I would not mind squirrels so much if they would be satisfied with the abundant acorns. They however,  abscond with fruit and flowers from the garden as well. In fact, the walnut tree has never provided me with a single walnut. Acorns, walnuts and pits from plums that can be stored for winter are buried mostly in planter boxes where those forgotten later germinate. When I place seedlings in the garden, squirrels pull some of them up to see what I might have buried underneath, because they perceive the soil disturbance as another squirrels attempt to hide his stash.

Due to some unknown ecological disruption, squirrels and rats have been very prolific. I have not inquired with any extermination service to confirm my observations; but I have been receiving more e-mail and telephone correspondence concerning rodents this year than I have received during the past several years combined. I have also found that much more fruit has been stolen from the several fruit trees in my mother’s garden. I recently read in the news that vermin has been a serious problem in Los Altos after management of an overpopulation of feral cats. It is however unlikely that this is the source of all the vermin throughout the area.

Local squirrels are rather puny to stew and they are not stupid enough to eat rat poison. Even if I could control them by these methods, my neighbors would certainly not permit it! It is unfortunately, a nuisance that many of us will need to contend with until the population equalizes.

Incidentally, gray squirrels are native. Their gray color is better camouflaged against the trunks of native oaks. Red squirrels have been imported supposedly to Stanford University by a professor formerly from Pennsylvania State University who thought they were ‘cute’. There are some really sick people out there. (Are Appalachian squirrels red?) I have no idea where the black squirrels came from; only that they are very aggressive and chase all the other squirrels away. Native gray squirrels are much more common in the Santa Cruz Mountains. Red squirrels are much more common in urban areas. The black squirrels are transient in urban areas, relocating within a few months after evicting the red squirrels.