Top 10: 3. Take a rest Momma

by Darren

It’s really hard for me to choose a favourite squirrel image, yet only this one makes it into the top 10. I could have chosen this image of a squirrel dropping a nut in surprise at seeing me watching it, but for me it doesn’t equal the kind of perfection I’m looking for in my top 10. It’s comical, it’s dramatic, but above those attributes I value the beauty in wildlife and this image captures that.

I also really like this image of a male squirrel taken in the same location (our back garden when we lived in Leatherhead) and possibly the father of the young that Momma is feeding with those red-raw teats.

Squirrels are another one of those species which humans love to hate because they dig up gardens and take food from bird feeders. I’ve had some of my funniest moments watching grey squirrels and I absolutely love them.

The other issue which is always mentioned in any discussion about greys is the perennial red squrrel question. You’ll only find wild red squirrels in the north of England, Scotland, and on Brownsea Island (in Poole Harbour) and the Isle of Wight. This is mainly due to non-native greys (they were introduced to Britain in the late 19th century from the US).

Greys are much better at competing for food. They also are carriers of the deadly (to reds) squirrel pox virus but are not affected by the virus themselves. Neither of these issues, or their presence in the UK, is their fault.

It kind of reminds me of Back to the Future, or any other film about time travel. They all come to the conclusion that it’s a bad idea to go back and change the past, yet that’s what some people are seeking to do by exterminating greys in the name of saving reds.

The deed is done. We have to let nature put things right in it’s own way. After all, nature is a much better fixer than humans in most situations: for evidence we need only look to the relationship between wolves and moose on Isle Royale (Michigan, US). For a long time it was thought that the wolves would decimate the moose population then starve themselves but the wolves moderated their feeding habits to protect their food supply. The only animal stupid enough to hunt prey to exinction is us.

Until January 2008 it was illegal to release a trapped (intentionally or deliberate) grey squirrel in the UK. If you found one in your bird feeder or your loft you were obliged, by law, to kill it. Thankfully that has now been moderated but a finder of a squirrel is still obligated to find an organisation with a license if they wish to release it back into the wild (typically held by wildlife hospitals and other charitable organisations).

In the east of England there are now black squirrels emerging who were previously thought to be a mutation of the grey but now identified as a seperate species. They’re more adept at finding food than greys and more persistent and aggressive in their foraging habits. There is little doubt this species has just emerged, they’re bound to have been imported from somewhere by somebody and in years to come we will no doubt be having this discussion about grey and black squirrels.

It’s time to stop trying to mould nature to what we’d like it to be and allow it to correct our past (and current) misjudgements. And if you’re one of those who says that reds are cuter than greys, that’s no reason for mass slaughter of a species, but I also beg to differ. Go take another look at Momma and tell me she’s not cute.