This past winter, I cleverly set a couple of Havahart squirrel traps in my attic crawlspace to remove the small colony of bushy-tailed squatters. I caught and relocated a total of 6 strenuously protesting furry residents to a nearby environmental center, had new soffits installed and several hundred dollars worth of squirrel damage repaired, and thought my squirrel problems were over. Well, my peace lasted about 3 weeks. That's how long it took for the word to go out on the squirrel broadcasting system that roomy warm accommodations were available. How they were getting in, with all the old entry holes plugged up, I still haven't discovered, though several have been observed flying by my third-floor window from the upper branches of a nearby pine tree.
The point is, no matter how clever you think you are, squirrels are always smarter. Not that they're trying to make you look foolish. They're just going about their business with a single-minded intensity that recognizes no obstacles to their ultimate goals. The baby squirrels soon to be born under my roof will be blind, furless, and totally dependent on their mother (dad will be long gone by then) for their care and feeding. But in about 5 weeks, theyíll open their eyes, take a look around, and jump with all four paws into the traditional pursuits of all squirrels - seeking out and burying nuts, raiding birdfeeders, and gnawing everything in sight.
Squirrels are resilient and persistent. Fossilized squirrel skeletons date back more than 50 million years - way longer than our latecoming species - and they've expanded their territory and thrived in virtually every part of the world. Like their less-endearing cousin, the rat, they haven't been above stowing away on ships to get around. But unlike the rat, theyíve also been invited into new territories by beguiled humans, as in the case of the gray squirrel introduced into Victorian England by humans who thought theyíd be great additions to their gardens.
Squirrels, in every age and on every continent, know how to get what they want whether itís a comfortable nest in your attic or the birdseed in your squirrel-proofed feeders. Undeterred by human destruction of much of their native forests, theyíve simply moved into our neighborhoods and made themselves right at home in manicured suburban or hostile urban environments. In fact, once they get used to living around humans, they seem to prefer the less strenuous lifestyle. The up side is a generous supply of nutritious nuts and seeds from bird and squirrel feeders and relatively few predators (other than the deadly automobile). The downside is tempting but treacherous electrical wiring and power lines and addiction to human junk foods. According to one report, in fact, British scientists discovered an entire park full of squirrels addicted to nicotine from discarded cigarette butts. As if squirrels aren't hyper enough without stimulants!
| Here's the follow-up discussion on this article: | View all related messages |
For a complete listing of article comments, questions, and other discussions related to Dorothy Hoffman's Rabbits & Rodents topic, please visit the Discussions page.