Squirrels are almost always greedy and aggressive – they chase everyone else away, including other squirrels. They run like heck when the deer show up, even though the deer just ignore them. So they are often frustrating, and I’m always trying to figure out ways to stop them from eating everything. They will try something – like a newly ripe tomato – take one bite and throw it down. That would be okay if they learned from each other, but it seems they each have to learn for themselves.
For instance, I now put safflower seed into the long feeder, because it tastes bitter to the squirrels – and birds love it! And of course I use a squirrel baffle on the feeder. Although they can often jump from a nearby tree and avoid the baffle.
But this morning their greed made me very unhappy. The big beautiful magnolia, which produces dinner plate sized bloom had just one bud in eye range, and I have been watching it develop since late April – then last week I discovered two more low down, and was looking forward to enjoying them as well.
And this morning, one of those buds was gone – chomped off by a squirrel, who took one bite and threw it down on the porch. Darned squirrel.