“You can’t spend a day walking around UCLA and not see a squirrel. That’s an impossible day,” said Peter Nonacs, vice chair of the ecology and evolutionary biology department.

The eastern fox squirrel is the most common type of squirrel on UCLA’s campus and lives for seven to 15 years, said Cynthia Frausto, a doctoral student in ecology and evolutionary biology. She added that although the squirrels are visible in most parts of campus throughout the day, they are most active in the morning and evening, particularly in the fall when foraging for and hoarding nuts.

“They’re a part of campus,” said fourth-year Spanish student Maria Padilla.

Frausto said the squirrels can often be caring mothers, are very social and are an invasive species – able to breed quickly and adapt to different environments well.

Joey Di Liberto, a doctoral student in the department of ecology and evolutionary biology, said the adaptability of eastern fox squirrels contributes to their success in urban environments.

“They lie to us. They use us,” Frausto said. “They know we’re going to give them food. They love being on campus.”

Padilla said she occasionally feeds the squirrels because of their apparent harmlessness and charm. However, when asked if students should feed the squirrels, the experts said they should not.

“Unfortunately, we’re not supposed to encourage the interaction with them, even though they really want to interact with you,” Frausto said. “It could turn into a scary situation where now the squirrels are jumping on us and biting our hands because they want snacks.”

Nonacs said feeding the squirrels may train them to aggressively search for food, and they may bite if they feel threatened, bringing the risk of disease transmission.

“They’re still a wild animal,” he said.

Ava Philson, a third-year environmental science and European languages and transcultural studies with French and Francophone student, said the campus squirrels are social and do not fear people. She added that anyone who spends a lot of time on campus will inevitably have a squirrel story.

“I’ve given them a cookie before, and then they just started following me,” said Levon Avedian, a fourth-year biology student. “One time, I had trail mix, and then a group of them just started trying to follow me.”

Philson also said she was once scared by a squirrel in the trash.

“I almost peed myself,” she said.

Pure observation is the best way to interact with the squirrels, Frausto said. She added that male squirrels may get more aggressive during their mating season but said she has not heard of any acts of squirrel aggression on campus.

Di Liberto said students looking to see more of the campus squirrels should listen for rustling in the pathside planters and small hedges. Frausto said the Mildred E. Mathias Botanical Garden and the Franklin D. Murphy Sculpture Garden are also hotspots for squirrels.

Many students, however, don’t need help encountering a squirrel. Philson said she loves the squirrels, whille Avedian said dealing with food-hungry squirrels can be annoying.

“I think that there’s a lot of them, and I think that they’re adorable,” he said. “And they are kind of greedy.”