Squirrel Stew

This is a European red squirrel. Note the distinctive tuffed ears. I ran across this creature while researching yet another improvement on my already improved bird feeder designs. There was an article in the dining section of the New York Times reporting that squirrel meat was becoming very popular in Britain. It seems that the American gray squirrel has invaded the British Isles and is crowding out the native (and cherished) red variety.

As a result gamekeepers and huntsmen are culling the grays and selling them to restaurants and meat markets where they are turned into pies, stew meat, and even pate'. A popular marketing theme reads "Eat a gray, save a red!" according to the story.

Even environmentalists are on board saying how important it is to save the red and how sensible it is that the culled animals are put to good use rather than just killed and discarded as pests.

My next birdfeeder design won't go this far although some readers have already called with remarks varying from "why are you feeding wildlife in the first place?" to "do you have a .22?" which leans more toward the British experience. Gray squirrels were indeed hunted here in the past, both for meat and fur so this Brit thing is understandable.

But I'm going to make Plan # 6.2a with an inverted cone, like the ones vets use to keep a dog from scratching his ears and face. I've decided to build the cones in an environmentally friendly way too, by cutting up one of those ugly black pots you get plants in from the nursery.

Hah. Let's see them shinney that! (Report to follow for those readers sturdy enough to follow this drivel. With photos.)