Agreeing with others on this thread, I believe squirrels are opportunistic feeders, and likely consume a higher quantity of meat than we may suspect (much as coyotes, foxes, and other carnivores eat substantial quantities of vegetable matter during certain seasons).
Many years ago I had the disturbing experience of hearing the alarm calls of a pair of Wood Thrushes, and upon investigation, discovered a Gray Squirrel devouring their entire nestful of small nestlings. Seeing the blood-smeared squirrel calmly sitting on its haunches in their nest, gnawing on chicks was certainly memorable. I have since witnessed squirrels poaching eggs on more than one occasion. It is my understanding that Red Squirrels are more carnivorous than Grays, and Chipmunks are still more meat-loving. In fact, chipmunks are one of the major predators of eggs and nestlings in our region. Cheers, Gabriel Willow Nyc Audubon > On Dec 9, 2016, at 1:50 PM, Joan Collins <joan.coll...@frontier.com> wrote: > > Shai - wonderful description of the squirrel spinning the drumstick like a > pine cone! That is exactly how I describe what it looks like when a Red > Squirrel eats a bird. I take photos and videos of lots of behaviors - many > that my husband objects to me putting on Facebook (too gross) - but after the > list discussion about the Gray Squirrel behavior, I decided to post a short > clip of one of the videos I took on May 8, 2016 of a Red Squirrel that > captured, killed, and then consumed a Pine Siskin foraging on the ground > under our feeders (I could go into the details, but I’d rather not re-live > it). (On my Facebook page below) I suspect that this (killing) behavior is > much more frequent in Red Squirrels - they are extremely fast compared to > Gray Squirrels and quite capable of capturing a bird if an opportunity exists. > > In the winter, I put down sunflower seeds for the Black-capped Chickadees at > Sabattis Bog where I feed Gray Jays. All of the birds keep a good distance > from the Red Squirrels that venture to the food. The chickadees are > extremely observant and let out alarm calls - when the Red Squirrels first > come in and anytime they are within striking distance. > > Joan Collins > > President, NYS Ornithological Association > > Editor, New York Birders > > Long Lake, NY > > (315) 244-7127 cell > > (518) 624-5528 home > > http://www.adirondackavianexpeditions.com/ > > http://www.facebook.com/AdirondackAvian > > > -----Original Message----- > From: bounce-121071933-13418...@list.cornell.edu > [mailto:bounce-121071933-13418...@list.cornell.edu] On Behalf Of Shaibal Mitra > Sent: Friday, December 09, 2016 1:01 PM > To: NYS BIRDS <NYSbirds-L@cornell.edu> > Subject: RE: [nysbirds-l] [NFBirds Report 2905] I Have Never Seen This Before > !! > > Benign explanations, such as hunger or calcium deficit, are certainly > plausible, but I wouldn't rule out depravity. These little mammals are smart > enough that they probably form some sort of conviction of right and > wrong--along with the concomitant and irresistible urge to transgress. > > When I lived on the South Side of Chicago in the early 90s, I kept notes on > what the squirrels ate. Bagels, pizza, and other high-carb items were > visually amusing in their little paws, but not notably deviant. Battered and > fried drumsticks from Harold's Chicken Shack took the optics to a new plane, > especially when spun as dexterously as a pine cone between furry little > fingers. The worst was one deplorable individual whom I discovered dragging a > fairly large slab of pork ribs with its mouth. To test whether it really > needed the ribs in some pardonable way, or was just too far gone in some > moral abyss, I approached the rodent to assess the point at which > self-preservation might take over from gluttony. It would not let go! I could > have caught it, but what good would that have done? I walked away, Desiderata > in my mind's ear. > > Shai Mitra > > Bay Shore > > ________________________________________ > > From: bounce-121071794-3714...@list.cornell.edu > [bounce-121071794-3714...@list.cornell.edu] on behalf of Nancy Jane Kern > [kerns...@hotmail.com] > > Sent: Friday, December 9, 2016 12:21 PM > > To: NYS BIRDS; Rick & Linda > > Subject: Re: [nysbirds-l] [NFBirds Report 2905] I Have Never Seen This Before > !! > > I have seen gray squirrels gnaw on a deer carcass, regularly eat suet, eat on > road kill, and chew MacDonald's hamburgers taken out of a dumpster in Albany. > Not that often, but some will do it. Maybe it relates to their level of > hunger. > > > Nancy Kern > > > Austerlitz, NY > > Columbia County > > > > > > > > ________________________________ > > From: bounce-121071743-44613...@list.cornell.edu > <bounce-121071743-44613...@list.cornell.edu> on behalf of Rick & Linda > <kedenb...@optonline.net> > > Sent: Friday, December 9, 2016 12:05 PM > > To: NYS BIRDS > > Subject: [nysbirds-l] [NFBirds Report 2905] I Have Never Seen This Before !! > > I always thought G Squirrels were vegetarians. Here are pictures of a > squirrel on my deck eating a DE Junco. I could not believe my eyes but there > it is. > > I was working on my laptop this morning and heard a thump on the sliding > glass door. Evidently it was a DE Junco that hit the glass. I finished what I > was doing and went to see if the bird needed to be put in a box and kept warm > until it recovered. > > When I got to the door I saw the squirrel already had the birds head off and > was eating the rest. > > I have never seen this before, has anyone else? > > I frequently throw out leftover wet cat food, fat and other table scraps that > the Bluejays and Blackbirds enjoy but the squirrels always turn their noses > up at that food. > > She ate the whole bird and I spotted her later with only feathers stuck to > her head and leg. > > This is a first for me and I don’t know if I like the idea of a carnivorous > squirrel. > > [cid:DFE8FBDE-B4B2-4B9F-9531-FCBFB311FC21] > > IMG_9673 > > > [cid:10AC657C-5218-4F3E-8109-F2AEEABD5C2A] > > IMG_9672 > > > [cid:272CDC01-2A40-4AEB-9A34-7B02B0BFF996] > > IMG_9671 > > > [cid:F66C8D08-3E61-48D1-BCE8-4DB14B1A2AA2] > > IMG_9670 > > > > -- > > You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups > "North Fork Birds" group. > > To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an > email to > north-fork-birds+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com<mailto:north-fork-birds+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com>. > > For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout. > > -- > > NYSbirds-L List Info: > > Welcome and Basics<http://www.northeastbirding.com/NYSbirdsWELCOME> > > Rules and Information<http://www.northeastbirding.com/NYSbirdsRULES> > > Subscribe, Configuration and > Leave<http://www.northeastbirding.com/NYSbirdsSubscribeConfigurationLeave.htm> > > Archives: > > The Mail > Archive<http://www.mail-archive.com/nysbirds-l@cornell.edu/maillist.html> > > Surfbirds<http://www.surfbirds.com/birdingmail/Group/NYSBirds-L> > > BirdingOnThe.Net<http://birdingonthe.net/mailinglists/NYSB.html> > > Please submit your observations to eBird<http://ebird.org/content/ebird/>! > > -- > > -- > > NYSbirds-L List Info: > > Welcome and Basics<http://www.northeastbirding.com/NYSbirdsWELCOME> > > Rules and Information<http://www.northeastbirding.com/NYSbirdsRULES> > > Subscribe, Configuration and > Leave<http://www.northeastbirding.com/NYSbirdsSubscribeConfigurationLeave.htm> > > Archives: > > The Mail > Archive<http://www.mail-archive.com/nysbirds-l@cornell.edu/maillist.html> > > Surfbirds<http://www.surfbirds.com/birdingmail/Group/NYSBirds-L> > > BirdingOnThe.Net<http://birdingonthe.net/mailinglists/NYSB.html> > > Please submit your observations to eBird<http://ebird.org/content/ebird/>! > > -- > > -- > > NYSbirds-L List Info: > > http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsWELCOME > > http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsRULES > > http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsSubscribeConfigurationLeave.htm > > ARCHIVES: > > 1) http://www.mail-archive.com/nysbirds-l@cornell.edu/maillist.html > > 2) http://www.surfbirds.com/birdingmail/Group/NYSBirds-L > > 3) http://birdingonthe.net/mailinglists/NYSB.html > > Please submit your observations to eBird: > > http://ebird.org/content/ebird/ > > -- > > -- > NYSbirds-L List Info: > Welcome and Basics > Rules and Information > Subscribe, Configuration and Leave > Archives: > The Mail Archive > Surfbirds > BirdingOnThe.Net > Please submit your observations to eBird! > -- -- NYSbirds-L List Info: http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsWELCOME http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsRULES http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsSubscribeConfigurationLeave.htm ARCHIVES: 1) http://www.mail-archive.com/nysbirds-l@cornell.edu/maillist.html 2) http://www.surfbirds.com/birdingmail/Group/NYSBirds-L 3) http://birdingonthe.net/mailinglists/NYSB.html Please submit your observations to eBird: http://ebird.org/content/ebird/ --
