Baby squirrel spotted in Belvedere

Rufus, the rare native red squirrel that has become the companion of Belvedere's gardeners, needs a new name.Rufus is a mummy and her baby squirrel was first spotted by three-year-old Stephen McWade from Green Park Meadows, Mullingar, last week."We have named the baby squirrel Stevie after Stephen," said Bartle D'Arcy, general manager."It is great that there is a little family of red squirrels here. They are rare and they are elusive but if you keep your eyes peeled you might spot them too.Steven's glimpse of the red squirrel has been reported to the Red Squirrel National Survey.Last January when Rufus was first spotted, it was the one of the first official sighting of a red squirrel in nearly 10 years; the cute red rodent had been declared extinct in Westmeath.Wildlife ranger Andrea Webb said at the time they were beginning to receive reports of red squirrel sightings: "The Red Squirrel Survey concluded that the animal was extinct in Westmeath and Meath. But they are definitely back and that is great news."Where they came from, we would only be guessing, but maybe it is that there was a small undetected resident population that has grown to a point where it has become more obvious."Equally good news for fans of the red squirrel is that the grey squirrel population appears to be in drastic decline.The red squirrel has been found in Ireland since before the last ice age, but became extinct a number of times. The removal of native woodlands helped to cause its decline. It was reintroduced in the 19th century but has again become rare and was considered absent from Westmeath until Rufus was spotted.