Abert squirrel

noun

ˈā-bərt- 

variants or Abert's squirrel

: a large, chiefly tree-dwelling, dark gray squirrel (Sciurus aberti) with long tufted ears and white underparts that is found primarily in forests of ponderosa pine in Arizona, New Mexico, Colorado, Utah, and northern Mexico

Mule deer, Abert squirrels and other wildlife often appear along the trails …

—Nancy Muenker, Denver Post, 2003

… the only wildlife we spotted, other than birds and lizards, was an Abert's squirrel, which shook its bushy, skunklike tail at us before scampering into the woods.

—John Stanley, Arizona Republic, 2009

called also tassel-eared squirrel

Word History

Etymology

after James W. Abert †1897 American soldier and scientist

First Known Use

1853, in the meaning defined above

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