Friday, September 29, 2000
Ask a stupid question
Don't go nuts over finicky squirrels
By Jim Knippenberg
The Cincinnati Enquirer
Question: When squirrels are fed peanuts in the shell, raw or roasted, they open the outer covering, remove and discard the thin red skin, then eat everything else. Do they know something we don't?
Answer: Boy, do you have some finicky squirrels or what?
They're probably gray squirrels, the most common kind around here, says Jan Dietrich in the Cincinnati Zoo and Botanical Garden's Education Department. She has them all over her yard, feeds them all the time and they eat everything — shells, paper and peanuts.
Wild squirrels, another staffer says, will eat anything, even if it's not good for them. Just like your kids.
Dick Carrelli of Second Chance, a group of animal rehabilitators who rescue urban wildlife in distress, thinks it's a question only a squirrel can answer.
“This is based on observation over the years, but it's true, they do discard the paper. Most don't even eat shells. What I've observed is they'll break it open and nibble the nut but discard the rest.
“That could be because they know instinctively that there's no nutritional value in the paper,” Mr. Carrelli says, “or it could be because the paper messes up their teeth. There's just no way of knowing for sure.”
Here's something he does know for sure, and it's kind of strange: Squirrels are born in spring and fall. The majority of spring babies are female, fall babies are male.
If you have a stupid question, send it to Ask a Stupid Question, Cincinnati Enquirer, 312 Elm St., Cincinnati 45202; fax: 768-8330.
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