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So I got home from work today, and look what happened to my bird feeder?
I've seen them do this once before. Not only did the squirrel figure out how to open the bird feeder lid, it figured out how to pull (or push) up the plastic screen.
I was just thinking about squirrels the other day; we have practically infestation levels in MN and they seem to be thriving. Never seen one with a birth defect, sick or rabid. I love all animals but they eat the birds and bunny food.
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We have so many squirrels around KC, I've often wondered why there aren't more predators in the suburbs. Especially red tail hawks. I see some of them along the highways and some other spots, but with all the zillions of squirrels in the regular suburban areas, you'd think it would be a feast for something like a red tail hawk. But I've never seen any in my neighborhood, just a Cooper's hawk a few times (which eat birds, not squirrels).
I had a bird feeder with a roof secured by a metal piece that screwed on and off to open the feeder. A squirrel unscrewed it and threw the metal piece into the woods. I never did find it. They are clever little creatures.
I put out an open feeder for them so they don't have to work so hard (and destroy my feeders) to get food.
I was just thinking about squirrels the other day; we have practically infestation levels in MN and they seem to be thriving. Never seen one with a birth defect, sick or rabid. I love all animals but they eat the birds and bunny food.
Depending on what you feed birds, bunnies, and squirrels they can all eat their own, tailored-for-them food. Finches, sparrows, wrens, and doves all like safflower seed - and surprisingly, so do rabbits! Squirrels don't like safflower seed but of course love peanuts...and they seem to do alright sharing with cardinals and blue jays. Sunflower seeds are a no-no as they will figure out most bird feeders and gorge themselves.
^
We have so many squirrels around KC, I've often wondered why there aren't more predators in the suburbs. Especially red tail hawks. I see some of them along the highways and some other spots, but with all the zillions of squirrels in the regular suburban areas, you'd think it would be a feast for something like a red tail hawk. But I've never seen any in my neighborhood, just a Cooper's hawk a few times (which eat birds, not squirrels).
I remember watching a National Geographic show about wolves and how when they were practically decimated in parts of the U.S., rabbits, squirrels, groundhogs and other prey animals proliferated like crazy since they had few predators to worry about.
Mother Nature keeps a nice balance and when we kill off predators like wolves, coyotes, foxes and the like, this is what happens. The show also mentioned that the majority of a wolf's diet is rabbits and other small rodents. They are not the murderous killers that they have been rumored to be for so many hundred of years.
The OP's picture of his feeder is why I just throw out handfuls of raw peanuts in the shell and just let the squirrels come get them. I enjoy watching the squirrels eat them on the spot or run off and bury them, and they leave my bird feeder alone, so it's a win-win for all. I especially like the little bob-tailed squirrel who travels throughout the neighborhood on the telephone wires - he's an amusing little acrobat!
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