Working at home, you’re witness to all sorts of goings on which you obviously don’t see when you’re at work. This week, I’ve been noting the shifting times with which the squirrels visit next door’s garden to grab their stash of nuts from the feeder.
The morning shift had already switched to a much earlier time, and yesterday, as I was at home, I heard the clap-clap of the feeder lid two hours earlier than when I thought they visited.
Usually arriving home from work in the early evening, I’d noticed that as the daylight hours gradually extended, so did the length of time the rodents stayed and fed on the fence near the flat.
Arriving before dusk in the late afternoon during winter, now the tree-dwelling creatures arrive around 17h00. Over the next two hours, the feeder sees a flurry of activity, as a squad of at least three squigs pay visits to the little square wooden box.
One in particular is very well-fed, and must grab more than its fair share of the food. Reaching inside the box, it has to keep one foot on the platform to balance, and is definitely more rotund than it was in the darker months.
The smaller ones almost disappear into the feeder, and are spritelier, chasing each other off the platform and onto the fence. They seem to be quite happy to share the nut stash, although at times, the chases send the pair up the trees, along the fence, or across the back lawn, sometimes at lightning speeds.
They’re so fun to watch, and can be caught unawares if they’re eating on the fence and a human is spotted. They can be so shocked, that they scamper along the fence panels sideways, with two claws showing over the top of the dividing wall. Jumping up onto the garage roofs and running into the trees behind, they then disappear from view.
Vermin? Questionably. Cute? Undoubtedly.
And, three bundles of furry fun.