Red squirrels in the Queen Elizabeth forest in the Trossachs.
LOOK AT THEIR TUFTY FLUFFINESS!
Taken with a hand held camera because I wasn't expecting to video, I was there to get snaps of the birds from the bird hide, but they were were just so cute.
This didn't make it into the video because it's part where the camera is moving around far too wildly, but it does show how cheeky they are with the bird feeders. They open the lid up, and go in head first!
We have red squirrels in the local woods now, which is very exciting (they are the native squirrels for the area), but I don't like to think too hard about how they managed to reclaim the woods from the greys.
@Sarah111well It is really good. We're in the National Park and they've done a lot of work to help the red squirrel population recover. The shift has been very clear over the last decade.
@eclectech Are you quite sure that it wasn't a squirrel feeder? I mean it looks just like a squirrel feeder, squirrels are supposed to be able to lift the lid. There would be no way for birds to access the nuts if it was a squirrel feeder.
@Sarah111well Oh! Maybe it is! It's by a ton of definitely bird feeders (as in we always watch the birds there) but maybe they added a feeder for the squirrels 😆
I'm was so used to squirrels stealing the nuts from our bird feeders I just assumed.
This is why they don't give people's previous convictions out during jury cases isn't it?!
Oh no! I think I have unjustly accused the squirrels of theft! 😮
These boxes are in the middle of many bird feeders but are probably feeders for the squirrels.
I have spent A LOT of money over the years attempting to find a truly squirrel-proof bird feeder; it didn't occur to me it might be for them until @Sarah111well asked the question 😆
This is why they don't tell you people's prior convictions when you're serving on a jury. Too easy to assume guilt.
@eclectech it occurred to me the other day as i watched a squirrel chwoing down on some bird feed having circumvented the anti-squirrel lamp shade hanging above the bird feeder:
absent human intervention, don’t squirrels and birds compete for the same food sources? so is this really stealing? maybe we’re the weird ones putting out food and being all, “squirrels you no touch!” 😅
The other ridiculous thing about it is I love it when the squirrels visit the garden, and if I saw a squirrel feeder for sale would be very tempted to buy one to see if I could tempt the local ones in (when it was greys we got loads, but the red ones tend to stick to the woods).
I think my main complaint was the cost of constantly having to replace the bird feeders 😆
@eclectech
15 years ago we watched scenes like that from our living room window, then the first grey squirrel appeared and within 5 years the reds were all dead. Despite the best efforts of the Cumbria Red Squirrel society there is still a large grey population. Apparently their next trick is to reintroduce pine martens which would be rather exciting.
@Guy Oh no, that's sad. It's been the other way here. 15 years ago the garden was full of greys, but it's been years since we've seen one. Rarely see the reds in the garden though, seem to be much shyer than the greys were, but can spot them in the woods when we're lucky.
@greenpete Thank you! I couldn't get rid of all the unsteady camera work, but I'm quite pleased with it. I've taken a tripod every other time I've gone there, but the squirrels haven't performed as much whenever I've been prepared!
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