The Castlerigg Underscar Apartment, situated close to the entrance of the beautiful woodland walk, gave me the welcome opportunity to observe the red squirrels in the conifer trees. Their acrobatics in the branches were as good to watch as any trapeze artist at a circus.
I left some hazelnuts in the nook of a conifer tree at the top of the woodland walk; within minutes the red squirrel had discovered them. Good eyesight and an excellent sense of smell enables it to find food quickly.
Then the magic began as I watched them spend time in the tree tops leaping from one branch to another, balanced to perfection. The squirrel holds its tail straight and behind during a long leap, it swings it from side to side as it hurries along a swaying branch. Sensitivity to touch is well developed with special hairs (vibrissae) on its feet and at the base of its tail as well as whiskers on the face.
As I continued to observe, this red squirrel seemed to favour a particular branch. I watched as it marked its regular routeway by face wiping. Wiping their faces on tree branches is in order to deposit a smelly secretion from a glandular lip plate as a sort of calling card. Probably the chief way squirrels recognise one another is by smell; and leaving your own personal smell about the place is a way of marking out your space, even though this space is not defended.
This squirrel then decided to observe me using the branches as cover, before moving down to the feeders. Once a nut was chosen, it settled on the wall, holding its tail behind it. The hairs on its tail are over 8 cm long and have a parting down the middle. Good this squirrel is enjoying its nut so much as they are hopeless at remembering where they bury them.
I love red squirrels too. We've seen them at Formby in the UK and they live happily in the park in Valladolid in Spain - where they are so tame they take food from your hands! Gorgeous pictures! Axxx
ReplyDelete