why are squirrel species not very common in zoos

AndyJ08 said:
They definitely seem to be spreading to roadside zoos/private facilities, even if there is decline in the AZA. I’ve seen more and more places online offer them, and variegated squirrels are showing up in newly opened roadside zoos and private menageries much more often now.
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Prevost's have been in the private trade for years - many of the non-AZA holders have had them for over half a decade. There does not seem to be any real uptick in holders.

I'm also doubtful of Variegated - there's 14 reports from 6 facilities on USDA for a rough total of maybe 3-5 squirrels currently. They're there and indeed are a more recent arrival, but common and on the upswing? Doubtful. Both places with the most recent reports only had one.
 
Rodents (and bats) in general are particularly underrepresented in zoos. Methinks a lot of that
is the way zoos came about. Generally speaking animals were grouped in families rather than
habitat and when it came to mammals it was mostly; primates, bears, cats, ungulates.....
and everything else. While active most squirrels tend to be not colorful. But mostly I think it's
because squirrels are very common and most likely the wild mammal that Americans and Europeans are most likely to see and experience-even within urban zoos.
 
Anyone know why the tufted ground squirrel (Rheithrosciurus macrotis) has never been held in captivity? Highly specialized diet? You could probably drum up some interest in the species by calling it the "vampire squirrel" and reciting the local legends of it being capable of hunting animals as large as deer. Or maybe the legends are true and the squirrel is just too vicious to be held in captivity. ;)
 
SeaOtterHQ said:
Anyone know why the tufted ground squirrel (Rheithrosciurus macrotis) has never been held in captivity? Highly specialized diet? You could probably drum up some interest in the species by calling it the "vampire squirrel" and reciting the local legends of it being capable of hunting animals as large as deer. Or maybe the legends are true and the squirrel is just too vicious to be held in captivity. ;)
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It is very rarely even seen, let alone captured. It was only filmed for the first time (via camera trap) in 2015.
 
Austin the Sengi said:
Even if they remain in the private sector, I do hope that Variegated Squirrels will become more commonplace at some point. It certainly helps to have at least one Neotropical squirrel species that is decently represented going forward.
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Definitely! I wish that there was more interest in smaller mammals, but I doubt that American collections will ever reach the species diversity of European collections, probably because of the (not exclusively American) prioritization of “ABC” species in major zoos. You’d honestly be surprised at what obscure species pop up in the private trade from time to time, though. Saharan Striped Polecats have been on the uptick for private breeders, so that’s interesting.
 
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