by Lisa McGee

Created on: June 26, 2008

I used to like squirrels. How could you not? Cute little ears, bushy tail, sweet way of holding nuts in their tiny little paws. So sweet. That was until I decided I wanted to feed my neighborhood birds. Those same little sweet guys became the bane of my existence! Every time I filled the feeders, they would swoop down, stuff their little cheek pouches jammed full and scurry away, spilling more than they ate.

Not only are they greedy, they are hard to outsmart, nervy as well as being born acrobats! I have watched a squirrel leap from the roof to a tiny wire hanging several feet away. I have also watched one shimmy up a wrought iron pole, it took quite some time, but he eventually got to the top, where he was rewarded with a full bird feeder. I now know a squirrel can jump up to 20 feet and can fall from a height of 100 feet without injuring itself.

I know they have to eat too, and I do put out quite a spread for different types of birds. Heck, I even buy sunflower seeds without the shells for my birds. Who could resist that? Obviously not these little guys who have earned the nick name "tree rats."

It seems they are a creature who lives by the old saying "busy as a bee." Squirrels hoard food in two kinds of caches. One is temporary storage while they gather more food. The second kind is long term. This type of cache might not be returned to for months! Squirrels use landmarks and their sense of smell to find these hoards. They make several thousand in a year.

When opening a nut or seed, the squirrel will rub it's face on the meat, before it leaves it in storage. This puts its' scent on the nut, which helps the squirrel locate it later.

As far as what they eat, it turns out they are not to picky. They love the seeds they find in feeders, but will also eat other nuts, flower bulbs, bird eggs and young birds and insects. In a pinch it will even eat an animal carcass. They eat the equivalent of their own body weight every week! No wonder it empties my feeders!

Knowing what I now know about squirrels, I guess I should give them a break. They are amazing in their own way and need to eat just like everyone else. I have taken to filling most of my feeders with saffron seed, which they seem not to like, but I will leave one feeder with a mix that I am willing to sacrifice to them. It's either that or investing in one of those feeders that spins around when a squirrel lands on it, making them disoriented. That might be good for a laugh.

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