http://tywkiwdbi.blogspot.com/2008/06/squirrel-eating-bird.html

Either that, or he hasn't been eating enough protein and wants you. :-P

-David W.

: Well, I have barely been paddling this year since completing the Saskatchewan
: Watershed section of my cross-Canada trip and I most certainly have not
: been building anything. What I have been doing is research for my book. I
: do that at a local park where I meet up with certain wild friends to gab
: back and forth and eat stuff: mostly sunflower seeds. The one good thing
: about the park is that it is right beside the river so I feel ok about not
: paddling as often as I should.

: Chester is my squirrel friend whom I have been training to eat outta my hand
: (read: Chester has been training me to feed him). I thought I would share
: am image of Chester taking advantage of my goodwill to all things wild -
: see that at the link below.

: Also, I thought I would relate the story about something I witnessed during
: my visit to the park on Tuesday morning. There was a full and open box of
: Kleenex resting on the grass beside a wood/wrought iron park bench. The
: box was in an upside-down position. I was watching this squirrel (not
: Chester) bound toward the box and says to myself, "he's gonna be
: disappointed, that isn't food". Well I never saw anything like what I
: began to witness once the squirrel (let's name him "Wiper")
: reached the box. He flipped the box right side up and proceeded to pull a
: tissue out of the box. I'm watching this odd-ball act and thinking to
: myself, "what the?" Wiper successfully yanked a single tissue
: out of the box then used its mouth and front paws to actually roll the
: tissue up into a ball. He then bit into the ball and boundered to his
: nesting tree and disappeared within the thick branches. I was laughing out
: loud (a risky venture for a single white male sitting alone in his car
: with the windows open) at the preposterous sight. I turned my attentions
: back to hand-feeding the chickadees and Chester. A few minutes later,
: Wiper comes back and tried to pull out another tissue. This time the
: tissue wouldn't come out so easily so Wiper sets his little paws firmly
: into the grass and gives mighty yanks that cause the box to jerk toward
: him. You know how a dog will latch onto a toy and you pull on it and the
: dog uses jerking actions to fight to keep it - that's what Wipe was doing.
: Wipe dragged the box 10-feet before he got another tissue. He balled it up
: again and ran off toward the tree again. Wipe did this a total of 8-9
: times before he failed to return.

: I have to ask, why would a squirrel do this if it is not to line a nest for
: the ensuing winter season?

: One more short tale. Have you ever wondered how so many people can toss their
: garbage near a garbage can instead of inside it? I have often wondered
: this, especially when arriving at the park in the early morning. So many
: times, almost every day in fact, I see unsightly garbage strewn all around
: the garbage bins. I used to wonder at the laziness and carelessness of
: people until I witnessed why this happens. I drove into the park one day
: and spotted a trio of crows resting on the lip of a garbage bin. They were
: cackling up a storm when all ofa sudden another one popped out of the
: garbage can with a bag in its beak. It landed on the ground nearby and
: while the other crows watched, it proceeded to tear up the bag in search
: of a few nibblin's. So much for wondering at the laziness of other people.
: When I think about it, I rarely see people litter.

: Hoe these stories kept ya distracted in a pleasant way. Aight, back to work
: for me...I have a monitor to monitor.

: Robert (Got time o)N(my hands) Pruden