Squirrels – love ‘em or hate ‘em
WILDLIFE
Do you share your garden with the
local squirrel population? If you do,
you may have strong views about
them. You may also own an air-rifle.
Love ‘em or hate ‘em, that’s the
usual attitude towards grey squirrels
(Sciurus carolensis), the only type you’re likely see in our part
of the country – unless you go on a trip to Brownsea Island
near Poole, where a colony of red squirrels is being nurtured.
People who like them tend to either see them only in local
parks or woods, or have gardens with enough trees to keep
the creatures happy – and away from their plants.
Grey squirrels – are they fun to watch or purveyors of damage to a
garden – you make your choice!
And they are fun to watch, with their gymnastic antics, but
they also can do a lot of damage. We know of people who
squirrels, as are tulip bulbs and crocus corms. So your spring
have a walnut tree, and had a fine crop of walnuts one year
displays could be badly affected.
– only by operating a look-out system and constantly rushing There is little you can do, apart from buying squirrel-proof bird
out to chase the squirrels away! feeders and giving the squirrels their own bird-proof versions.
The damage they can do is considerable, whether it is eating
Netting plants may not deter them, poisons are not allowed
bulbs and corms, stripping bark from trees, raiding bird
for obvious environmental reasons, and air-rifles, although
feeders and nests for eggs, or feeding on flowers, vegetables
allowed, could cause an injury and accidents do happen.
– and those walnuts.
If you want to live with the grey squirrels and watch their antics,
Magnolia and camellia buds are apparently attractive to
put up bird-proof squirrel feeders – it would pay you as they’d
stop raiding bird feeders and your bulb beds. Planting bulbs
Grey squirrels were introduced
deeper than normal can help stop them being dug up by squirrels.
here from North America in
the nineteenth century and
The RHS advice is to use wire netting on favourite plants,
have largely replaced the as plastic netting can easily be bitten through, to use
native reds (Sciurus vulgaris)
commercially produced repellents and scarers but adding that
although there has been work
these will only produce short-term results. Then there is the
to re-introduce and encourage
red squirrels in various places.
permissible but not attractive cage-type trap.
The future of the red variety is The trapping and shooting of squirrels is legal but you may
increasingly uncertain as the not like the idea. Garden centres and mail order companies sell
introduced American grey squirrel expands its range across the
squirrel cage-type traps that can be baited with peanuts and
mainland. There are estimated to be only 140,000 red squirrels
must be checked morning and evening.
left in Britain, with over 2.5 million greys.
Two litters of usually three to four young are produced
If caught, squirrels cannot just be released somewhere away
annually, in February and July. The nest-like structures are
from your garden.
called dreys. Squirrels are active throughout the year except
Under the Countryside and Wildlife Act non-indigenous
on the coldest days: they do not hibernate, and would starve
animals must not be released into the wild, so any grey
if food was not available for three or four days. Bark stripping
squirrels caught in a trap must be killed. So perhaps you’d
seems to be caused by high numbers in a locality making the
squirrels fight for territories.
rather put up with the inconvenience and damage –
unless it becomes too severe.
44
Country Gardener
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