All the squirrel news that's "fit to print" - squirrels got busy in November!

 Squirrels love the holiday season!

Every year, the Cincinatti Zoo has a “Festival of Lights” – with millions of beautiful lights for their holiday festival. The squirrels historically chewed the wires and removed light bulbs – burying them as if they were nuts – leaving the zoo to switch to LED and not hang the lights until the very last minute. The video is pretty awesome.

Squirrel damage seems to be a theme in the news these days, with this article: “Squirrels are cute until they cause property damage” which outlines the many ways squirrels can damage your attic, trees, and bird feeders.

And in other ways squirrels get into trouble

An "aggressive" squirrel led to a preschool evacuation after a squirrel scratched an adult staffer.

A California man was outraged at whoever was stealing his newspaper each morning. Then he found out it was a squirrel. With video!

An Irish squirrel was busted in a jewelry shop – perhaps he thought those jewels were nuts.

 

 

 

 

 

 

And we’re still milking the whole Halloween-pumpkin-squirrel thing

 

Squirrels and crime

A dead, eviscerated squirrel was found nailed to a utility pole in Washington State, and police are worried:

And thanks to the magic of the internet, we have access to small-town-crime-logs! People shooting bb guns at squirrels, complaints of neighbors cooking squirrels, decapitated cats that turn out to be half-eaten rabbits, dead squirrels, more dead squirrels, remind me to never move to Greeley, Colorado.

 

Is this really the best way to protect pecans?

 

A man in Oklahoma has been hanging dead or "nearly dead" squirrels around his pecan trees in an attempt to keep other squirrels away from his crops. Neighbors are rightfully disturbed. The city's response? That they do the same thing to keep squirrels away from power lines. People! Have some humanity! (And creativity in problem solving!) Feel free to complain to:  .

Squirrels on film

Squirrel selfies were all over the place recently

Selfie with ground squirrel

 

 

 

 

 

 

A hunter takes a selfie with one of his potential victims

And then there’s the infamous “go-pro” incident

And red squirrels will be featured on the big screen soon, in this documentary “Reds vs Greys” (docu-drama?) which will show how the American grey squirrel messed up everything for the endangered red squirrel.

And in other Hollywood connections

J-Law has eaten squirrels

Jennifer Lawrence, who doesn’t love her? SQUIRRELS! J-Law confesses her consumption of squirrel chili on the Colbert show.

Watch the video here (see around 2:55 for squirrel confessions):

James Franco and "Fat Squirrels"

James Franco just named his new gallery exhibit of paintings of obese animals "Fat Squirrels." If you're in London, check it out.

 

Power outages

Class was canceled in Saginaw, Michigan when a squirrel made contact with electrical equipment, sacrificing his life so kids could have a day off from school.

Remains of a squirrel (and possibly a walnut?) were found on scene near a power line in Wisconsin, where lights flickered for residents. People with breathing machines were panicking and calling police in Denison, TX after a squirrel-related power outage.

And finally,  over 2000 Cupertino residents were impacted when a squirrel sent the power out. Silicon Valley, we’re coming for you!

WWJD?

If there was a squirrel stuck in his house? I don’t know, but this guy has some tips on what to do if one is stuck in yours.

 

I find this amusing

A squirrel flautist? Yes.

 

Hunting accident - it wasn't the squirrels fault

A man dropped his gun and shot himself while squirrel hunting in Iowa, and a man in North Carolina was shot in the face while squirrel hunting with a family member. No other information was available.

Don’t co-opt my culture, man

Is this squirrel really looking punk?

Ground squirrels – 'roid rage and daily rhythms

How do arctic ground squirrels adjust to the extreme light cycles of places like Alaska, where at times of the year there might be 24-hour light or dark? Scientists are looking for clues but going to the source and studying the squirrels on their turf and in the lab (note: I think the squirrel housing in the lab is too small for active squirrels, although I guess when they are in torpor, they don’t need too much space). Cool video with the sleepiest squirrel ever!

These same squirrels seem to benefit from high steroid levels without the “roid rage” (or tiny testicles?) that happen when humans have similarly high levels. Scientists think this helps them bulk up for hibernating in frozen ground.

More squirrels and science

Scientists in Arizona are trying to figure out how the non-native eastern fox squirrel made it's way into desert country. If you live in Yuma, AZ, you can help by filling out this squirrel survey!

Squirrel rescue

A scared squirrel jumped into a river, and then was rescued by the very man who scared him. The squirrel apparently “enjoyed the free ride.”

and when it’s squirrel vs bobcat…

bobcat wins.