A thorny issue
Sunday May 03rd 2015, 10:47 pm
Filed under: Garden,Wildlife

The second time it happened, I knew exactly what it was.

But that first time a few days ago I could not for the life of me figure out that large bright white blob in the air (definitely not part of the tree in the background) hovering, hovering, now wobbling up and down just above the far end of the fence over on the neighbor’s side. It was almost round but for that one part–I willed it to come closer so I could see what that was.

Yonder squirrel stumblingly, awkwardly obliged.

It was a masterpiece of a huge white rose, just a showstopper that some gardener had clearly been proud of, with the sun dazzling it full on against the backdrop of the small black animal whose small face it utterly dwarfed. He finally stood still a moment halfway down my property line up there and tried to eat that thing. Like a teenage boy with a pizza–no, make that a Chez Panisse banquet, look at that presentation–all to himself.

One upper petal was askew from the otherwise still-perfect formation as he chomped on the center. He had plucked the entire rose from the bush quite nicely. He looked for all the world like he was holding a whipped cream pie against his face.

I have roses, and I’ve never seen a squirrel do such a thing before–they simply don’t eat them. Trying to figure out if it could be the drought? But then why…? Maybe all that rain in December led to a bumper crop of young that can’t find anything to eat now.

The second time, he went for a flower half the size. Don’t bite off more than that with which you can leap.


2 Comments so far
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I had no idea squirrels ever ate roses. I do love the image of a squirrel holding a shipped cream pie against his face, though.

Comment by RobinM 05.04.15 @ 3:50 pm

wow! I don’t know if the Rocky Mountain squirrels eat roses or not — I haven’t seen that yet

we seem to have a lot more birds here at our new house than squirrels — I’ve seen sparrows, red headed finch, robins, doves and once a red tail hawk — loving it!

Comment by Bev Haring 05.09.15 @ 6:46 am



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