Squirrels save for the family’s future

Red squirrels about to start a family don’t exactly set aside nuts for college. Yet some females do hoard extra food to pass along to youngsters that have not yet been conceived.

A red squirrel in Canada defends its territory. T. Karels

In northern Canadian forests, the red squirrels, Tamiasciurus hudsonicus, survive winters thanks to caches of fir cones.