I'm in the Midwest USA. I have 2 gray squirrels nesting on my 2nd floor window, as the ivy on the house gives them shelter. It's so wonderful that they're there, because it's like I have a window into their world. Not many people get to see what goes on inside a squirrel's nest. But I get to see them every day and night. I love my little grays!!!
What a cool comment. I can’t stand people that complain about animals that are just trying to survive like us. Let’s not forget humans cause the most harm on earth. Hope your squirrel friends are doing great.
We have 3 of them coming to our window and asking for food. They don’t stop entering us until they get some nuts. They are so cute and clever. I don’t think they are afraid of us at all, and I just keep windows slightly open because otherwise they might enter our house 😂
I firmly believe a lot of the criticisms levelled at grey squirrels is just propaganda. They are adorable creatures and their presence certainly brightens my life. I would like to make a few points. Firstly, as they have lived in Britain for over 150 years now, surely they must now be considered native. All the squirrels you see in this country were born here. I think they have earned naturalisation. Secondly, yes they do do some damage, but so do ALL animals - it is part of living and this must be accepted. The Reds do just as much! But nothing compares to the damage caused by that animal called Man. I live in Devon, and the beautiful countryside around here is currently being bulldozed and destroyed at a frightening rate to build more and more houses. I know - I used to have a 600 ft long garden which was an incredible wild life corridor - now it is just a back yard while a new estate is being built all around me. We still have our squirrels - but for how much longer?
Gray squirrels are so much fun to play with. Ive always been a Doolittle kid because i didn't have much of a social life growing up so i learned how to vocalize different animal sounds. I get so giddy when my squirrel call brings out my local friends.
I love that 😊. I am kind of the opposite. I had lots of friends growing up but now that I'm older I find so much peace in solitude and spending time in nature with animals.
Thank you 👍really enjoyed your video, I was just looking at videos to see if I could gather more info as iv brought up a baby squirrel for a year from a tiny kit to fully grown adult male, I never in a million years thought I could love anything more than I fell in love with my izzie, if you had told me I was going to spend a year devoted to a squirrel I would have said don't be mad, but yeh it happend on a cold February night after work I found my izzie cold and had hyperthermia, it had been in a tree that had been cut down that day, I took him home popped a fluffy sock in the microwave then snuggled him in, rushed to tesco for puppy milk and syringe and got back home where we started our year together, how can anyone call them vermin, there beautiful, he's totally independent now and goes off into the local tree's but always comes to say hi every day and for his favourite nuts, has totally made me into the mad squirrel girl next door😂❤️🐿️
I often find that discussions about culling a species turn very emotive rather than concentrating on clear conservation objectives and on facts. What would one try to achieve by culling greys? One argument is to save the woodlands but this should be put into perspective. We should ask ourselves “how much difference will this make?”. Humans are constantly destroying woodlands for new estate developments and roads, so surely the bigger problem is human driven habitat loss and not the squirrels. If the reason is more on the lines of bringing reds back, you have to question how realistic it is that reds establish populations in the UK. How will we prevent greys from recolonising? When there’s a population collapse, which could be induced by a widespread cull, recolonisation can happen very rapidly as the resources are plentiful. In December 2019, it’s been made illegal for rescued greys to be released by wildlife rescue centres which is an attempt to save the forestry money by reducing losses in timber. How effective is this going to be when on average 700 greys are rescued each year? I doubt this new law will a significant effect on the population of greys. Another consideration is the money. An argument that is often used by the Government in support of culling greys is to prevent millions of Pounds being lost by the forestry. How much would, and does, squirrel control cost? What would the saving actually be? Culling greys because they are invasive is another common argument. There are about 2.5 million greys in the UK, which quite frankly is “nothing” compared to other invasive species, some that we treasure and love. Rabbits, pet cats and pheasants fall under this remit. To use cats as an example, there are about 11 million pet cats in the UK and they kill about 27 million wild birds each year. Does that mean we should start culling, or stop breeding, domestic cats? On an even greater scale, the game bird industry releases about 40 million pheasants and red-legged patridges each year. These are released just to be shot and the total mass of these released birds exceeds the total mass of all native breeding birds in the UK. These releases destabilise wildlife populations all across the country, they affect local plant communities and alter soil chemistry. So where does the problem lie?
I don’t want to offend you but I completely disagree greys should be culled in areas where reds can return but where there aren’t I recommend management but not eradication
I do not support the 'culling'/killing of any living creature. Stop interfering with nature just to satisfy human needs'.Animals are here WITH us not FOR us and have every right to enjoy their lives in peace. But then if you think it is ok to kill millions of chickens and pigs, cows and lambs each year for 'human needs' you will be deaf and blind to any arguments I make about human beings' NOT having the 'right' to kill any of their fellow creatures just for their own convenience or 'whim'.
I'm against the culling of all animals and birds. Perhaps it would be more beneficial if we started culling human beings. They are breeding like a cancer on the earth, getting pleasure from killing anything that moves and are the main source of pollution.
Here in the US we don't hear anything about "damage to woodlands" caused by squirrels. Either it's not an issue here but is in UK (strange?) or it's just anti (grey) squirrel bigotry. My guess is Red Squirrels like the occasional bit of bark too.
I find gray squirrels adorable and a lot of fun to watch. They are quite intelligent and resourceful. We also have Southern Fox Squirrels which are unique in that their bodies are mostly black and they have white areas on their faces.
A lot of people like them here too, although the attitude towards them does change depending on where abouts in the country you are. I've seen southern fox squirrels (on TV) they do look really cool!
Red squirrels are much more common around where I live (north east Scotland) and I've never really liked grey squirrels because I've always known about how invasive they are and the effect they've had on our native red squirrels.
Squirrels are cute. I love them and I'm learning about them looking at different videos like this and actually going on the internet and reading what their diet is and stuff like that. I plan to get a couple of them from breeders license breeders one day
I have a black and a gray in the attic. There was a red but since it has moved on. The the mating pair evicted it like the red squirrel evicted the sparrows that were in the way? Or the raptors got em. They feed on the black walnut tree in the yard. Back in the day when I lived in the south. I did like a bit of squirrel stew now and then. My northern neighbors frown on that. (had to edit the spell checker got me a agin)
Grey squirrels are just squirrels. They fill the same niche as reds so after a bit of nature adapting I don't think they would have much damage ecologically. I live in Finland and the reds cause the exact same problems as the greys in the uk. They raid bird nests and eat bark weakening the trees and store food for winter exatcly like greys and so on. Although it would be nice having the native reds instead of greys, let's not demonise greys for doing the exact things reds do aswell. Also I have never heard of americans complaining about greys damaging forestry and what not EDIT: I see many people are talking about grey squirrels breeding twice as fast and I want to reiterate what I was trying to convey. First of all I am not saying that grey squirrels are harmless to the british ecosystem and that they shouldn't be controlled. I'm all for that and I would much prefer red squirrels. However I believe grey squirrels have been subject to a lot of irrational hatred and they are being condemned for affecting their ecosystem in many of the same ways red squirrels do. It is apparent here in Finland where people complain about red squirrels and how they damage their forest property and how they attack bird nests even though they are native.
With the growth of civilizations and cutting down their habitats contributes in my opinion to them being a nuisance, it's certainly not their fault nor is it any other animal's fault, I have several gray squirrels in my area and I don't have any problems with them but I do have a lot of hickory trees and unfortunately there's a lot of growth in my area and they're cutting down all the shag hickory trees, I won't be cutting mine down tho
"Grey squirrels are just squirrels"........did you not watch the video? They are an invasive species brought here artificially by humans that are causing the extinction of the Reds.
@@jeffbrunswick5511 Yea they are causing problems to the red squirrels, but I think some people are unjustly angry at the greys for doing the same things to the ecosystem that reds do just because they are invasive.
They are sweet little creatures just trying to live their lives . They are so agile and often very friendly I can watch them for hours , I feed my little visitor and make sure that he has water it gives me great pleasure in making his or her life easier
@harryedwards I do too here in West Florida. I just fed them and put out fresh water and their morning nuts. They are sweet, just trying to live out their little lives (so well said), and give me pleasure.
@@stevenlangdon-griffiths293 I have about 4 little gray's who come to my small patio outside the sunroom. I have named them Buddette, Corie, Little and Tiny. They are sweet. And sometimes stand on their hind legs and do a little dance. I never had children and they give me pleasure. They know me. Cheer and Blessings to you and Harry Edwards.🙏🤗 Rose S.
@@rstrader2516 I can picture what you’re telling me easily because, I have several squirrels visiting me too! They are also grey and very lively too. I buy biscuits just for them. I put two biscuits on top of each other and leave them on the apex of my shed. The same squirrel visits me and carefully picks them up in his mouth then uses his little hands to put them squarely in his mouth before dashing away up the nearby tree! So entertaining indeed. In fact, as I’m writing to this to you, he is here now on the shed looking at me, waiting for his biscuits!
I have 3 grey squirrels who visit my balcony multiple times every day, one of whom has even ventured inside when the door was open in the summer, to explore my living room, furniture and give me a tentative sniff. I feed them nuts, seeds, fruit and always put fresh water out, too. Very entertaining to watch them scale the wall and sit up on their haunches, nibbling on a walnut half, and peering at me through the window, or chasing each other through the branches of the silver birch trees.
Its great that you can enjoy nature on your balcony! I think sometimes people feel if they only have a small outdoors space they cannot do very much for wildlife but as you know, that isnt the case. I hope you continue to enjoy them!
@@KM-wv2og go easy on the Brazil nuts, they can make the squirrels a bit tipsy and vulnerable to predators, so only in moderation. Almonds, Hazelnuts and peanuts are better 🙂
I have video on UA-cam of my squirrel friend that came in my window when I fed him. Before that he knocked on the door. If I heard one loud knock, I knew who it was. The first time he was doing tricks on the storm door screen and that's when I started feeding him. I fed him with him coming in the window for about two years. The last time I saw him his ears were missing and he was skittish and that was the last time I saw him. I still miss the little guy and I wish I took more video, but I never was expecting what happened and always thought there would be more time. Still sad when I think about whatever happened to him, but was a friendship I'll always treasure.
Thank you for a thought provoking video. I love squirrels and have a Beatrix Potter mentality toward them so no "rational" discussion about culling from me. 😂
A "dray". Now I know the name for it! Before, I called it the squirrels' nest. The one near me is comprised of the stuffing from an old sleeping bag, situated just beneath it. Looks very nicely insulated and very well made. Clever squirrels!
Thank you, sir. Your efforts in species explanation are supporting our knowledge, and your manner is calm and soothing...it takes me away from all the turmoil in the world.
Just a little point Liam, but Grey Squirrels breed pretty much throughout the year. It seems to depend upon the availability of food. I’ve found young kits in December and January.
Never knew these little floofs were taken so far from their native turf to the UK. They're ubiquitous here in my home state of Virginia, USA. Love seeing such graceful creatures.
Ya I hear you have around 2 Billion of them in the good old USA and most people hunt and eat them, sorry that's the people that don't live in tower blocks
@@martinmackett2758 Lol! Most people hunt and eat them? I don't know where you got that from, but the only people who would do that is someone who is starving or extremely poor.
@@ericbitzer5247 Just look on youtube, 1000's of Americans hunt them, and eat them, and now in the UK we have 1000's of people culling the Greys, and quite a lot of them also eat them, they are good healthy food, with no fat to talk about. Even restaurants are serving them up now
@@martinmackett2758 Oh, I know some people do. I think you will find that most people are going to grocery stores. There are not that many people hunting and eating them. That would be a pretty small fraction. I'm sure the meat is healthy compared to the fat cattle and Pigs. Those factory farms need to be shut down.
Yesterday i discovered a grey squirell trapped in a cage trap next to my neighbours bird cage in their garden, i waited until it was dark and it was still in there, granted i released it to be free, the earth is not only ours to live ❤
Great video, thank you. Such cute creatures. They are regulars in our garden, the only thing, they keep destroying the hanging birdfeeders. We are yet to find an actual "squirrel-proof" one. We've got a ground feeder too, but they always climb on the post and eat from the hanging one. But we love them and they are great entertainment for our pup (she loves barking at them :D).
@aurora... I ove my little backyard grey squirrels. But re your bird feeders. if you paint the bird feeders and shake cayenne pepper into the paint before applying. The squirrels won't go near it. Same for wooden fences so they won't chew on them.
I know it's not PC, but I love grey squirrels. "Grey" suggests dullness but they are very colourful, especially those with large amounts of orangey-brown colouring in the spring/summer. These, and the various shades of grey and black contrast beautifully with their white undersides. I also like the slighty different-shaped heads. I accept that the reds have to be protected and re-introduced in some areas, but this doesn't mean we have to exterminate all greys. They have a charm and fascination all of their own. Incidentally, my understanding is that they strip the bark to provide a binder for their dreys, not to eat as some people think. I've seen them trying to rip items on clotheslines, flags etc. for the same purpose.
I believe they strip bark for both eating and for lining their dreys, depending on which time of the year it is and how much other suitable food/material is available. Cheers for taking the time to leave a comment and I hope you enjoyed the video.
For the native red squirrels to be successful the greys unfortunately just have to be culled, if this doesn't happen and a relatively small population is to be kept then it will just be a matter of time before we begin back at 0 Edit: they don't have to to be reintroduced in "some" areas but simply everywhere
For the last 4 or 5 months I have a squirrel that will make alot of noises in the back of my house trying to get my attention so I can feed her. She will start making noises in the roof or on top of the shed which is next to my bedroom window. She also starts making lots of noise on top of my trash can and once she sees me she stays there making a lil dance till I feed her 😆 she's gotten so comfortable that now she even comes to my window and comes to my feet hours will pass n she will be around me and if not like I said all I need is for her to knock on the door 🥴😅 she loves been fed but I still don't know if is a male or a female🙃 of course I won't be able to turn it around and check. So am trying to figure it out. I named her munchy. She also stuffs her mouth digs in my yard and will come back to me. This is a daily thing. I have at least 10 videos of her. What I like the most is her lil dance 🥰 she starts like dancing poring and wags her tail in a friendly manner when she gets close to me. Am in love with her 😍
What are you feeding her? May I suggest something that is a little more satisfying? Try walnuts or hazelnuts (in the shell). My squirrels love them. Also some dry roasted unsalted peanuts may help her craving. They are very satisfying...but not too much because they are high in fat.
@@lakecountynaturalist7617 yes I was feeding her nuts on the shells she loved them I think she died 😢 she was pregnant she gave birth n bring me the bbys 😭😭 she had big balls on her neck cheeks n back she said good bye I cried so much I couldn't belive it but I knew she was dying she started growing those soon after she had the babies,,, her boyfriend was a black squirrel that stills around but he never gets close to me. 1 of her babies comes daily n it's just like her mom I feed her she does everything 😭😭 I named her sandy the squirrel I miss muchie 🥺 I didn't see her on her final moments but she came to say good bye looked like she had some tumors growing I even looked it up online that was one of my last time that I seen her then after I see her on the tree walking very slow I cried bc I knew she was out just looking for her babies 🥺🥺 after that day didn't see her now hee daughter bc is a she and her babies dad be much around my house very comtable.. sandy Is very friendly she comes to my windows n yard also on the trash can but has never been to close that I will be able to record bc when I take the phone she runs so I don't wana scare her but she has her daily meals I even put milk n she drinks she is storing lots of fat she was so tiny now she is big ❤ RIP MUNCHIE 🌹
@@virgenfigueroa6864 you're a lovely person! I miss Munchie just from your story. You were lucky to have each other and she was lucky to have someone as caring as you. I feed squirrels too, they are easy to love!
@@cakeseeker2889 yes indeed munchies babys all gone except Sandys I actually got her few things yesterday her favorite is almonds 😊 she's always with dad i all them with my whistle a d have/ her meals ready I still. Miss Sandys 😫
Excellent!.. Thank you so much, I feel sorry that it's man that brought them, then man that kills them.. and what happens when the red squirrel catches up in numbers, do we kill them too? Life is Life.
I love them. We got two feeders for them in the back of the garden and watching them is a delight. They are very smart animals capable of solving complex puzzles presented to them in order to get to the food.
I don't really understand why people are so fixated on bringing red squirrels back and remove the grey squirrel. That is just as bad. We just need to accept it's the way the world is and just appreciate what we have. I love feeding and watching squirrels and I'd feel the same about reds if they were about.
I have 5 greys, including 2 babies I feed regularly I spend roughly £88 a month on them giving the mixed nuts and Brazil and monkey nuts, this will be my 8th year of devoting my life to these fur babies who have become a huge part of our family
There's better specific food for them I buy from an exotic company. Has a much bigger mix of foods in it and specific to nutrition for squirrels. Pumpkin seeds rose hips has meal worms pecans almonds walnuts There's a ton of different stuff.
Had a house with a garden/utility shed that was shod in cedar shakes. Grey squirrels loved to chew the shakes and I had to replace 6-10 shakes per year. Began relocating them (Have-a-Heart traps). It was a useless effort they breed too fast. Live in the city now and there's no oak trees in the wooded lot / rear area where city squirrels live. They love acorns so we must collect them from the nearby Park. Squirrels love acorns. They will shun peanuts, walnuts, etc when given a choice that includes acorn. They cannot get enough acorn and will fight each other for access to the bucket we set out on fire escape. Fun the watch the little critters.
A squirrel has befriended me, I call her “Mamacita.” I saw her getting chased away from food sources by male squirrels a few years ago so I started putting out nuts for her. When I go out through the garage, she will make an appearance within 5 minutes. Once when returning from travel for a week, by the time I pulled the car into the garage, she had appeared at the open door staring at me for food. She is so smart and so sweet. I also thought they were just tree rats but no longer. I love Mamacita and plan to take care of her with food and water (I have a bubbling rock fountain for wildlife) and love for however long she may live.
Depends where you are and if there is a red squirrel population. In the north and scotland greys should be given a bullet, but down south where they have already done their damage to the reds (as have humans) then no harm in them.
I remember seeing a grey squirrel when I was in England and was si fascinated by it. It was so pretty and so very fast when it moved - I couldn't believe how quick it was.
I was fortunate to stay at a beautiful monastery in Ohio, that was full of wildlife visiting, in the Cleveland area. There were lots of grey squirrels there, and you could tell when they had given birth to a litter of babies, because the fluffy tail was suddenly thinned out, to provide warm bedding for them. Kent State University nearby apparently has a breeding program of black squirrels. After a year went by, the grey squirrels had disappeared, and there were only black squirrels left. The Nun who lived there said that the black squirrels thrive better, because they are more aggressive!
Oh wow. I suspect these are different black squirrels to the ones we get here in the UK, which are actually just melanistic grey squirrels and therefore act the same as them.
I live in a small town in central northern Scotland.....nothing but lovely red squirrels in the woods round here, you have to travel a bit south if you want to see the greys
thanks for this video mate! Im in florida and i watch them right outside my window. Ive observed one do this strange behavior; he would hang upside down from the tree and extend his arms in my direction, screeching as if for a hug. Its done it on two different occasions. I now put walnuts on the branch stump where it hangs.
I understand your love for them, but you have to understand that they are displacing the native red species you all have there in the U.K. You have to think about the overall good of the environment. I'm a cat lover, but I realize they have to eradicate cats from Scotland so the native species there can thrive again. You have to look at the health of the native ecosystem.
@@elhajjmalikel6266 Exterminating grey squirrels, which I see everyday, for red squirrels, which I never saw seems a bad deal. Not sure I agree with native good, invasive bad. Certainly not the way that human politics is working!
@@alanrobertson9790 it's not about how it seems, it's about what's best for the ecosystem. The American Grey Squirrels are larger and out compete the British Red Squirrel. This is why countermeasures have to be taken to ensure the preservation and survival of the endemic species. What makes regions around the planet are their unique people and species. These animals maintain a certain balance in the ecosystems, so it is vital to protect that. We can do that by turning the invasive problems into solutions. I say Brits should put grey squirrel meat in more shops around the country to fight the problem.
@@elhajjmalikel6266 Evolution and migration have always occurred, whos to say that one ecosystem is better than another. The ecosystem doesn't care one way or another, you are transplanting human values onto an abstract entity.
I was fishing today at a fishery and a Grey was coming around so fed it some of my bait, also fed the moorhens with their young now I know the difference between then and Coots thanks to your vids.
About 30 years ago I had an interesting experience with a gray squirrel. I was driving home when a squirrel came leaping across the road and I missed it by inches. Seconds later my car quit, and being before the age of cell phones, I had to walk to a pay phone. On my way back to my car I noted a squirrel charging in front of cars, from one side of the road to the other, engaging in a solo game of chicken. The tow truck came and I never did find out what the outcome was. But I now know the origin of the term “squirrelly”.
They have the right to live where they are native or in some cases where they don't disturb their host ecosystem. In every other case invading species have to be eradicated to save the native species
I have a grey who comes to visit for food, It was stood outside my window looking in holding its tummy 😂 Ive now invested in a feeder & food....I look forward to their visits!
They are successful because they are resourceful, they used to annoy me, because i am a bird lover. So i put up a feeder for them, at the end of the garden with only whole nuts. Every one is happy.
I love your little factoid videos on individual species. I fancy that I'm pretty knowledgeable about most UK fauna, but I rarely fail to learn at least one new thing from your videos. In this instance I didn't know about the Anglesey cull and its interesting outcome. Keep up the good work mate. 👍😎👍
Great… what are their weaknesses? Any tips on how to kill them? I have two apple trees and one squirrel took every single apple. Don’t mind sharing but come on
Squirrels are awesome! They are not tree rats! The reason they chew on wires is because their teeth grow 6" a year. Buy UNSALTED peanuts in the shell, and they'll not just be very happy to chew on those instead of your wires, but give you great joy and entertainment! Mine also love red seedless grapes and apple slices. (Wash the fruit first due to pesticides.)
I love my wild squirrels. There are two that hang out outside of my house. I call Them Muffy and Brad. Brad is a little skittish, Muffy likes to come into my house! The only things they like to eat, are nuts and red grapes. They don’t like peanut butter or any kind of bread. 🤷♀️ Their Dray is in the tree directly out front of my front door. I can’t wait for them to have babies! ❤ 🐿️
Squirrels are like the old cranky men of the animal world. Ever heard a squirrel yelling at a bunch of birds causing a ruckus in the same tree as his nest? Like hey you feathered young hooligans stay off my branch!!! Lmao.
Yeah, my guy Oscar used to do that. If he was lounging on a branch and another squirrel came to visit, he'd smack them with his paw so hard they'd fall out of the tree. I miss him so much!
Yeah, I have heard similar. I have a friend who works in the Gortin Glens forests who has recently noticed a decline in greys but also has spotted several pine martens. I might be over that way later in the year to try to film some. Thanks for your email btw, I appreciate your support :)
@@AShotOfWildlife That's great. Keep p the good work. We track a lot of the Pine Martens and have documented their sudden movement across the country. Will email you a video of my daughters' work if interested
I am in south Florida and have had a family of grey squirrels living on my property since I purchased it. I have two guinep trees that I thought for many years were both male or both female, however; a few springs ago a saw a cluster of ripe guinep on one of my trees that I now know is female and harvested it. After a bit of under cover work I discovered that my resident grey squirrels would come out around 6t to 7am every morning to pillage the guinep tree of its unripe fruit. 😫… I am currently sitting beneath said tree whilst being drizzled with pieces of tree bark. Complimentary of my resident grey squirrels…
Very informative! I'm from the midwest US and we always thought the reds were peskier than the greys, they certainly cause more damage to our screen doors. We actually have reds, greys and a rat-faced black squirrel that frequent our feeder ... but never at the same time. Interesting to have some insights on their competitiveness!
Thank you. I think the reds that are in the US are a different, larger species than those we have here in Europe. The reds here are much smaller and more dainty than grey. We do have a variant of the grey squirrel, that comes in black but these are in isolated populations.
Thanks Liam. We have quite a few where we live. I now know that what I thought might be a buzzard nest was in fact a drey! The only time they really annoy me is if they get into the loft, right above our bedroom ceiling. I swear they put on top hats and tails and tapdance! We just work out where they get in, go into the loft so they run out, then block up where they came in. I feel a bit mean doing it but they're destructive as well as noisy up there!!
Thanks for the video! I'm an expat living in London: full of grey squirrels in here, never seen a red one. I believe you only find them at the periphery, along the coasts. I'm trying to make friend with one of them living in my garden and around. It likes coming to my bird feeders and have a snack on the suet balls. I feed it nuts as well. I'm trying to make friend, I would like to pet it and later, hopefully, it will introduce its cubs to me. Can't tell if it's a female though.
What do you mean we took their land? The grey squirrel is an invasive species and is the reason for the disappearance of the European red squirrel. They should be culled for the reds to recover
It’s humans’ faults that grey squirrels are in an environment that they’re not native to. At the very least, WE’RE more like “rats” than the grey squirrel is!
_EVERYTHING_ one needs to know? I guess that depends on one's definition of the word NEED. What the average human _thinks_ they need to know about squirrels, and the _unknown_ facts, have a mountain of difference between them. I grew up with 10 cats and 5 dogs (not all at once, over the years) and I'm here to tell you that the interaction and affection and playfulness of the _grey squirrels_ that I hang out with on an almost daily basis easily matches the relationships I had with any of those pets. I tell them apart mostly by their distinctive personalities. People viewing these things as pests to be exterminated or something to stuff in a pot for dinner is despicable. Sure, I get it. I wouldn't want them making a home in my attic or raiding my garden either. But there's more to these animals than you're presenting here. Heck, they don't raid my garden or attic because I leave the kitchen side door open so they can come in and watch TV when it's wet out. No, they're not fans of Animal Planet. They'd rather watch Seinfeld re-runs.
I was really hoping to learn about the positive affects they have for the environment, if any, about their personalities and behaviors , ill have to look beyond this video.
@@melissa27292 Well, for starters... Though they all like nuts, and seeds to some extent, they definitely have different taste preferences. Snagglepus's favorite is sunflower seeds. She won't take nuts if she smells seeds in my pocket. Herman on the other hand hates sunflower seeds. Won't take one even if I shove it in his mouth. Then there's grooming habits... Squirrels are WAY cleaner than rats. I've seen them groom themselves like cats, groom each other like monkeys, and roll in the dirt like dogs. In six years of hanging with dozens of squirrels daily, I've only seen ONE that had fleas, and just for a day or two. Demeanor wise, they're way happier and cheerful and playful than rats. They'll play-fight like a cross between sumo wrestling, kick boxing, and pre-teens in a slap-fight. I've seen them use palm fronds here in California as a see-saw.
Good luck. With these videos I try to cover the basics of their behaviour, diet, appearance and reproduction along either some key facts. Unfortunately, in order to keep the videos short that information needs to stay concise. I hope you manage to find the answers you're looking for.
As a boy in the 1960s I used to walk from my Grandparents cottage to his workshop. It was private land in the North East of Scotland. This road went through deciduous woodland and pine forest. There were red squirrels darting here and there, they were curious but kept their distance, I was fascinated. I also saw the occasional pinemarten or a stoat, they turn white in the winter. Years later in London I saw my first grey squirrel, they were bigger and bolder, and scrounging food from tourists, a different animal altogether. I want my little darting friends back.
@@qwertycoupe There's always one like you in every comment section who posts just for evil satisfaction. Your comment is of no concern to the rest of us.
Squirrels are essential to the ecosystem with a crucial symbiotic relationship with trees and other plants. Because they don't hibernate, squirrels bury many more seeds of trees than they need to recover in winter for food. And when Spring arrives, the seed have begun to sprout cellulose which squirrels can't digest. As a result most wild trees have actually been planted by Squirrels. In England, the problem is that the Grey Squirrel is an invasive species which is bigger, bolder, faster, more agile, smarter and stronger than the native Red Squirrel which was is just as good a tree planter. As a result, most of the food goes to the Grey and the Red goes hungry. Even worse, the Grey Squirrel is a carrier of North American Squirrel Pox which does not harm humans or animals but is deadly for the Red Squirrels. The Grey Squirrel has even encroached on the traditional area of the Fox Squirrel with success because, albeit being two thirds the size, is bolder, faster, more agile and smarter than it's much larger and stronger cousin.
I have one that jumps on the screen door to tell me its time for a peanut. As soon as I ask"what do you want?" He jumps down sits on his hind legs and rubs his little hands together. How can anyone not love that ?
Here is a squirrel fact that I have discovered. We have squirrels in the yard and in the fall they grow more fur for the winter. You can tell what kind of winter that is coming by watching how much fur coat the squirrels grow. Mother Nature lets the squirrels know how much fur they need for coming winter. Yes, if winter is going to be more mild, squirrels will grow less fur. Watch them and be impressed.
I love Squirrels :D I Live in a neighbourhood where i see the same squirrel every single day, and its a massive red one. the fun thing is that i have never seen a squirrel get killed by a cat, but i know that around me there are like 8 cats, and at least 3 Squirrels i see daily, that i know are different based on size and ears... we also have a gang of crows that bully the cats in groups of 4 or 5 birds at a time and they will distract the cat, while picking its tail, and there is a water pool next to me where sometimes i see a crow take a dip when no one looks, if someone looks they fly into the tree, if you look away, they go back into the water wich is hilarious :
As youngsters we were told that if we took a grey squirrel’s brush to a police station we’d receive a shilling as they are non-native and considered pests. Of course none of us would dream of harming any wildlife so we never knew whether that was a myth.
I have several gray squirrels in my yard with fresh open bite marks on they're backs and can only assume that it's done by aggressive mating season . Can you tell me if I'm right? I'm unable to find any information on it.
Has anybody ever seen a completely snow white squirrel before? I have and lemme tell you, it's an absolute enigma...They are very rare and a sign of good fortune if you see one.
I live in Canada where grey squirrels are indigenous so they're not a big concern, though they can get into attics and cause problems, and I recall a small park in Toronto where you can really only call it an infestation of squirrels. In North America, they're both grey and black. We feed our local squirrels at our house. One little black mommy comes when we call. We call the crows at the same time, and they happily share our leftovers with the squirrel. Both especially like tuna sandwiches.
I believe in the early days of American history squirrel hunting to put food on the table was very common. I have no idea when that practice became essentially obsolete. I can tell you I am constantly battling them away from my garden spaces here in New England, they also dig up flowers planted in pots so if not caught quickly the plants will die. This can get quite expensive. Those red squirrels are cuties, I hope their populations will be aided in increasing.
We have culled the greys in our 12-acre woodland very hard for the last seven years, the increase in some bird species is up by 250% in this patch of woodland!
We have red looking "tree squirrels" in California. They are not native I do not think, I believe they come from the east coast, but I only remember my dad telling me that. We have native ground squirrels with short tails people here think of those as more of a nuisance rodent. Here in CA we have a lot of raptors who hunt all these small animals, Red tail hawks, Peregrines etc. and owls of course but the squirrels stay in at night. My tree squirrels eat the sunflower seeds I toss out for the birds, there is enough seed to go around.
We are doing something about it by reintroducing Pine Martens to England and Wales as they prey on grey squirrels since greys didn’t evolve with them and don’t know how to escape them unlike the red squirrels
Squirrel is one of the hardest words for spanish speakers to pronounce. In northern climates, they can find nuts under up to 3 feet of snow. My little Buddy, a Central American variegated is now 7, and will alert me when strangers come near my house. He also hates when I wear new clothes.
I was out this morning and saw loads of grey squirrels accross the road in the park. I didnt disturb me at all, in fact, I quite liked it. When we think of darker skinned people, few of us think "they're not native, so they shouldn't be here". As far as i'm concerned, anyone or anything who was born here, belongs here. And besides, i'm pretty sure if the greys weren't here, there would not be any reds in the park giving the older ones amongst us any joy (I rarely saw them in parks in Germany). The fact is, they have adapted to our climes rather well, and as the world warms up, something has to live here when all the native animals have been squeezed up to John o'Groats only to jump off like lemmings into the sea.
I'm in the Midwest USA. I have 2 gray squirrels nesting on my 2nd floor window, as the ivy on the house gives them shelter. It's so wonderful that they're there, because it's like I have a window into their world. Not many people get to see what goes on inside a squirrel's nest. But I get to see them every day and night. I love my little grays!!!
What a cool comment. I can’t stand people that complain about animals that are just trying to survive like us. Let’s not forget humans cause the most harm on earth. Hope your squirrel friends are doing great.
@Mr-jj3gp
They are doing wonderful. Still here!
If th'r an invasive species then culling is a reasonable option to control th'r numbers
We have had a gray Squrell 4 eight months, Hes been back in the wild for 2 months, He comes to visit every day, He's So sweet, We Love Him very much
We have 3 of them coming to our window and asking for food. They don’t stop entering us until they get some nuts. They are so cute and clever. I don’t think they are afraid of us at all, and I just keep windows slightly open because otherwise they might enter our house 😂
It's illegal to release caught grey squirrels into the wild
@@grassytramtracks they are great in stew
I think the gray squirrel is BEAUTIFUL!! So is the Red Squirrel!!
Exactly Even though Im not so sure about the pointy ears 😊
@@sandrawillis8966 That's the Vulcan squirrel.
There won't be any red squirrels 🐿️ with grey squirrels around..they may look beautiful but needs to be eradicated.
Red are more
@@sandrawillis8966 Shame that greys have taken over London and large parts of England. Didn't see ANY reds a year ago there.
Good way to save the woodlands would be to stop building on them.
I thought he meant tree plantations such as those around the Elan Valley - which are just grown for timber and not really the same as woodlands…?
I firmly believe a lot of the criticisms levelled at grey squirrels is just propaganda. They are adorable creatures and their presence certainly brightens my life. I would like to make a few points. Firstly, as they have lived in Britain for over 150 years now, surely they must now be considered native. All the squirrels you see in this country were born here. I think they have earned naturalisation. Secondly, yes they do do some damage, but so do ALL animals - it is part of living and this must be accepted. The Reds do just as much! But nothing compares to the damage caused by that animal called Man. I live in Devon, and the beautiful countryside around here is currently being bulldozed and destroyed at a frightening rate to build more and more houses. I know - I used to have a 600 ft long garden which was an incredible wild life corridor - now it is just a back yard while a new estate is being built all around me. We still have our squirrels - but for how much longer?
I agree wholeheartedly. Some species of man are regarded as naturalised just for step[ping off a boat
Gray squirrels are so much fun to play with. Ive always been a Doolittle kid because i didn't have much of a social life growing up so i learned how to vocalize different animal sounds. I get so giddy when my squirrel call brings out my local friends.
I love that 😊. I am kind of the opposite. I had lots of friends growing up but now that I'm older I find so much peace in solitude and spending time in nature with animals.
Thank you 👍really enjoyed your video, I was just looking at videos to see if I could gather more info as iv brought up a baby squirrel for a year from a tiny kit to fully grown adult male, I never in a million years thought I could love anything more than I fell in love with my izzie, if you had told me I was going to spend a year devoted to a squirrel I would have said don't be mad, but yeh it happend on a cold February night after work I found my izzie cold and had hyperthermia, it had been in a tree that had been cut down that day, I took him home popped a fluffy sock in the microwave then snuggled him in, rushed to tesco for puppy milk and syringe and got back home where we started our year together, how can anyone call them vermin, there beautiful, he's totally independent now and goes off into the local tree's but always comes to say hi every day and for his favourite nuts, has totally made me into the mad squirrel girl next door😂❤️🐿️
Fair play to you for taking care of her, such a cool story
Good for you. We tried to rear an abandoned kit many years ago but sadly he didn't survive.
I often find that discussions about culling a species turn very emotive rather than concentrating on clear conservation objectives and on facts. What would one try to achieve by culling greys?
One argument is to save the woodlands but this should be put into perspective. We should ask ourselves “how much difference will this make?”. Humans are constantly destroying woodlands for new estate developments and roads, so surely the bigger problem is human driven habitat loss and not the squirrels. If the reason is more on the lines of bringing reds back, you have to question how realistic it is that reds establish populations in the UK. How will we prevent greys from recolonising? When there’s a population collapse, which could be induced by a widespread cull, recolonisation can happen very rapidly as the resources are plentiful.
In December 2019, it’s been made illegal for rescued greys to be released by wildlife rescue centres which is an attempt to save the forestry money by reducing losses in timber. How effective is this going to be when on average 700 greys are rescued each year? I doubt this new law will a significant effect on the population of greys.
Another consideration is the money. An argument that is often used by the Government in support of culling greys is to prevent millions of Pounds being lost by the forestry. How much would, and does, squirrel control cost? What would the saving actually be?
Culling greys because they are invasive is another common argument. There are about 2.5 million greys in the UK, which quite frankly is “nothing” compared to other invasive species, some that we treasure and love. Rabbits, pet cats and pheasants fall under this remit. To use cats as an example, there are about 11 million pet cats in the UK and they kill about 27 million wild birds each year. Does that mean we should start culling, or stop breeding, domestic cats? On an even greater scale, the game bird industry releases about 40 million pheasants and red-legged patridges each year. These are released just to be shot and the total mass of these released birds exceeds the total mass of all native breeding birds in the UK. These releases destabilise wildlife populations all across the country, they affect local plant communities and alter soil chemistry.
So where does the problem lie?
I don’t want to offend you but I completely disagree greys should be culled in areas where reds can return but where there aren’t I recommend management but not eradication
I do not support the 'culling'/killing of any living creature. Stop interfering with nature just to satisfy human needs'.Animals are here WITH us not FOR us and have every right to enjoy their lives in peace. But then if you think it is ok to kill millions of chickens and pigs, cows and lambs each year for 'human needs' you will be deaf and blind to any arguments I make about human beings' NOT having the 'right' to kill any of their fellow creatures just for their own convenience or 'whim'.
I'm against the culling of all animals and birds. Perhaps it would be more beneficial if we started culling human beings. They are breeding like a cancer on the earth, getting pleasure from killing anything that moves and are the main source of pollution.
Here in the US we don't hear anything about "damage to woodlands" caused by squirrels. Either it's not an issue here but is in UK (strange?) or it's just anti (grey) squirrel bigotry. My guess is Red Squirrels like the occasional bit of bark too.
Pine martens. They are the only thing stopping greys from making the native reds extinct
I find gray squirrels adorable and a lot of fun to watch. They are quite intelligent and resourceful. We also have Southern Fox Squirrels which are unique in that their bodies are mostly black and they have white areas on their faces.
A lot of people like them here too, although the attitude towards them does change depending on where abouts in the country you are. I've seen southern fox squirrels (on TV) they do look really cool!
Red squirrels are much more common around where I live (north east Scotland) and I've never really liked grey squirrels because I've always known about how invasive they are and the effect they've had on our native red squirrels.
Squirrels are cute. I love them and I'm learning about them looking at different videos like this and actually going on the internet and reading what their diet is and stuff like that. I plan to get a couple of them from breeders license breeders one day
@@alki3443 It's not their fault. We love our little grey squirrels in our backyard here in Florida.
I have a black and a gray in the attic. There was a red but since it has moved on. The the mating pair evicted it like the red squirrel evicted the sparrows that were in the way?
Or the raptors got em. They feed on the black walnut tree in the yard.
Back in the day when I lived in the south. I did like a bit of squirrel stew now and then. My northern neighbors frown on that. (had to edit the spell checker got me a agin)
Grey squirrels are just squirrels. They fill the same niche as reds so after a bit of nature adapting I don't think they would have much damage ecologically. I live in Finland and the reds cause the exact same problems as the greys in the uk. They raid bird nests and eat bark weakening the trees and store food for winter exatcly like greys and so on. Although it would be nice having the native reds instead of greys, let's not demonise greys for doing the exact things reds do aswell. Also I have never heard of americans complaining about greys damaging forestry and what not
EDIT: I see many people are talking about grey squirrels breeding twice as fast and I want to reiterate what I was trying to convey. First of all I am not saying that grey squirrels are harmless to the british ecosystem and that they shouldn't be controlled. I'm all for that and I would much prefer red squirrels. However I believe grey squirrels have been subject to a lot of irrational hatred and they are being condemned for affecting their ecosystem in many of the same ways red squirrels do. It is apparent here in Finland where people complain about red squirrels and how they damage their forest property and how they attack bird nests even though they are native.
Its just survival of the fittest, right?
And it’s certainly not “their faults” they were brought into nonnative land, that’s on us!
With the growth of civilizations and cutting down their habitats contributes in my opinion to them being a nuisance, it's certainly not their fault nor is it any other animal's fault, I have several gray squirrels in my area and I don't have any problems with them but I do have a lot of hickory trees and unfortunately there's a lot of growth in my area and they're cutting down all the shag hickory trees, I won't be cutting mine down tho
"Grey squirrels are just squirrels"........did you not watch the video? They are an invasive species brought here artificially by humans that are causing the extinction of the Reds.
@@jeffbrunswick5511 Yea they are causing problems to the red squirrels, but I think some people are unjustly angry at the greys for doing the same things to the ecosystem that reds do just because they are invasive.
They are sweet little creatures just trying to live their lives .
They are so agile and often very friendly I can watch them for hours , I feed my little visitor and make sure that he has water it gives me great pleasure in making his or her life easier
#harryedwards...
Yes, good point. It is important to put out a bowl of fresh water each day.
Good lad Harry!
@harryedwards
I do too here in West Florida. I just fed them and put out fresh water and their morning nuts. They are sweet, just trying to live out their little lives (so well said), and give me pleasure.
@@stevenlangdon-griffiths293 I have about 4 little gray's who come to my small patio outside the sunroom. I have named them Buddette, Corie, Little and Tiny. They are sweet. And sometimes stand on their hind legs and do a little dance. I never had children and they give me pleasure. They know me.
Cheer and Blessings to you and Harry Edwards.🙏🤗
Rose S.
@@rstrader2516 I can picture what you’re telling me easily because, I have several squirrels visiting me too! They are also grey and very lively too. I buy biscuits just for them. I put two biscuits on top of each other and leave them on the apex of my shed. The same squirrel visits me and carefully picks them up in his mouth then uses his little hands to put them squarely in his mouth before dashing away up the nearby tree! So entertaining indeed. In fact, as I’m writing to this to you, he is here now on the shed looking at me, waiting for his biscuits!
I have 3 grey squirrels who visit my balcony multiple times every day, one of whom has even ventured inside when the door was open in the summer, to explore my living room, furniture and give me a tentative sniff. I feed them nuts, seeds, fruit and always put fresh water out, too. Very entertaining to watch them scale the wall and sit up on their haunches, nibbling on a walnut half, and peering at me through the window, or chasing each other through the branches of the silver birch trees.
Its great that you can enjoy nature on your balcony! I think sometimes people feel if they only have a small outdoors space they cannot do very much for wildlife but as you know, that isnt the case.
I hope you continue to enjoy them!
I think I read somewhere that sunflower seeds are poisonous to them but I feed my grey visitors on walnuts and organic Brazil nuts💖💖💖
@@KM-wv2og go easy on the Brazil nuts, they can make the squirrels a bit tipsy and vulnerable to predators, so only in moderation. Almonds, Hazelnuts and peanuts are better 🙂
Yard rats
carbon copy!! except they won't come in my livingroom lol but i feed them and watch them chase eachother and fight eachother over the peanuts
Interesting facts about the Grey Squirrels Liam! Thanks for sharing and have a good day! // Bertil.
I have video on UA-cam of my squirrel friend that came in my window when I fed him. Before that he knocked on the door. If I heard one loud knock, I knew who it was. The first time he was doing tricks on the storm door screen and that's when I started feeding him. I fed him with him coming in the window for about two years. The last time I saw him his ears were missing and he was skittish and that was the last time I saw him. I still miss the little guy and I wish I took more video, but I never was expecting what happened and always thought there would be more time. Still sad when I think about whatever happened to him, but was a friendship I'll always treasure.
Thank you for a thought provoking video. I love squirrels and have a Beatrix Potter mentality toward them so no "rational" discussion about culling from me. 😂
That was very interesting! Thanks.
Thank you!
A "dray". Now I know the name for it! Before, I called it the squirrels' nest. The one near me is comprised of the stuffing from an old sleeping bag, situated just beneath it. Looks very nicely insulated and very well made. Clever squirrels!
Wahey! I'm glad you learnt something from.the video. I've never noticed one with man made materials before but it does sound smart. Cheers
Many Thanks For Sharing, Very helpful and informative.
Thank you, sir. Your efforts in species explanation are supporting our knowledge, and your manner is calm and soothing...it takes me away from all the turmoil in the world.
You're welcome. I'm glad you are enjoying the videos!
Thanks for the explanation. It is e very cute animal.
Have a nice evening.
Jacq
Just a little point Liam, but Grey Squirrels breed pretty much throughout the year. It seems to depend upon the availability of food. I’ve found young kits in December and January.
Never knew these little floofs were taken so far from their native turf to the UK. They're ubiquitous here in my home state of Virginia, USA. Love seeing such graceful creatures.
Ya I hear you have around 2 Billion of them in the good old USA and most people hunt and eat them, sorry that's the people that don't live in tower blocks
@@martinmackett2758
Lol! Most people hunt and eat them? I don't know where you got that from, but the only people who would do that is someone who is starving or extremely poor.
@@ericbitzer5247 Just look on youtube, 1000's of Americans hunt them, and eat them, and now in the UK we have 1000's of people culling the Greys, and quite a lot of them also eat them, they are good healthy food, with no fat to talk about. Even restaurants are serving them up now
@@martinmackett2758 Oh, I know some people do. I think you will find that most people are going to grocery stores. There are not that many people hunting and eating them. That would be a pretty small fraction. I'm sure the meat is healthy compared to the fat cattle and Pigs. Those factory farms need to be shut down.
Because Americunts live isolated in a bubble and never travel much.
Yesterday i discovered a grey squirell trapped in a cage trap next to my neighbours bird cage in their garden, i waited until it was dark and it was still in there, granted i released it to be free, the earth is not only ours to live ❤
I hope you`re not in the UK. Releasing grey squirrels back into the wild after they`ve been trapped is a criminal offence.
That’s amazing you are an Angel🙏
@@justonecornetto80 So what!
Very interesting video! Thanks for sharing - best regards, Rolf
Great video, thank you. Such cute creatures. They are regulars in our garden, the only thing, they keep destroying the hanging birdfeeders. We are yet to find an actual "squirrel-proof" one. We've got a ground feeder too, but they always climb on the post and eat from the hanging one. But we love them and they are great entertainment for our pup (she loves barking at them :D).
@aurora...
I ove my little backyard grey squirrels.
But re your bird feeders. if you paint the bird feeders and shake cayenne pepper into the paint before applying. The squirrels won't go near it. Same for wooden fences so they won't chew on them.
I know it's not PC, but I love grey squirrels. "Grey" suggests dullness but they are very colourful, especially those with large amounts of orangey-brown colouring in the spring/summer. These, and the various shades of grey and black contrast beautifully with their white undersides. I also like the slighty different-shaped heads.
I accept that the reds have to be protected and re-introduced in some areas, but this doesn't mean we have to exterminate all greys. They have a charm and fascination all of their own. Incidentally, my understanding is that they strip the bark to provide a binder for their dreys, not to eat as some people think. I've seen them trying to rip items on clotheslines, flags etc. for the same purpose.
I believe they strip bark for both eating and for lining their dreys, depending on which time of the year it is and how much other suitable food/material is available.
Cheers for taking the time to leave a comment and I hope you enjoyed the video.
For the native red squirrels to be successful the greys unfortunately just have to be culled, if this doesn't happen and a relatively small population is to be kept then it will just be a matter of time before we begin back at 0
Edit: they don't have to to be reintroduced in "some" areas but simply everywhere
Intelligent creatures I have loads in my garden I feed them and love watching them...they are quite friendly also
Loved the video ! An update with audio of squirrel sounds and their meaning would be something to consider.
For the last 4 or 5 months I have a squirrel that will make alot of noises in the back of my house trying to get my attention so I can feed her. She will start making noises in the roof or on top of the shed which is next to my bedroom window. She also starts making lots of noise on top of my trash can and once she sees me she stays there making a lil dance till I feed her 😆 she's gotten so comfortable that now she even comes to my window and comes to my feet hours will pass n she will be around me and if not like I said all I need is for her to knock on the door 🥴😅 she loves been fed but I still don't know if is a male or a female🙃 of course I won't be able to turn it around and check. So am trying to figure it out. I named her munchy. She also stuffs her mouth digs in my yard and will come back to me. This is a daily thing. I have at least 10 videos of her. What I like the most is her lil dance 🥰 she starts like dancing poring and wags her tail in a friendly manner when she gets close to me. Am in love with her 😍
What are you feeding her? May I suggest something that is a little more satisfying? Try walnuts or hazelnuts (in the shell). My squirrels love them. Also some dry roasted unsalted peanuts may help her craving. They are very satisfying...but not too much because they are high in fat.
@@lakecountynaturalist7617 yes I was feeding her nuts on the shells she loved them I think she died 😢 she was pregnant she gave birth n bring me the bbys 😭😭 she had big balls on her neck cheeks n back she said good bye I cried so much I couldn't belive it but I knew she was dying she started growing those soon after she had the babies,,, her boyfriend was a black squirrel that stills around but he never gets close to me. 1 of her babies comes daily n it's just like her mom I feed her she does everything 😭😭 I named her sandy the squirrel I miss muchie 🥺 I didn't see her on her final moments but she came to say good bye looked like she had some tumors growing I even looked it up online that was one of my last time that I seen her then after I see her on the tree walking very slow I cried bc I knew she was out just looking for her babies 🥺🥺 after that day didn't see her now hee daughter bc is a she and her babies dad be much around my house very comtable.. sandy Is very friendly she comes to my windows n yard also on the trash can but has never been to close that I will be able to record bc when I take the phone she runs so I don't wana scare her but she has her daily meals I even put milk n she drinks she is storing lots of fat she was so tiny now she is big ❤ RIP MUNCHIE 🌹
I live in MASSACHUSETTS US. The state that it's called New England
@@virgenfigueroa6864 you're a lovely person! I miss Munchie just from your story. You were lucky to have each other and she was lucky to have someone as caring as you. I feed squirrels too, they are easy to love!
@@cakeseeker2889 yes indeed munchies babys all gone except Sandys I actually got her few things yesterday her favorite is almonds 😊 she's always with dad i all them with my whistle a d have/ her meals ready
I still. Miss Sandys 😫
Another great video, thanks for posting.
Thanks Steven!
Excellent!.. Thank you so much, I feel sorry that it's man that brought them, then man that kills them.. and what happens when the red squirrel catches up in numbers, do we kill them too? Life is Life.
A very good point.
I love them. We got two feeders for them in the back of the garden and watching them is a delight. They are very smart animals capable of solving complex puzzles presented to them in order to get to the food.
I don't really understand why people are so fixated on bringing red squirrels back and remove the grey squirrel. That is just as bad. We just need to accept it's the way the world is and just appreciate what we have. I love feeding and watching squirrels and I'd feel the same about reds if they were about.
What do you feed them
They are beautiful, in my area there are still red squirrels, the gray ones have not yet been seen, luckily I would say. Interesting information
I have 5 greys, including 2 babies I feed regularly I spend roughly £88 a month on them giving the mixed nuts and Brazil and monkey nuts, this will be my 8th year of devoting my life to these fur babies who have become a huge part of our family
There's better specific food for them I buy from an exotic company. Has a much bigger mix of foods in it and specific to nutrition for squirrels. Pumpkin seeds rose hips has meal worms pecans almonds walnuts There's a ton of different stuff.
I am subscribed to a channel called, Squirrels at the Window. I have fallen in love with the gray squirrels!
Had a house with a garden/utility shed that was shod in cedar shakes. Grey squirrels loved to chew the shakes and I had to replace 6-10 shakes per year. Began relocating them (Have-a-Heart traps). It was a useless effort they breed too fast. Live in the city now and there's no oak trees in the wooded lot / rear area where city squirrels live. They love acorns so we must collect them from the nearby Park. Squirrels love acorns. They will shun peanuts, walnuts, etc when given a choice that includes acorn. They cannot get enough acorn and will fight each other for access to the bucket we set out on fire escape. Fun the watch the little critters.
Very interesting, gracias!
Thank you for your info ❤
Thank you for watching :)
Another Great Vid 👍
A squirrel has befriended me, I call her “Mamacita.” I saw her getting chased away from food sources by male squirrels a few years ago so I started putting out nuts for her. When I go out through the garage, she will make an appearance within 5 minutes. Once when returning from travel for a week, by the time I pulled the car into the garage, she had appeared at the open door staring at me for food. She is so smart and so sweet. I also thought they were just tree rats but no longer. I love Mamacita and plan to take care of her with food and water (I have a bubbling rock fountain for wildlife) and love for however long she may live.
I just love them. People say they are virmin but I love them.
Depends where you are and if there is a red squirrel population. In the north and scotland greys should be given a bullet, but down south where they have already done their damage to the reds (as have humans) then no harm in them.
Here they are good to eat if somewhat tougher than reds.
I too love squirrels. I have pet rats and they are the kindest, smartest, most intelligent little creatures I've ever seen. 😊
I remember seeing a grey squirrel when I was in England and was si fascinated by it. It was so pretty and so very fast when it moved - I couldn't believe how quick it was.
I was fortunate to stay at a beautiful monastery in Ohio, that was full of wildlife visiting, in the Cleveland area. There were lots of grey squirrels there, and you could tell when they had given birth to a litter of babies, because the fluffy tail was suddenly thinned out, to provide warm bedding for them. Kent State University nearby apparently has a breeding program of black squirrels. After a year went by, the grey squirrels had disappeared, and there were only black squirrels left. The Nun who lived there said that the black squirrels thrive better, because they are more aggressive!
Oh wow. I suspect these are different black squirrels to the ones we get here in the UK, which are actually just melanistic grey squirrels and therefore act the same as them.
Very interesting. Thank you.
I live in a small town in central northern Scotland.....nothing but lovely red squirrels in the woods round here, you have to travel a bit south if you want to see the greys
thanks for this video mate! Im in florida and i watch them right outside my window.
Ive observed one do this strange behavior; he would hang upside down from the tree and extend his arms in my direction, screeching as if for a hug. Its done it on two different occasions. I now put walnuts on the branch stump where it hangs.
Just found this channel, it's absolutely fascinating.
Welcome to the channel and thanks for your kind comment.
@@AShotOfWildlife You're more than welcome, I'm just making my way through this playlist. Thanks buddy 👍
Jolly good show buddy interesting and very educational
No culling 😔 i feed all grey squirrels in my area they are adorable ❤️❤️❤️
I understand your love for them, but you have to understand that they are displacing the native red species you all have there in the U.K. You have to think about the overall good of the environment. I'm a cat lover, but I realize they have to eradicate cats from Scotland so the native species there can thrive again. You have to look at the health of the native ecosystem.
Yeah till they chew your house to bits and cause house fires.
@@elhajjmalikel6266 Exterminating grey squirrels, which I see everyday, for red squirrels, which I never saw seems a bad deal. Not sure I agree with native good, invasive bad. Certainly not the way that human politics is working!
@@alanrobertson9790 it's not about how it seems, it's about what's best for the ecosystem. The American Grey Squirrels are larger and out compete the British Red Squirrel. This is why countermeasures have to be taken to ensure the preservation and survival of the endemic species. What makes regions around the planet are their unique people and species. These animals maintain a certain balance in the ecosystems, so it is vital to protect that.
We can do that by turning the invasive problems into solutions. I say Brits should put grey squirrel meat in more shops around the country to fight the problem.
@@elhajjmalikel6266 Evolution and migration have always occurred, whos to say that one ecosystem is better than another. The ecosystem doesn't care one way or another, you are transplanting human values onto an abstract entity.
I was fishing today at a fishery and a Grey was coming around so fed it some of my bait, also fed the moorhens with their young now I know the difference between then and Coots thanks to your vids.
About 30 years ago I had an interesting experience with a gray squirrel. I was driving home when a squirrel came leaping across the road and I missed it by inches. Seconds later my car quit, and being before the age of cell phones, I had to walk to a pay phone. On my way back to my car I noted a squirrel charging in front of cars, from one side of the road to the other, engaging in a solo game of chicken. The tow truck came and I never did find out what the outcome was. But I now know the origin of the term “squirrelly”.
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All types of animals has right to live any place in this world , we donot destab nathe ❤️🙏
Not true the law says we can shoot these
They have the right to live where they are native or in some cases where they don't disturb their host ecosystem. In every other case invading species have to be eradicated to save the native species
I have a grey who comes to visit for food, It was stood outside my window looking in holding its tummy 😂 Ive now invested in a feeder & food....I look forward to their visits!
They are successful because they are resourceful, they used to annoy me, because i am a bird lover. So i put up a feeder for them, at the end of the garden with only whole nuts. Every one is happy.
I love your little factoid videos on individual species. I fancy that I'm pretty knowledgeable about most UK fauna, but I rarely fail to learn at least one new thing from your videos. In this instance I didn't know about the Anglesey cull and its interesting outcome. Keep up the good work mate. 👍😎👍
Hi from the Future; THANK YOU LIAM
Thank you!
I’ve rescued several Greys. Two have chosen to stay with us💚
I just rescued one and I'm keeping him, he's so so smart n happy, what a great pet I gotta admit.
"rescued".....you mean kidnapped?
Great… what are their weaknesses? Any tips on how to kill them? I have two apple trees and one squirrel took every single apple. Don’t mind sharing but come on
@@djjuanhoe7491 Get yourself a Pine Marten. He'll sort them out in no time.
Good, now you've got it best you keep it as it's illegal to release back into the wild.
Here in North Carolina, I had one squirrel with a blonde tail. Must have lived for about 4 years. Love to watch them playing in my Walnut tree.
Squirrels are awesome! They are not tree rats! The reason they chew on wires is because their teeth grow 6" a year. Buy UNSALTED peanuts in the shell, and they'll not just be very happy to chew on those instead of your wires, but give you great joy and entertainment! Mine also love red seedless grapes and apple slices. (Wash the fruit first due to pesticides.)
I love my wild squirrels. There are two that hang out outside of my house. I call Them Muffy and Brad. Brad is a little skittish, Muffy likes to come into my house! The only things they like to eat, are nuts and red grapes. They don’t like peanut butter or any kind of bread. 🤷♀️ Their Dray is in the tree directly out front of my front door. I can’t wait for them to have babies! ❤ 🐿️
The ones outside my house get shot then put in a stew.
Squirrels are like the old cranky men of the animal world. Ever heard a squirrel yelling at a bunch of birds causing a ruckus in the same tree as his nest? Like hey you feathered young hooligans stay off my branch!!! Lmao.
Yeah, my guy Oscar used to do that. If he was lounging on a branch and another squirrel came to visit, he'd smack them with his paw so hard they'd fall out of the tree. I miss him so much!
We have Pine Martens expanding across our area of Northern Ireland and the Grey Squirrels are starting to vanish
Yeah, I have heard similar. I have a friend who works in the Gortin Glens forests who has recently noticed a decline in greys but also has spotted several pine martens. I might be over that way later in the year to try to film some.
Thanks for your email btw, I appreciate your support :)
@@AShotOfWildlife That's great. Keep p the good work. We track a lot of the Pine Martens and have documented their sudden movement across the country. Will email you a video of my daughters' work if interested
Squirrels help plant trees.
I am in south Florida and have had a family of grey squirrels living on my property since I purchased it. I have two guinep trees that I thought for many years were both male or both female, however; a few springs ago a saw a cluster of ripe guinep on one of my trees that I now know is female and harvested it. After a bit of under cover work I discovered that my resident grey squirrels would come out around 6t to 7am every morning to pillage the guinep tree of its unripe fruit. 😫…
I am currently sitting beneath said tree whilst being drizzled with pieces of tree bark. Complimentary of my resident grey squirrels…
I have a gray squirrel and I love him. The red looks beautiful 😍 is sad they can't live wild together
According to jessica Holm in her book on the subject reds and greys can live together and indeed do in some London parks
Pity we didn't get to hear just how clever they are.
Very informative! I'm from the midwest US and we always thought the reds were peskier than the greys, they certainly cause more damage to our screen doors. We actually have reds, greys and a rat-faced black squirrel that frequent our feeder ... but never at the same time. Interesting to have some insights on their competitiveness!
Thank you. I think the reds that are in the US are a different, larger species than those we have here in Europe. The reds here are much smaller and more dainty than grey. We do have a variant of the grey squirrel, that comes in black but these are in isolated populations.
@@AShotOfWildlife our reds in NH are half the size of a Grey but will chase there asses around the yard no problem.
American Red squirrels are not the same as the European red squirrels, 2 completely different species
I have put a squirrel feeder at the end of my garden, in an attempt to keep them away from my birds feeders. Revert to plan B.
I live in a neighborhood with lots of wild cats. I have been feeding the same squirrel for about six years. Her name ? SPEEDY.. lol.. ❤️🐿
Thanks Liam. We have quite a few where we live. I now know that what I thought might be a buzzard nest was in fact a drey! The only time they really annoy me is if they get into the loft, right above our bedroom ceiling. I swear they put on top hats and tails and tapdance! We just work out where they get in, go into the loft so they run out, then block up where they came in. I feel a bit mean doing it but they're destructive as well as noisy up there!!
Thanks for the video! I'm an expat living in London: full of grey squirrels in here, never seen a red one. I believe you only find them at the periphery, along the coasts. I'm trying to make friend with one of them living in my garden and around. It likes coming to my bird feeders and have a snack on the suet balls. I feed it nuts as well. I'm trying to make friend, I would like to pet it and later, hopefully, it will introduce its cubs to me. Can't tell if it's a female though.
I feed them too they're great, check my shorts, my opinion, we took over their lands, trees, forests, we need to understand them not them us.
What do you mean we took their land? The grey squirrel is an invasive species and is the reason for the disappearance of the European red squirrel. They should be culled for the reds to recover
It’s humans’ faults that grey squirrels are in an environment that they’re not native to. At the very least, WE’RE more like “rats” than the grey squirrel is!
No it isn't. They got through in cargo shipments. Nobody imported them.
Gonna watch this on my lunch!
Do you think it will be better to grow Tress in a green house?
Well maybe but that is a big ass green house build. Do you know how to build a house that a tree will enjoy?
I'm not sure. I never tried. Lol
O
Thank you for the good video bro
We have a lot in Canada too. I have round about 3 of them & feed them every day in winter
_EVERYTHING_ one needs to know? I guess that depends on one's definition of the word NEED. What the average human _thinks_ they need to know about squirrels, and the _unknown_ facts, have a mountain of difference between them. I grew up with 10 cats and 5 dogs (not all at once, over the years) and I'm here to tell you that the interaction and affection and playfulness of the _grey squirrels_ that I hang out with on an almost daily basis easily matches the relationships I had with any of those pets. I tell them apart mostly by their distinctive personalities. People viewing these things as pests to be exterminated or something to stuff in a pot for dinner is despicable. Sure, I get it. I wouldn't want them making a home in my attic or raiding my garden either. But there's more to these animals than you're presenting here. Heck, they don't raid my garden or attic because I leave the kitchen side door open so they can come in and watch TV when it's wet out. No, they're not fans of Animal Planet. They'd rather watch Seinfeld re-runs.
I was really hoping to learn about the positive affects they have for the environment, if any, about their personalities and behaviors , ill have to look beyond this video.
@@melissa27292 Well, for starters... Though they all like nuts, and seeds to some extent, they definitely have different taste preferences. Snagglepus's favorite is sunflower seeds. She won't take nuts if she smells seeds in my pocket. Herman on the other hand hates sunflower seeds. Won't take one even if I shove it in his mouth. Then there's grooming habits... Squirrels are WAY cleaner than rats. I've seen them groom themselves like cats, groom each other like monkeys, and roll in the dirt like dogs. In six years of hanging with dozens of squirrels daily, I've only seen ONE that had fleas, and just for a day or two. Demeanor wise, they're way happier and cheerful and playful than rats. They'll play-fight like a cross between sumo wrestling, kick boxing, and pre-teens in a slap-fight. I've seen them use palm fronds here in California as a see-saw.
Good luck. With these videos I try to cover the basics of their behaviour, diet, appearance and reproduction along either some key facts. Unfortunately, in order to keep the videos short that information needs to stay concise. I hope you manage to find the answers you're looking for.
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As a boy in the 1960s I used to walk from my Grandparents cottage to his workshop. It was private land in the North East of Scotland. This road went through deciduous woodland and pine forest. There were red squirrels darting here and there, they were curious but kept their distance, I was fascinated. I also saw the occasional pinemarten or a stoat, they turn white in the winter. Years later in London I saw my first grey squirrel, they were bigger and bolder, and scrounging food from tourists, a different animal altogether. I want my little darting friends back.
They’re adorable and fascinating. What more could you want?! 😂🤣🐿
To shoot them 😂😂
For the native red squirrels to get their habitat back
@@qwertycoupe
There's always one like you in every comment section who posts just for evil satisfaction. Your comment is of no concern to the rest of us.
They are also destructive and harmful/fatal to other species. Yes they can look cute but they bully birds and smaller animals.
Squirrels are essential to the ecosystem with a crucial symbiotic relationship with trees and other plants. Because they don't hibernate, squirrels bury many more seeds of trees than they need to recover in winter for food. And when Spring arrives, the seed have begun to sprout cellulose which squirrels can't digest. As a result most wild trees have actually been planted by Squirrels.
In England, the problem is that the Grey Squirrel is an invasive species which is bigger, bolder, faster, more agile, smarter and stronger than the native Red Squirrel which was is just as good a tree planter. As a result, most of the food goes to the Grey and the Red goes hungry. Even worse, the Grey Squirrel is a carrier of North American Squirrel Pox which does not harm humans or animals but is deadly for the Red Squirrels.
The Grey Squirrel has even encroached on the traditional area of the Fox Squirrel with success because, albeit being two thirds the size, is bolder, faster, more agile and smarter than it's much larger and stronger cousin.
I have a lot of friends including Tippy-Toe that are grey squirrels
Good stuff, they are very interesting :)
I feed the squirrels and give them a protected box to sleep in. They're not hurting anything.
I have one that jumps on the screen door to tell me its time for a peanut. As soon as I ask"what do you want?" He jumps down sits on his hind legs and rubs his little hands together. How can anyone not love that ?
I love all squirrels
Here is a squirrel fact that I have discovered. We have squirrels in the yard and in the fall they grow more fur for the winter. You can tell what kind of winter that is coming by watching how much fur coat the squirrels grow. Mother Nature lets the squirrels know how much fur they need for coming winter. Yes, if winter is going to be more mild, squirrels will grow less fur. Watch them and be impressed.
super informative :D
I love Squirrels :D I Live in a neighbourhood where i see the same squirrel every single day, and its a massive red one. the fun thing is that i have never seen a squirrel get killed by a cat, but i know that around me there are like 8 cats, and at least 3 Squirrels i see daily, that i know are different based on size and ears... we also have a gang of crows that bully the cats in groups of 4 or 5 birds at a time and they will distract the cat, while picking its tail, and there is a water pool next to me where sometimes i see a crow take a dip when no one looks, if someone looks they fly into the tree, if you look away, they go back into the water wich is hilarious :
Same here I feed 4 every morning and also my area has a high amount of cats but I see been feeding these squirrels for around 1 year
As youngsters we were told that if we took a grey squirrel’s brush to a police station we’d receive a shilling as they are non-native and considered pests. Of course none of us would dream of harming any wildlife so we never knew whether that was a myth.
Squirrel are cute and adorable, I love them, they are God creations 🥰
I have several gray squirrels in my yard with fresh open bite marks on they're backs and can only assume that it's done by aggressive mating season . Can you tell me if I'm right? I'm unable to find any information on it.
Has anybody ever seen a completely snow white squirrel before? I have and lemme tell you, it's an absolute enigma...They are very rare and a sign of good fortune if you see one.
We have a colony in Olney, Illinois.
Grey squirrels are owsome. I've them.😊
I live in Canada where grey squirrels are indigenous so they're not a big concern, though they can get into attics and cause problems, and I recall a small park in Toronto where you can really only call it an infestation of squirrels. In North America, they're both grey and black. We feed our local squirrels at our house. One little black mommy comes when we call. We call the crows at the same time, and they happily share our leftovers with the squirrel. Both especially like tuna sandwiches.
I believe in the early days of American history squirrel hunting to put food on the table was very common. I have no idea when that practice became essentially obsolete. I can tell you I am constantly battling them away from my garden spaces here in New England, they also dig up flowers planted in pots so if not caught quickly the plants will die. This can get quite expensive. Those red squirrels are cuties, I hope their populations will be aided in increasing.
We have culled the greys in our 12-acre woodland very hard for the last seven years, the increase in some bird species is up by 250% in this patch of woodland!
We have red looking "tree squirrels" in California. They are not native I do not think, I believe they come from the east coast, but I only remember my dad telling me that. We have native ground squirrels with short tails people here think of those as more of a nuisance rodent. Here in CA we have a lot of raptors who hunt all these small animals, Red tail hawks, Peregrines etc. and owls of course but the squirrels stay in at night. My tree squirrels eat the sunflower seeds I toss out for the birds, there is enough seed to go around.
I think you need to preserve the reds. The population of grey squirrels is very stable in North America.
We are doing something about it by reintroducing Pine Martens to England and Wales as they prey on grey squirrels since greys didn’t evolve with them and don’t know how to escape them unlike the red squirrels
These "reds": the very same as found in Eastern Europe?
I shoot all reds.
Squirrel is one of the hardest words for spanish speakers to pronounce. In northern climates, they can find nuts under up to 3 feet of snow. My little Buddy, a Central American variegated is now 7, and will alert me when strangers come near my house. He also hates when I wear new clothes.
I was out this morning and saw loads of grey squirrels accross the road in the park. I didnt disturb me at all, in fact, I quite liked it. When we think of darker skinned people, few of us think "they're not native, so they shouldn't be here". As far as i'm concerned, anyone or anything who was born here, belongs here. And besides, i'm pretty sure if the greys weren't here, there would not be any reds in the park giving the older ones amongst us any joy (I rarely saw them in parks in Germany). The fact is, they have adapted to our climes rather well, and as the world warms up, something has to live here when all the native animals have been squeezed up to John o'Groats only to jump off like lemmings into the sea.
Do you get fox squirrels there in the UK?
No. Not yet at least.