Squirrels are selective in nature when it comes to food, they prefer ripened fruits to unripened ones, and most times they prefer to have fresh fruits to dropped ones.
Squirrels are animals that are very active during the day with their sleek bodies, all covered with thick fur and very busy tails which is a great adaptation to their environment. They do have their coat/ fur as black, gray, brown or sometimes it might be reddish with some light color below.
It is very common that squirrels eat a lot of things. They are not picky eaters at all and you can always see this if you have spent a lot of time watching their feeding habits especially during the early hours of the morning. They have flair for the natural taste of things in their environments like fruits, flowers, vegetables, flowers, fungi, nuts, trees, plants, and insects.
But in comparison to the dining habits of squirrels, they have so many restrictions. Due to their curiosity, they can try almost everything and have actually become fond of several items that they definitely should not be.
Such as the favorite sugary snacks and cereals of children. When it comes to food, squirrels are open-minded.
Squirrels eat berries with joy and great zeal. This can be evident if you live close to fruit trees or fruit bushes and vines. You will see these beautiful creatures munching and gnawing their jaws on these tasty treats.
Must read: Do Squirrels Eat Mice
With so much ease, they can climb through fruit trees easily to tap fruits. Especially strawberries. They also feed on crops of pears, apples, kiwi, citrus, mangoes, avocadoes e.t.c.
With ease, squirrels will scale fruit trees to steal their fruit. Squirrels eat the crop of pears, grapes, apples, kiwi, avocados, peaches, nectarines, figs, plums, mangoes, and citrus from a number of fruiting trees, including but not limited to. Squirrels can consume some berries such as strawberries, blackberries, blueberries, raspberries, mulberries, and many others. They also love banana, cantaloupes, and also cherries. These fruits give them the main sugar boost which helps provide energy from these creatures.
Read :- What To Feed Squirrels
However, if squirrels do affect your strawberries, here are a few things that can be done to help mitigate the squirrel’s effect:
- Modify and make the surrounding of the habitat less desirable to squirrels and also remove bird feeders, tidy up piles of brush and keep lids very tight on outdoor trash cans.
- Cut through the back of the tree branches hanging about 5 to 6 feet of electrical lines or even on the home’s roof. This makes it very hard for these animals to roam about on your property which also helps keep them from even discovering the strawberry gardens.
- Installing a wire mesh fence will be a good idea also and it can be about 30 inches tall and has a 1-inch hole around the strawberry garden.
- Arrangements for this type of fence should be made so as to keep them from digging under the fence to get strawberries.
Squirrels are beautiful creatures but nevertheless, if they are posing threats to your strawberries, kindly follow the procedure provided above.
Jessica Watson is a PHD holder from the University of Washington. She studied behavior and interaction between squirrels and has presented her research in several wildlife conferences including TWS Annual Conference in Winnipeg.