Eastern Grey Squirrel

The Eastern Grey Squirrel (Sciurus carolinensis) is a tree squirrel in the genus Sciurus. It is native to eastern North America. 
Description
The eastern gray squirrel has gray fur, but it can have a brownish color. It has a large bushy tail.
Behaviour
Eastern gray squirrels build a type of nest, known as a drey, in the forks of trees, consisting dry leaves and twigs. Males and females may share the same nest for short times during the breeding season, and during cold winter spells. Squirrels may share a drey to stay warm. They may also nest in the attic or exterior walls of a house, where they may be regarded as pests. squirrels may inhabit a tree den hollowed out in the trunk or a large branch of a tree.
Eastern gray squirrels are crepuscular, or more active during the early and late hours of the day, and tend to avoid the heat in the middle of a summer day. They do not hibernate
Communication
As in most other mammals, communication among eastern gray squirrels involves both vocalizations and posturing. The species has a quite varied repertoire of vocalizations, including a squeak similar to that of a mouse, a low-pitched noise, a chatter, and a raspy "mehr mehr mehr". Other methods of communication include tail-flicking and other gestures, including facial expressions. Tail flicking and the "kuk" or "quaa" call are used to ward off and warn other squirrels about predators, as well as to announce when a predator is leaving the area. Squirrels also make a coo-purring sound that biologists call the "muk-muk" sound. This is used as a contact sound between a mother and her kits and in adulthood, by the male when he courts the female during mating season.
Diet
Eastern gray squirrels eat a range of foods, such as tree bark, tree buds, flowers, berries, many types of seeds and acorns, walnuts, and other nuts, like hazelnuts and some types of fungi found in the forests. They can cause damage to trees by tearing the bark and eating the soft tissue underneath. The seeds and catkins of gymnosperms cedar, hemlock, pine, and spruce are another food source, as well as those of angiosperms such as hickory, oak, and walnut, and truffles. The squirrels also raid gardens for wheat, tomatoes, corn, strawberries, and other garden crops. Sometimes they eat the tomato seeds and discard the rest. eastern gray squirrels also prey upon insects, frogs, small rodents including other squirrels, and small birds, their eggs, and young. They also gnaw on bones, antlers, and turtle shells.
Predations
Predators include hawks, weasels, raccoons, bobcats, foxes, cats, snakes, owls, and dogs. In its introduced range in South Africa, it has been preyed on by African harrier-hawks.