Squirrels
Most people who feed the birds in their backyard enjoy the squirrels that have adapted themselves to the bird feeding habits. Many of us put out corn on the cob for them, even placing it on a spike on a little table so squirrels can sit properly at a table to eat. Some of us go to great lengths to guard our bird feeders from squirrels, not only because they consume large amounts of food, but because they sometimes gnaw at the feeders. Percy once went running out to chase a squirrel off the platform feeder and fell flat on his face in the snow.
Certain types of feeders have metal around the seed opening to prevent their being ruined. Other feeders open when a bird lands on their feeding platforms but close tightly when a squirrel with its greater weight lands there.
Some people grease the pole that the bird feeders are on. It is possible but not certain that elaborate guards below the feeders or above hanging ones can prevent squirrels from damaging feeders. Supporting a platform feeder with a polyvinyl pipe of about 4 inches in diameter may be unsightly, but squirrels cannot hug it tightly enough to climb to the feeder.
Squirrels are quite acrobatic and have been seen hanging by their tail and hind legs to get into feeders. Other squirrels can travel paw over paw upside down along a wire which is stretched between two trees. The little red squirrels can jump amazing distances, hanging on tightly as the feeder swings.
We have oak trees and hazelnuts which the squirrels usually harvest. Other people have noticed their squirrels have a fondness for apples and crab apples. We have fun trying to outwit them, but on the whole we do not begrudge them food and enjoy their antics and daring leaps to get at the feeders.
Readers may be interested in identifying the three kinds of squirrels we have in this area. Our largest squirrels are the fox squirrels. They are a grizzled rusty brown and have rusty bellies. Their tails do not have a frosted appearance. They often weigh as much as two pounds. A little smaller are the gray squirrels which have an overall grayish cast that contrasts with a white belly. Their tails have white tipped hairs which give them a frosted look. They weigh about a pound and a half. They are somewhat rare in Seneca County.
Red squirrels are much smaller, about twice the size of a chipmunk. They have a rich chestnut color and a bold white eye ring. They are the squirrels that are most likely to bark at you when you enter their woods. In our yard they are the most acrobatic.
Readers may have noticed that in January the fox and gray squirrels are quite active. They are not only trying to find food because they do not hibernate, but January is mating time. Mating chases continue for several weeks. Finally the female accepts the overtures of an appealing and persistent male. It can be as late as March before all the males find a mate.
Pregnancy lasts surprising long. Litters of two to five kits are born in a tree cavity lined with leaves about 45 days after mating. Newborn squirrels measure about two inches in length and weigh about one-half ounce.
Development of the young is slow. Baby squirrels open their eyes at four to five weeks and wean at about eight weeks. It is usually May before little squirrels can be seen scampering in treetops. They remain with their mother four or five weeks before she prods them into independent living. Soon after that if food has been abundant, another series of chases in June leads to a second litter in early August. The little red squirrels delay their breeding season until February and their pregnancies last only about 36 days.
Their is an interesting relationship between oaks and squirrels. The squirrels aid in the dispersal of acorns by carrying them far from the tree and burying them. Because squirrels never retrieve all their hidden food, forgotten acorns germinate and start a new generation of oaks.
Many species in the white oak group germinate soon after they drop to the ground in the fall. This enables their acorns to escape the jaws of the squirrels, deer and turkeys as they quickly put down taproots. By transferring much of the energy that was in the acorn to the underground taproot, white oaks escape these hungry appetites.
Gray squirrels in particular have learned to beat the white oaks at their own game. Some how these squirrels can distinguish between white oaks and red oaks. When they find a white oak acorn, they kill it by notching the nut with their sharp incisors and cutting out the embryo, then the squirrel buries it. A notched acorn is incapable of germinating but the meat of the acorn remains nutritious until the squirrel finds it months later. Field studies have shown that only about half of the acorns are notched, so there are still plenty of white oak trees in the forests. Adaptive behavior of both plants and animals to insure the survival of their species is one of the more fascinating areas of biological study.
Many funny stories have been told about the contest between the squirrels and backyard bird feeders. Perhaps readers have stories of their own to share.
-- Mary