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Squirrel Shenanigans

I finally spotted a squirrel enjoying the long-awaited sunflower seeds. Squirrel-watching is quite entertaining.

Sunflower seeds are like chocolate for squirrels. To my amazement, ‘Mammoth Sunflowers’ self-seeded in January. That’s never happened before, or if a seedling should arrive out of season, it perishes post haste.

By March, the sweet peas took off, quickly surrounding the lower half of the remaining sunflower stalks, so I left them in place to dry. The thick stems of the sunflowers made excellent stakes for the climbing sweet peas.

I wondered aloud to Mike if the sweet peas’ soft scent overwhelmed the subtler smell of the sunflower seeds since they don’t generally get this far along without a squirrel or two snapping off the seed heads.

This week, they figured it out.

I happened upon a squirrel at the top of the eight-foot stalk, and then I ran inside to get my camera phone. I tiptoed down the path and tried to hide behind a tree, but the squirrel was on to me. I got a couple of snaps as the squirrel climbed down.

At the same time, another squirrel rustled in the Magnolia tree overhead. I looked up expecting a bird, but a squirrel appeared, carefully camouflaged against the trunk, hanging upside down while munching away.

I managed four photos in all before they moved on.

Not for the first time, I have renewed appreciation for nature photographers who capture clear, crisp, gorgeous images of wildlife. It’s fun to capture snapshots, though, and its nice to know they can find food, water, and sanctuary in my garden.

35 thoughts on “Squirrel Shenanigans”

    • Thank you, Lynn. You always make me laugh.

      They’re opportunists, so if people offer seeds, they’ll take them, birds be damned. When my boys were young, we offered peanuts in the backyard and birdseed in the front. A neighboring cat figured it out and started stalking them so I stopped. My neighbor offers peanuts in the shell, and we stick to feeding hummingbirds and letting the squirrels eat the sunflowers and, unfortunately, a lot of the unripened apricots.

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  3. They can be little devils. They are constantly stealing the suet cage for woodpeckers. I donr know where they drag them off too.

    These photos are fun. They can be very entertaining.

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    • Devilish squirrel stories abound. Their cleverness and tenacity are unmatched. I’m sorry to hear about your suet cages. You must live in an area with dense foliage if they can make off with the cages.

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  4. Love your sweet peas. Squirrels are inventive little creatures, but I don’t encourage them around here. Finally abandoned trying to feed the birds because of them.

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  8. We were just marvelling over your grey squirrel cousins to the north, a few days ago in the park, so this is so timely! In one sense, I was bummed that I didn’t have my phone to capture the antics. But it was so entertaining, I was happy just to watch and enjoy! You got some great pics and I have to agree that nature photographers are just amazing at what they do. It’s no easy task to catch a fast moving animal and capture it so beautifully!

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  9. Forgot to log in so excuse the duplicate comment! We were just marvelling over your grey squirrel cousins to the north, a few days ago in the park, so this is so timely! In one sense, I was bummed that I didn’t have my phone to capture the antics. But it was so entertaining, I was happy just to watch and enjoy! You got some great pics and I have to agree that nature photographers are just amazing at what they do. It’s no easy task to catch a fast moving animal and capture it so beautifully!

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    • Thank you, Sara. I’m glad to hear you share my fascination with squirrels.

      I’m not sure why WordPress requires logins. It’s been a challenge since last fall. I’m glad you let me know it was you. It’s been fabulous visiting Canada. Even after all these years, part of it still feels like home.

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  10. I love your squirrel stories, Alys. I only know of them through children’s stories and your garden, so they always seem to be endearing little critters. I am glad you encourage them into your garden…and make them work hard for their tucker!

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  12. Your garden is like the Squirrel Hilton :) They’re so quick, so bravo for your cute photos. Pretty amazing how they can hang upside down. I saw a video somewhere, where the gardeners were trying to stop them from climbing into a bird feeder. The gardeners greased the pole that the feeder hung on and the squirrels could only get partial way up before sliding down. It was so funny to watch, but I’m sure those squirrel where thinking, “what the heck?” :D

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    • The Squirrel Hilton, eh? Funny you. They do get the five-star treatment around here. They forage in my garden, and the neighbor next door tosses out peanuts twice daily. If she’s slow to do it, they just pop inside and help themselves near her backdoor.

      I’ve seen the greased poll idea and other attempts to dissuade the squirrels. They are smart, clever, and tenacious.

      PS Is this Kelly?

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    • I don’t think it’s you, but I share your annoyance. Last fall, I had an uptick in comments that said “Someone,” and I’ve heard from others that they can no longer log in. The WordPress forums are rarely helpful, so I may try the contact form and share what I learn. Thanks for coming back to comment.

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    • Thank you, Cathy. The sweet peas are at their fullest now and many are already going to seed. I love them and miss the wall of color and scent once our hot summer descends. It’s nice to know they’ll return every year.

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  15. I once grew a “Titan” sunflower which is a quite feat with the limited sunshine in my shady garden. Just as I was watching it from indoors, thinking “are we peak? is it time to get proof in the form of a photo?”, a (grey) squirrel reached its heights and performed a shock beheading, chomping the neck!

    But I bear them no ill will, the little blighters (as Tialys fittingly calls them)!

    I love catching up with your gardening and animal visitors :-)

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    • Congratulations on growing a Titan. It’s gratifying when our gardens produce the unexpected. You made me giggle with your “shock beheading” comment. I’ve never seen it happen, just the resulting seed head on the ground below, often picked clean.

      Thank you so much for the visit and your comments.

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  16. I love how your yard and gardens are welcoming places of beauty for for various creatures. We have squirrels in our backyard, too. I especially like the pictures of the upside down eater.

    On another subject…many thanks for the beautiful card. I am glad you are enjoying Down East.

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    • Thank you, Laurie. I like the upside-down eater as well. Squirrels are nimble creatures, aren’t they? We’ve encroached so much on the available land, so it feels right to share what I have with the creatures around me.

      I’m glad the card arrived.

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