Great North Squirrel Quest 
We asked you to join the Great North Squirrel Quest throughout October 2009. Here's what you found...
Once again, Save our Squirrels asked everyone to get out and about to look for squirrels, both red and grey, so that we can compare the distribution of squirrels to last year (2008).
People living in, visiting or travelling through Cumbria, Northumberland, North Yorkshire and West Merseyside (Sefton) were encouraged to report all sightings of squirrels to Save our Squirrels.
Over 450 squirrels were reported by members of the public during the Quest with an almost 50:50 split between red and grey. We'd like to thank everyone who took part. The information is very valuable and is key to the future survival of the red squirrel.
"2009 is the second year that SoS has run the Great North Squirrel Quest and we can compare this years' month-long snapshot of squirrel sightings with last years, reminding you that these are sightings reported by the general public and is not a full scientific survey of all the woodlands, gardens and other locations squirrels might be seen.Good news is that the spread of red squirrels reported to SoS across much of the region is very similar to last year - great news as it means that the red squirrel is still doing well throughout the North of England." Philippa Mitchell, People and Widlife Officer for SoS said.
There is one obvious exception on the maps, where red squirrels were not reported to SoS during the Quest; the South Lakes area. However, we did have red squirrels reported from this area during the summer. Excellent news from Sefton is the good spread of red squirrels seen and reported between Southport and Crosby. This area was very badly hit by the squirrelpox virus during 2008 and there were fears that the red squirrels would not survive.
Tragically, at the end of October, a new squirrelpox outbreak was reported from Sefton, this time the south-end of the region at Blundellsands in Crosby. As you can see from the map, this was pretty much the only location in Sefton where grey squirrels were seen and reported to SoS during October. Also on the not-so-good news side is that the spread of grey squirrels reported to SoS during the 2009 Quest is also very similar to the 2008 Quest. Grey squirrels were reported from many parts of the region with a heavy focus along the Tyne River corridor between Hexham and Newcastle and around the Keswick area of Cumbria as well as the South Lakes.
However, every grey squirrel sighting reported, has been acted on, so a big thank you goes to the many local groups and individuals who have helped to follow-up the grey sightings and carry out the necessary culling. Sadly, the two species cannot live together and without culling grey squirrels we are committing the red squirrel to certain death and extinction in England.
2009 Great North Squirrel Quest Maps
Here are the 2009 maps for each county that took part and for the North of England. Click on the map to enlarge.
   
Northern England Cumbria Northumberland Sefton
2008 Great North Squirrel Quest Maps
Click on the County name or map to see the detailed map for that county.
As you can see, there is good coverage across all three areas and we are pleased to have had more sightings of reds than greys overall.
Please remember that these maps are only based on the sightings recieved during the first Great North Squirrel Quest which was in October 2008. The coverage of different areas is only as good as the information we recieve from you.
If you know of red or grey squirrels in areas that are not shown on these maps, then please do report it either here or via our hotline - 0845 347 9375. If you see red squirrels regularly in an area, then just let us know perhaps once a month that they are still there. If you see grey squirrels in red squirrel areas, then please do report them as soon as possible so that we can get them dispatched and give our beloved reds a better chance of long-term survival.
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