With summer now gone and fall slowly taking over, the
squirrels that visit our yard are becoming a bit more numerous and frantic.
It's not that I blame them - the fault is entirely ours. For many years, as we
fed the birds, we had at least one feeder that was an easy-access one for
squirrels. We had not planned this, it's just that squirrels are nearly
impossible to outfox outsquirrel. After a few visits by a wandering
black bear in the last year or so, we've cut back on the bird feeders and rigged
them so they are difficult for land critters to reach. This has frustrated the
squirrels to no end and they have quit coming around so frequently, which is
probably better or them in the long run. They are not really visitors; the
Douglas squirrels, or chickarees, occupied this territory long before any of us
were here and they favor native foods, especially seeds of the Douglas fir. Still,
who doesn't enjoy an easy, free meal now and then? They continue to venture in
to check the ground beneath the feeders. They need to store up some food for
later, especially if it is a female who's expecting a second litter.
We lived
for a time in the hill country of Texas where there are Eastern Gray Squirrels.
Active year-round, they live primarily in trees and feed on a great variety of
foods; they regularly pilfered all
the seed in our bird feeder. My husband kept trying to out-smart them and once mounted
the feeder at the top of a tall, narrow pipe in the middle of the yard away
from trees. One squirrel learned to climb the pole so I greased it with Vaseline. I still can picture him
running up about half way, and then sliding back down like a miniature, furry
fireman. After a number of failed attempts, he got even by blatantly grabbing
and eating the ripe peaches on the tree next to our kitchen window. I do
believe he smiled the whole time...
There is much we can learn from squirrels. They teach
us to plan ahead, to store our energy for times of need, to help us get through the bad times and to
prepare for the future. Prepare
for seasonal changes; in periods of plenty save a little something. The
squirrel's stash is no guarantee, however, because sometimes others rob the
goods or they forget where they hid them. And squirrels sometimes go way
overboard with their saving; reasonable saving and hoarding are not the same
thing. For anyone who, like a squirrel, has been hoarding things - be prepared to
release and let go.
consider
its ways and be wise!
It has no
commander,
no
overseer or ruler,
yet it
stores its provision in summer
and
gathers its food at harvest.
Proverbs
6:6-8
Then he said to them,
"Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; a man's life does
not consist in the abundance of his possessions." - Luke 12: 15
For Previous Posts on Squirrels,
click on the following:
The squirrels in Chicago seem to be especially frantic this year, too. In less than 24 hrs, they wiped out a suet feeder for the woodpeckers by hanging upside down to gnaw the suet out from behind the wire suet box enclosure. And either they have enlisted the local racoon as a strong arm bandit or the have learned to open our 2-gallon metal lidded container of birdseed.
ReplyDeleteIndicators of a hard winter to come?
I'd bet the lid job is the work of racoons. We had the same problem when we stored seed where they could reach it - raccoons will stop at nothing, but then I guess they also need to eat. We now store our seed in an outdoor cupboard that they cannot open... so far, at least. I put nothing past them. Nice to hear of your squirrels where you are - thanks for taking the time to comment!
ReplyDelete