Squirrely

by Kathy White

Title

Squirrely

Artist

Kathy White

Medium

Photograph - Photography--greeting Cards Or Notes Are Cheaper By The Dozen!

Description

Squirrels love to go after the wild bird seed you put out to attract birds in your yard. This one, which I called "Squirrely" was having a feast on the bird seed put out by the Chattanooga Nature Center and Arboretum. You can see him holding on tightly to his find. There were many birds, but this one squirrel did not care about the birds. He was having too much fun grabbing everything he could!
Squirrels belong to a large family of small or medium-sized rodents called the Sciuridae. The family includes tree squirrels, ground squirrels, chipmunks, marmots, flying squirrels, and prairie dogs. More than 200 squirrel species live all over the world, with the notable exception of Australia. Australia is slowly being introduced to squirrels, I read.
Like other rodents, squirrels have four front teeth that never stop growing so they don't wear down from the constant gnawing. Tree squirrels are the types most commonly recognized, often seen gracefully scampering and leaping from branch to branch. Other species are ground squirrels that live in burrow or tunnel systems, where some hibernate during the winter season.
Ground squirrels eat nuts, leaves, roots, seeds, and other plants. They also catch and eat small animals, such as insects and caterpillars.
The hind limbs on a squirrel are generally longer than the fore limbs, and they have four or five toes on each paw. Their paws include an often poorly developed thumb, and have soft pads on the undersides. As their large eyes indicate, squirrels generally have an excellent sense of vision, which is especially important for tree-dwelling species. They also have very versatile and sturdy claws for grasping and climbing. Many also have a good sense of touch, with vibrissae on their heads and limbs.
Countless backyards are battlegrounds between determined homeowners and squirrels fighting over bird food. No mammal is as competent at achieving his goal—ready to defy every design, every device, and every technology intended to keep him from consuming sunflower seeds, peanuts, and corn.
Sometimes, you can modify your back yard feeder menu to deter the squirrel. Squirrels won’t want: safflower seed (which attracts species such as cardinals, chickadees, and titmice), nyjer thistle (which nourishes goldfinches and others of their kind), or a birdseed mixture that includes a large amount of white proso millet seed (which satisfies the hunger of mourning doves and house finches).
Squirrels will also have difficulty raiding a feeder hung from a tree branch on a wire more than ten feet long. Place the feeder at least eight feet away from the tree trunk, limbs, or structures from which the squirrels might leap. If a squirrel does slide down the support wire, a plastic or metal umbrella-shaped (commercial or homemade) baffle, or large plastic dome, mounted over the feeder will deflect him.

Uploaded

May 9th, 2013

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