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Fox and Gray Squirrel

    Camp Lejeune boasts one of the largest populations of fox squirrel in eastern North Carolina.  An endemic of the fire maintained longleaf pine-wiregrass community type, fox squirrels have a distinct advantage with the aggressive prescribed fire program on Base.  Primarily seed and hard mast consumers, fox squirrels find ample foraging opportunity in the prolific cone producing longleaf pine forest.  A variety of oak trees such as turkey, bluejack, and blackjack  oak provide relatively stable hard mast in alternate years.  Where the pure-pine forest grades into pine-hardwood and pure hardwood forests along creek-side zones and within upland hardwood forests, gray squirrels are the rule.  

    Management strategies for squirrels are divided into two categories:  habitat monitoring and mainteneance (fox squirrel nest boxes and hardwood management) and harvest management.  Current practices for fox and gray squirrels are as follows:

• Monitor harvest data and distribution.

• Monitor fox squirrel nest boxes for use and benefit to nesting squirrels.

• Monitor habitat conditions.

    Do you know which is a fox squirrel and which is a gray squirrel? 

Rabbits 

    Camp Lejeune is home to both the eastern cottontail rabbit and marsh rabbit.  The cottontail is probably the best known rabbit in eastern North America.  Cottontails are classic edge species and prefer disturbed areas such as field edges, “brush” lots, 2-3 year old clear cuts, and other areas that contain a mixture of herbaceous and shrubby plants. 

    Various habitat management practices and silvicultural techniques benefit rabbits.  Tree limbs/shrubs from vegetation maintenance around wildlife foodplots are piled to provide escape cover and resting/nesting locations.  During clearcut operations, derbis and slash is piled in windrows.  In locations where adjacent cover is lacking, windrows are only partially burned and left on site and provide good cover and foraging opportunities as briers, black berries, and other vegetation grows.  Most efforts related to brush piles are temporary in nature due to an aggressive burning program. 

        Planted wildlife clearings on Camp Lejeune provide additional foraging opportunities for cottontails.  Various grains and forage crops such as clover provide a nutritious supplement to native vegetation.  Rotational planting on some plots also provides cover in the form of tall grass and grains.  Primary predators for all rabbits include owls, hawks, gray fox, and large snakes.

    Marsh rabbits can be found within coastal brackish and salt water marshes along the Intracoastal Waterway.  They also are known to inhabit some inland bottomland hardwood and headwater swamps associated within tidal creeks.  Reports of marsh rabbits on local barrier islands are common.  Marsh rabbits are good swimmers and will readily cross tidal creeks and flooded marshes.  Like their relative the cottontail, marsh rabbits require diverse habitats with adequate food and cover.

Do you know your rabbits?

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Environmental Management Division	Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune
Installations & Environment Department	Last Updated:  September 26, 2002