Here Today, Gone Tomorrow

Patches is gone and so is his nest!  I've been calling out to  him for several days now but he has not appeared. And then today the large nest that managed to  survive Tropical Storm Irene was no longer there! And there have been no storms or real winds.

A wonderful nest

What in the world could have happened? Where could the nest have gone? Could Patches  have packed up his home on his back and moved on? No!  I can't believe it!

Oh where oh where has my Patches gone? 

Precious Patches

 Squirrels are an eternal  mystery.

The Last Time I Saw Patches

A feast for my little friend

Dig in!

Are you lookin' at somethin'?

I know, my patch doesn't look that good today...

But this nut tastes great.   

Last Day of Summer

Also known as the Autumn Equinox, the last day of summer in 2011 is September 23.

It's time to look back and review the summer, which has been good to the squirrels on the whole. Most of the squirrels stayed healthy throughout the season and had plenty to eat. They were able to flourish, with time to relax and play, with not too many weather concerns other than a few hazy, hot and humid periods. This summer's heat wave came early, in July, and was followed by two months of many beautiful days in August and September. Most of the squirrel rescues were of babies fallen from nests.

A sudden cold spell the other day was enough to remind us of what's in store.   Do the squirrels even remember last winter? Do they have memories of the bitter cold and the short dark days and those ferocious snow storms? Or has it all been forgotten?

For now, we'll continue to enjoy the good weather and the long days of light, as we enter the beautiful season of Autumn.

To the Squirrels, to Make Much of Time

Gather ye acorns while ye may,
Old Time is still a-flying:
And this same flower that smiles to-day
To-morrow will be dying.

The glorious lamp of heaven, the sun,
The higher he's a-getting,
The sooner will his race be run,
And nearer he's to setting.

Squirrel Alarm

I love this video of Piggy responding to an alarm call.
http://www.nutsaboutsquirrels.com/1384/playing-tricks-on-piggy-imitating-a-squirrel-alarm-call/

 I know that particular call well. It's sounded around here when a hawk is in the area, or when Riley the Cat walks around. Riley the Cat drives the squirrels crazy, although he doesn't appear to be the least bit interested in them (although he's very interested in the dogs).

I do question the idea of upsetting the squirrels. I've seen squirrels that became so rattled that they couldn't stop squawking and shaking long after the threat had disappeared. I recall one who kept eating nuts (to calm down) and kept on squawking between chewing. It was like trying to cure the hiccups! Apparently once they get started it can be very hard to stop.

But that wasn't the case with Piggy, who was able to handle the alarm without panicking and remained watchful throughout. I think Piggy has the makings of an alpha squirrel. You know, one of the squirrels that stays behind to challenge the invader after the other squirrels scurry.

I'm fascinated by the human-to-squirrel interaction that went on here.  Our friend has the squirrel sound down pat and did an amazing  (and amusing) job of communicating vocally with Piggy!

Backyard Neighbor

Meet the lovely Gracie
Another wonderful squirrel from "up north".

Stalked by a Hawk

If anybody doubts the intelligence of squirrels, just read this story about a baby squirrel who had the presence of mind to know just what to do to outsmart a hawk!
Florida woman saves baby squirrel from hawk

Happy Birthday, Piggy!

I just love this little guy named Piggy. Here he is posing for  his  birthday pictures

Bernhard Goetz New York's Infamous Subway Gunman on WBAI 911

Goetz was interviewed by Paul DeRienzo on WBAI 99.5 FM on 9/11/01 just minutes before the attack on the twin towers.

http://vimeo.com/28799796

Release!

There was a general feeling of release in the park today. First a squirrel, then a pigeon. Let freedom ring!

Releasing a Squirrel

The time has come, little one.

tail snipped for easy reognition

lower chompers only, no upper teeth.

Ready?



Off you go!



Releasing a Pigeon



He's a pretty little bird



I'm not a big pigeon fan but babies are always cute



Get ready, get set, go!



The pigeon's release was not quite a success however. Two hours later he's still sitting in the same spot on the lawn, acting bewildered.

Where am I?

Where am I going?

When Bernie approaches he flies away 

Only to crash land on the tarmac a few seconds later! He sits there and lets Bernie scoop him up. 



Inspection

No damage done.

Wings look fine. He may have strained a wing muscle.

Knocking on Heaven's Door


Paradise found: a friendly bird rehabber who gives us some pointers.

There are two elements involved in releasing a pigeon:
1 - every day for 3-4 weeks prior to release let bird free to fly around in the bathroom for a few hours
2 - for 4-5 days put the bird outside in a cage with birdseed nearby so it gets used to other pigeons being around

Ok little fellow, home you go. You'll need to practice before you go out again. 

I Remember Momma

The story of Momma
From our friends in Canada

When we moved into our current house six years ago, the first animal to greet us was this squirrel. We had only been in our new home a few minutes, and suddenly there she was, peeking in at us from … Continue reading --->

nutsaboutsquirrels.com

Spunky by Starlight

I'm sitting on the bench when all of a sudden Spunky is there beside me. Oh hullo, Spunky! What a surprise!

She's looking fine, all black, silky and shiny.


I offer her a strawberry.


Not having any of that! I'm into the big stuff. Where are the nuts?


That's better.


Oops! Gotta be moving on...


Where's Spunky?


Right over here, kid!


Oooh Spunky, we LOVE you!


Love you too, kids! I know I'm a STAR.

Feeding the Hungry

I walked right by the man who was calling out to me. I was halfway down the block before I turned around and went back to where he was sitting on a stoop. He had apparently seen what I had in my bag, and was asking: "Could I have some of your peanuts?"  I thought to myself: shame on me for passing him by! If I gave peanuts to hungry squirrels in the park, why not to a hungry dude on the street? He took the peanuts and was all smiles and very grateful. He even offered to share the sandwich in his knapsack with me!  Hmmm...

It's in the Bag



Hmm... what's this?





Very interesting...



Go for it!



Well worth the effort.



The Life of Riley

Just managed to catch these quick pics of Riley the Cat as he disembarked from his car and made his way in haste towards his apartment door.

 click on an image to see Riley up close and personal

Just a quick stop to sniff the squirrels



Then headin' on home

Home sweet home, after the long drive back from Labor Day Weekend in the Hamptons.

Ah, the lux life of a New York City cat!

Baby Squirrel Rescue

A heart-warming story from our friends in Florida

Got out to the farm, went to feed the goats and horse. I hear a baby squirrel calling for mom. I listened and had it narrowed down to one of two trees. Went to get Will and he came and listened. He told me which tree. We found the drey up at the top of the tree. I am standing there trying to figure out how I am going to get to them. I waited a few minutes and kept hearing them call. I looked around on the ground just in case.

I see a tail on the tree. A little girl squirrel (about 6 1/2 weeks old) let me pick her right up. She cuddled into my chest as I held her. I took her inside and get her some formula, put her into a Nutriberry bucket (all I had at the time) and went back out to listen. Just as I get to the tree, a loud thunderclap and the sky opened up. I could hear more babies so I was trying to figure out what to do while I was standing there getting soaked.

Next thing I know another little girl comes down the tree. She is smaller but the same age. She ran a bit from me but as soon as I picked her up she was fine. Stood there another minute and a little boy squirrel crawls down onto my foot. I picked him up and decided I would go inside with them as we were getting drenched. Got them some formula and put them with their sister (after getting them dried off a bit).

Went back out several more times after it stopped raining and didn't hear any more yelling. No more movement so I guess that was the litter. I am assuming mom get caught by one of the hawks out there. I found it absolutely amazing though that all three of them came down that tree directly to me and let me pick them up without any argument.

I am calling these three the miracle triplets. I can't figure out why they would come down to me from such a high drey and just let me pick them up. They are all doing well, eating great and nibbling on their squirrel trail mix I make. Karen

The Miracle Triplets

Read more here:

Lovely Lita's Sheltering Tree Foundation

After Irene at PCV

I went to PCV today to view the damage caused by Irene. Except for one area, things looked pretty normal with only a few downed trees here and there and lots of leaves on the ground. But the area in the northeast corner of PCV that I call "The Wind Tunnel" because it's always cold and windy there in the wintertime, had been devastated. The wind from the East River blows in through the opening between the buildings there, causing a wind tunnel effect.

This was one of the most picturesque parts of PCV. It's sad to see it now.

click on a picture to enlarge it

 

 
One tree over by Spunky's area that was a favorite of mine (and the squirrels) was also downed. It was a small, hollow tree with great branches and big holes that squirrels loved to run through and hide in. It's gone. This spot too has  a "wind tunnel" between buildings.

Squirrels

First of all I went looking for Patches. His nest was still up there in his tree, and he came right down to see me.



I'm fine Mom!

 

But hungry. Gimme some nuts!

Spunky was also fine and at the top of her game today, grabbing nuts as fast as I could throw them. She was faster than any other squirrel, and very dominating, chasing others away from the base of the tree where she was dining.



Pinky was fine too!

I'm alive and well and I feel GOOOOOOOOOD!

The squirrels were acting very hungry, even though there were acorns all over the ground everywhere you looked.

This little girl is finding acorns and feeding them to the squirrels.

But the squirrels are lukewarm on acorns and still crazy for peanuts.


Is that a peanut?

I'll just end by saying how blessed I feel that the little creatures I've cared for were safe and sound and in good spirits. As I said, Spunky has never seemed better, Pinky never happier and Patches -- well even his patch looked healed. 

But all squirrels haven't been so lucky. Here's a report about hundreds of baby squirrels that were displaced by Hurricane Irene