"Sometimes they come back": citizen science reveals the presence of the Italian red squirrel in Campania

Citizen science currently represents a cost-effective strategy to collect points of occurrency through the involvement of common people. The current presence of the Europaen red squirrel in Campania has been since now doubtful, so that the regional Red List classified this arboreal rodent as Data Deficient. This species is threatened primarily by fragmentation of forest habitats as well as by competition with alien squirrels throughout its Italian range. Recently, red squirrel underwent a range expansion in the range of southern Latium, particularly evident since 2005. A citizen science project developed ad hoc for squirrels in Italy revealed three points of occurrence of red squirrel in northern Campania, on the border with Latium and Molise, where this arboreal rodent is well distributed. Morphological analysis ascribes these individuals to the Apennine endemic subspecies Sciurus vulgaris italicus. Further research will be needed to ascertain the presence of established reproductive nuclei in this region.