Here in Northern California, squirrels have taken to stripping redwood trees
of bark. Some of these trees are weakened enough that they succumb to other
maladies. In general, with few natural enemies left in a suburban environment,
isn't there an excess of squirrels in most areas? Of course it doesn't help
that most people don't see them as rats with furry tails.

Albert

nutso fasst ) wrote:
: We've got an overpopulation of fox squirrels in the neighborhood, with at
: least five nests in our backyard alone. The squirrels have always gone after
: our fruit, but in the last few years they have begun stripping entire
: treesful before it fully ripens. We have walnut trees and I don't begrudge
: them walnuts, but the loss of oranges, persimmons, pomegranates, plums and
: apricots ****es me off. Now we have a new problem: they are stripping the
: bark off elm and chinese silk trees and eating the new leaf shoots off the
: apricots. Peaceful coexistence is ending. I'm getting a slingshot and
: looking for squirrel recipes. But I wonder about this bark-eating behavior,
: which I never noticed or heard of before. It's not like these guys are
: starving--they're some of the plumpest squirrels I've ever seen. Is this
: usual behavior?

: nf