywhere, if you look for them. But these have a bunch of frost around them, like something is breathing out moist air inside and it's freezing as it comes out. I've seen bear dens that look a little like this. Are they squirrel dens? Anybody noticed this before?


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## Kevin D (Sep 15, 2007)

I can't imagine a squirrel den generating that much condensation. Short of a bear den, the only other thing I can think of is a fissure or cave venting up through the holes. There's a spot above Hardware Ranch in the mahoganies where I've noticed something similar when the temperatures get really cold.


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## Loke (Sep 7, 2007)

That's where Keebler cookies come from!!


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## swbuckmaster (Sep 14, 2007)

Undiscovered cave would be my guess

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## Jedidiah (Oct 10, 2014)

Squirrels do give birth in the winter, and the den of a female animal with a litter can generate a lot of moisture. There are a few tell-tale stripped pine kernels in front of the hole in the second picture.


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## longbow (Mar 31, 2009)

swbuckmaster said:


> Undiscovered cave would be my guess
> 
> Sent from my SM-G900V using Tapatalk


We have dynamite here (DitchWitch). I should slip a stick down one of the holes and see what happens. [rubs hands together with a devilish grin] :grin:


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## longbow (Mar 31, 2009)

Jedidiah said:


> Squirrels do give birth in the winter, and the den of a female animal with a litter can generate a lot of moisture.  There are a few tell-tale stripped pine kernels in front of the hole in the second picture.


I see that all the time but there wasn't much around these holes. When squirrels hibernate they slow way down so I don't know if they breathe enough to put out much moisture. I don't know.


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