[Bird On! Logo] Bird News | Bird Book | Bird Care | Home
State of the Nations' Birds
Dictionary | Encyclopaedia | Search | Visitor Information

Encyclopaedia of Birdcare

Squirrels

The Grey Squirrel was introduced into Britain from North America during the late 19th century and is a common sight in gardens, in contrast to the endangered native Red Squirrel. Many foods for birds also attract squirrels, which are capable of gnawing their way into many feeders and may even succeed in carrying them away. They can climb almost anything, jump tremendous distances, and walk along wires or slide down them. Finally, they attack nest boxes, eating eggs and young birds and often taking over the boxes for their own use. A great deal of effort has been put into attempts to make feeding devices squirrel-proof, and there are now some successful designs on the market. Products for preventing the animals reaching the feeders in the first place are also available, and more recently the idea of actually feeding the squirrels has emerged, thus distracting them from the foods intended for the birds. The chief methods of tackling squirrels can be summed up as follows.

Search Birdcare Encyclopaedia

A Bird On! Definition from the Encyclopaedia of Birdcare
Copyright © 1998 by Jacobi Jayne & Company.


Bird News | Bird Book | Bird Care | Home
State of the Nations' Birds
Dictionary | Encyclopaedia | Search | Visitor Information | Mail to Bird On!
Sponsored by Jacobi Jayne & Company