12 Animals that Eat Nuts

Want to learn more about the Animals That Eat Nuts? Read this article, which explores various species and their nut-eating behaviors!

Nuts are not only a preferred snack among humans, but they are also a vital part of many animals’ diets. This article has a list of different creatures that rely on nuts for their nutrition.

Animals That Eat Nuts

1. Red Fox

Scientific Name – Vulpes Vulpes

Red foxes are solitary canids with yellowish-red to reddish-brown upper coats. Rodents, rabbits, mice, and squirrels make the most of their diet, but they are also fond of nuts and vegetables.

2. Raccoons

Scientific Name – Procyon lotor

Raccoons are considered opportunistic eaters because they devour almost everything, like nuts, insects, fish, bird eggs, and even human garbage. These North American natives have winged tails and distinctive black masks.

3. Red Squirrel

Scientific Name – Sciurus vulgaris

Squirrels are popular nut eaters in the deciduous and coniferous forests of Europe and northern Asia. With their lower incisors, they can easily open beechnuts, acorns, and other nuts in a few seconds.

4. Monkeys

Scientific Name – Varies by species

Monkeys have a versatile diet that often includes peanuts, cashews, walnuts, and pecans. However, this nut consumption preference changes depending on species to species and habitat.

5. Eastern Chipmunk

Scientific Name – Tamias striatus

Chipmunks are short-term hibernators that not only consume nuts but also hoard them for the winter. These small, striped rodents are typically found in North America, especially in wooded areas.

6. Eurasian Badger

Scientific Name – Meles meles

Eurasian badgers are omnivorous mammals that can live up to 6 years by foraging on nuts, acorns, earthworms, snails, rats, lizards, and rabbits. They have short bodies, sturdy legs, strong claws, small eyes, and grayish fur with white-striped black faces.

7. Blue Jays

Scientific Name – Cyanocitta cristata

Native to the Nearctic region, bluejays are gorgeous birds with blue and whitish-gray feathers. Besides consuming nuts and insects, they rob other birds’ nests to devour small songbirds and bird eggs.

8. Eastern Wild Turkey

Scientific Name – Meleagris gallopavo

Next on this list of animals that eat nuts are eastern wild turkeys. These ground-dwelling birds are fast runners and can fly up to 55 miles per hour (88.5 km/h). They communicate with each other using different vocalizations and physical displays.

9. Wild Boar

Scientific Name – Sus scrofa

Also known as feral pigs or hogs, wild boars are invasive species that live on almost every continent except Antarctica. They are highly adaptable and not picky about their habitat.

10. White-Tailed Deer

Scientific Name – Odocoileus virginianus

As white-tailed deer are herbivorous, they can easily digest nuts and various plant matter quite easily. These nocturnal creatures browse at dusk in meadows and coniferous forests for food.

11. American Black Bear

Scientific Name – Ursus americanus

American black bears are fond eaters of nuts, acorns, and seeds. They are large, black furry mammals with a life span of 30 years. However, most of them only survive for 10 years due to human encounters.

12. Striped Skunk

Scientific Name – Mephitis mephitis

Infamous for their foul-smelling spray, skunks are 21-27 inches long and weigh around 2 ½ lbs to 10 lbs. These omnivores have a diverse diet that includes nuts, leaves, small mammals, fish, carrion, and fruits.

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