Grey squirrel - loved or loathed

Flowering plants die back, trees lose their leaves and many insects live almost invisibly as eggs or pupa.

Smaller mammals hibernate away and many birds take to the skies and fly to warmer climates.

However, with the woodland trees now bare there is one animal that despite semi-hibernating itself in the most bleak of conditions is even easier to see at this time of year on warmer winter days – and that is the squirrel.

Here in the Wyre Forest district we only have one type of squirrel and that is the grey squirrel and depending on who you are talking to this animal is either loved or loathed.

Grey squirrels are not native to the UK they were introduced to our shores well over a hundred years ago.

The reasons for their introduction are unclear but it would seem most likely the grey squirrel was introduced for decorative effect.

This is odd really, as these days the red squirrel is widely acclaimed as being a much more graceful and attractive animal.

Since its arrival the grey squirrel has spread rapidly, replacing the red squirrel throughout much of the UK until only a few small strongholds of red squirrel populations remain.

The greys do not physically evict the reds but they do carry a virus that they themselves are immune to, but is, in the majority of cases, lethal to red squirrels.

his and the loss of habitat may well be the cause of the rise of the grey squirrels’ dominance but grey squirrels are also bigger than the reds and this allows them to harbour more fat over the winter months giving them better survival chances.

Grey squirrels can be damaging to trees, particularly in commercial forests and cause property damage if they gain access to loft spaces, but this is true for a lot of our wildlife.

However, around the urban fringes squirrels do a great job of being wildlife ambassadors.

Their lively antics and fluffy cuddly nature give many town and city dwellers their first real encounters with a wild animal.

They are quite happy around humans and they can display great feats of ingenuity to exploit every resource the urban world has to offer.

These attributes have helped fuel many people’s interest in wildlife.

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