Die Yankee squirrels!
By Gina Spadafori
October 7, 2007
Squirrel Nutkin’s days may be numbered.
According to an article in this morning’s New York Times Magazine, the U.K.’s beloved red squirrel is being well and soundly thrashed by an unwelcome invader, the brash, ill-mannered American gray squirrel. From the highly entertaining article:
The first gray squirrels came to Britain to amuse the rich, probably in the early 19th century. Landed gentry kept grays in cages as animal exemplars of can-do Yankee spirit. But in 1876, the gray passed from guest to resident in the British Isles. A Mr. Brocklehurst, who had brought over gray squirrels from America, released two on his property near Cheshire in central England. Many more releases took place. The wealthy had grown bored of the grays and set them loose.
[...]
A nationalist subtext attached to the objections to the grays. “I know of more than one patriotic Englishman who has been embittered against the whole American nation on account of the presence of their squirrels in his garden,” wrote the Oxford squirrel authority A. D. Middleton in 1931.
[...]
Many bad things were said about grays at the time, but then as now, the heart of the English objection to the grays comes down to this: they outcompete the reds. They are simply better at the job of being squirrels.
Here’s the rest.
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This is the time of year when the blessings of animals take place, around the time of the feast of St. Francis, the patron saint of animals. (Is it any wonder that I chose “Francis” as my confirmation name?) I love them, and have attended several. The Tallahassee Democrat, near my old stomping grounds (where white squirrels roam), writes about the subject.
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Decisions, decisions: Should I wash the cat, the dogs or scrub the parrot cage before I write this week’s pet page, or after? Update: Clara “won.”
Wow! They must be different from the little red squirrels that live where I am. Those little guys are NASTY and can chase off a grey squirrel any day.
And white squirrels? There were some in the neighborhood where I grew up. They were gorgeous, and I really miss them!
Comment by The OTHER Pat — October 7, 2007 @ 12:57 pm
the grey squirrels must be their comeuppance for giving us house sparrows.
I’ve only ever seen one white squirrel, on my college campus, and it was decidedly unhealthy. I never knew that they were actually established somewhere. Very interesting.
Comment by ellipsisknits — October 8, 2007 @ 10:00 am
Our Red’s are pretty nasty, too…
In town we have some Grey’s and one seems to enjoy tormenting the cats… It hangs head down on the window screen outside the closed window, just nose-to-nose with the cat which can’t do a darned thing about it…
An absolute MUST SEE is a show called “Daylight Robbery” which has 2 installments on BBC/Discovery Channel and is a real eye-opener on the ingenuity and determination of these little beasts.
Comment by steve a — October 8, 2007 @ 11:22 am
I use feeders that are squirrel accesible (on purpose) and will treat the squirrels for mange (medication in peanut butter on crackers) and bury the ones who don’t make it across the road safely. With that said, my greys are mostly wonderful acrobatic clowns who entertain me greatly. The reds are nasty little buggers who will take on most anything at the feeders, with exception of the neighborhood hawk who keeps everyone at a distance. But I love them all.
Comment by catmom5 — October 9, 2007 @ 5:45 am