Adult Black Squirrel Nabbed for Eating Junk Food

You can’t blame a squirrel for being tempted by all the junk food found in gas station convenience stores. Especially with a stiff winter chill blanketing the Midwest. But you’d think they’d go after the nuts or crackers — not so, apparently:

“As [Ohio cop] Sergeant Doug Hines was talking with a store employee, they heard a rustling coming from one of the aisles and found an adult black squirrel munching on some chocolate snack cakes.

Police say Officer Brandon McCray arrived to provide back-up, and there were some unsuccessful attempts to wrangle the animal out of the store — until the squirrel attached itself to McCray’s back.”

McCray ran outside, where the squirrel was brushed off his back, and escaped, unharmed, tummy full of cookies.

A Very Fat Squirrel – He’s Ready for Winter!

From Flickr user finofilka.

Where Have All the Acorns Gone?

I’m a little late in posting this, but the Washington Post asks: What’s up with no acorns this year? Even the squirrels are unhappy:

“The idea seemed too crazy to Rod Simmons, a measured, careful field botanist. Naturalists in Arlington County couldn’t find any acorns. None. No hickory nuts, either. Then he went out to look for himself. He came up with nothing. Nothing crunched underfoot. Nothing hit him on the head.

Then calls started coming in about crazy squirrels. Starving, skinny squirrels eating garbage, inhaling bird feed, greedily demolishing pumpkins. Squirrels boldly scampering into the road. And a lot more calls about squirrel roadkill.”

Read the article to find out just what the heck is going on with the Season of No Acorns!

Thru Dec. 26: Rogue Squirrel Apparel Is 15% Off

Girls Outline Logo V-Neck

Nifty clothing designers Rogue Squirrel Apparel are having a big sale this month. Use this link to find out the special web code to get their current discount.

How Do I Get This Snow Off My Nose?

(How Do I Get This Snow Off My Nose?, originally uploaded by Crikit (Lori G).)

Too fracking cute!

If Acorns Are Poisonous, Why Do Squirrels Eat Them Like I Eat Cupcakes?

Good question, right?

According to Aiken-Standard columnist Bill Hayes, it’s complicated. He wasn’t sure himself so he did a lot of research, such as:

“I found all sorts of stories about Native Americans eating acorns as part of their daily diet. I also found one article that said that the average life span of the American Indian was 30 years but made no reference to acorns as being part of the problem. Because of the high tannin content in red acorns the bitterness was probably strong enough to discourage all but the very hungry.”

As it turns out, some acorns — but not all — are poisonous. And a little biological mechanism at work known as adaptation helps our squirrel friends eat most acorns without any problems.

Read Bill’s column to find out what that adaptation is, and which acorns should stay out of your daily recommended allowance.

Happy Thanksgiving, Ya’ll!

Tomi, originally uploaded by red R.

A beautiful red squirrel photo from red R Flickr user. Gorgeous shot!

Parrots and Squirrels Share Food

In Sri Lanka. Gorgeous!

(parrots and squirrels, originally uploaded by rotarycolombocentral.)

Squirrel Builds Massive Nest in Ford Explorer Engine

Red squirrels normally set up their nests far away from humans and other predators. But an oddball squirrel in Pennsylvania decided to make use of a Ford Explorer while the owners were away, reports the Centre Daily newspaper.

The article states “Under the hood, every nook and cranny of the engine compartment was filled with black walnuts, grasses, rope and even cotton as the squirrel built its nest there.”

Click the link above to see the amazing photo of the complicated nest.

True Story: Squirrel Stalks Man in Forest

A column in the Canton, Illinois Daily Ledger illustrates how smart squirrels are. My guess is the writer encountered a red squirrel, a species that is notoriously entertaining AND territorial, aggressive and noisy. Not to mention totally cute.

“I came upon this squirrel sitting low in a tree branch…. I guess he was too busy eating at the time. Needless to say, I scared the squirrel to death. It went higher in the tree and then proceeded to “scold” me….Well, I tired of its game and moved on. The squirrel, however, had other plans and decided to follow me, barking the whole time. … I then stood and looked at the forest around me. It was about that time that a walnut, still in its casing, crashed to the ground right beside me. The collision with the earth felt as though a small tremor had just moved through. Just another foot and this thing might have knocked me cold.”