Tree squirrels are one of the best-known animals. Very few people have not seen them in our forest or parks. Parks in particular may have very high populations due to the fact that visitors come to feed them. Squirrels have bitten people when they try to feed them by hand. They may actually run up your body to get to the food you carry.

Squirrels have two to seven young per litter once or twice a year. They are becoming a major nuisance in many of our cities by nesting in attics and causing structural damage. Their gnawing is disturbing and at times they may gnaw through the ceiling gypsum board. Their feces and urine can cause very unpleasant odours that are difficult to eliminate. Squirrels often enter homes through open upstairs windows when these are closed before they are gone they will gnaw on the window frames trying to get out.

Squirrels are rodents as are Rats and Mice; they feed on a variety of foods. These include fruit, bark, leaves, fungi, insects, bird eggs, and sometimes even other small animals. Nuts are one of the favorites, which they store for their winter supply often in quantities far in excess of their needs. This excess of food in turn can attract other rodents in particular the Roof Rat. Squirrels do not hibernate during the winter.

In back yards and gardens squirrels will dig up seeds and bulbs. They may eat flower buds, leaves and can strip the bark from trees. They can literally harvest the nuts from backyard trees. Nuts are often buried in the yards causing further damage. Squirrels often travel along Hydro and Phone lines and have been known to gnaw through the insulation.

This has caused both disruption of phone service and power outages. Squirrels may be cute but they are still wild animals best left alone.