Squirrels and Relatives: Sciuridae

People have hunted squirrels for their fur and meat, and for sport. While squirrels are generally considered playful and harmless creatures, these animals can destroy crops and some people consider them pests. Their burrows occasionally damage irrigation systems and can harm livestock, but these rodents also destroy undesirable weeds and insects. Some squirrels are also carriers of organisms that transmit human disease, such as the plague and Rocky mountain tick fever. People have caused a decline in many squirrel populations by destroying their habitats and hunting them.