"Shadow Tail" thief

 

While traveling in Argentina I was struck by the absence of scampering squirrels in the areas I visited, and I have to admit, I missed them. However, since I’ve been back in Tennessee, I regularly see 4 or 5 Eastern Gray Squirrels scurrying around in my backyard. They race up and down the trees, following invisible paths or leaping 8-10 feet from one branch to another.  At times I see them digging in the lawn… most likely for buried acorns. They are constantly active… scarcely standing still for a minute.

While preparing lunch the other day, I peeked out the kitchen window and saw a squirrel happily munching away at the bird seeds I had set out. I opened the door and chase it away, but 3-4 minutes later it was back and this time it had pushed the roof off the bird feeder and was reaching directly into the pile of mixed seeds. Once again I encouraged the squirrel to leave. When it came back a third time, I decided to take some pictures of the stubborn but cute rodent. He kept a watchful eye on me, but was determined to stuff his face with as many seeds as he could before he had to leave. His only concern seemed to be my proximity. While I remained at the door, he continued to nibble away, but as I crept closer, he got more agitated. Finally, when I was about five feet away, he decided I was too close for comfort and scampered off the porch.

Some interesting facts about squirrels:

• The word “squirrel” actually comes from the Greek for “shadow tail” or by implication “sitting in the shadow of its tail”. 
• Squirrels have big eyes that see very well – but they are on the sides of their heads, so they don’t see what’s at the tip of their nose. That’s one reason it can be dangerous to feed a squirrel – it can’t see your fingertips and might accidentally bite you.
•  When frightened, squirrels dart back and forth to confuse their predators. This obviously doesn’t work with cars however, so most city squirrels don’t live very long.
• Squirrels have been known to pretend to bury the object if they feel that they are being watched. They do this by preparing the spot as usual, for instance digging a hole or widening a crack, then they pretend to place the food, while actually concealing it in their mouths, and then covering up the "cache" as if they had deposited the object