Squirrels and Friends

RAwarrior

As many of you will know I am a lover of wildlife and I have posted many photographs particularly of squirrels.

 I find really therapeutic to interact with wildlife and as I also like photography I enjoy taking photographs of the wildlife I see.

Please post any photographs or comments if you wish🐿😁

Grinchy

thats great, love all the photos, funny that the squirrel helps itself to your bag of goodies, good that they trust you

RAwarrior

@Grinchy

Thank you very much😁

This group of squirrels know me so I have built up some trust with them.

 If I am feeding another squirrel the naughty one just climbs into the bag and helps herself and I told her off in a nice way so she replied in her own way as if she was complaining about the fact that I had told her off😁

RAwarrior

Scope

I don’t know where all of my photos and previous posts have gone?

Grinchy

they are still there @RAwarrior we are just on another page, see the arrow at the bottom of the page under my comment

RAwarrior

@Grinchy

Thank you so much for your help as I thought all the photos had gone. I am still new to this site so I haven’t worked out how to use all of it👍

Grinchy

@RAwarrior no problem, i am on various collecting forums and they are all basically the same layout, glad to help

RAwarrior

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This is the squirrel who is really nervous but he took a walnut from me today 

chiarieds

Thank you @RAwarrior - Altho I don't comment much, I'm really enjoying the pictures of your photogenic squirrels  who know you, or know where your hazelnuts are too well!

I get squirrels running along my fence, & see them going up nearby trees, so I think I might try hazelnuts to tempt them. How long did it take for them to get so accustomed to you?

About York; I've visited the Castle & Railway Museums three times, & the Jorvik Centre once. York is one of my favourite places. My Uncle was a very keen amateur photographer, & I've got a large framed photo hung in my lounge. It's just in black & white, but shows the Shambles at one of its narrowest point, with a man walking through taken in the 1950's; my favourite photo of his.

Keep your photos coming....they're amazing.

RAwarrior

@Grinchy

Thank you very much 😁

I was glad that I managed to return to the park after what happened to me. However, I am still a bit wary in case the man returns.

Feeding the squirrels, ducks, Moorhens, Coots etc really helps me in a similar way to your amazing Star Wars Collection👍

It was so peaceful today in the park because the weather was bad and it almost empty so I got to spend some time with the squirrels 🐿 

The female squirrel was really funny today because she kept going into the bag and stealing the nuts and you may have noticed with squirrels they make a vibrating sound when they are warning other squirrels to keep away, well after I nicely told her off by stopping her from getting into the bag, she did that vibrating sound to me like she was telling me off taking her dinner away 🤣🤣

RAwarrior

Grinchy

thats so cute she was telling you off, aww, more great photos, glad they give you such enjoyment,

RAwarrior

@chiarieds

Hello @chiarieds

It’s really great that you have taken the time to post on this thread. I know you from the Rheumatoid Arthritis thread where you kindly gave  myself and other members of the online community some really great advice and support 👍 

I have also read your posts on several other threads and you are a really supportive member of this wonderful online community😁

Thank you so much for your lovely comments and I am glad that you enjoy seeing the photographs😁

If I can bring a smile to someone’s face by posting photos of what I call “my little squirrel family” then that makes me happy😀

It didn’t take me long maybe a couple of weeks for the squirrels to get to know me. 

I really love animals and I am not trying to boast because that is not me, however, I seem to have a natural empathy with animals maybe because I know they won’t hurt me if that makes any sense. I seem to have a bond with them that I don’t always have with people🐿

I am very patient with them and you get know which ones are nervous and which ones are more confident like the naughty hazelnut thief😁 She was one of the first squirrels I started to feed. I normally hold out a hazelnut for her to take but a few days ago I turned my back to feed another squirrel, she was in the bag and all I could see was her tail🤣 

It’s a great idea to feed the squirrels in your garden. You can give them hazelnuts, almonds and the occasional walnut. Despite a lot of people feeding squirrels monkey nuts, they are not good for them. We also should never feed squirrels brazil nuts because it can kill them because although they contain Selinium which is a great antioxidant for humans, it can be fatal for squirrels😞 

I think York is a wonderful city. I found the people there really friendly and welcoming.

I really love the Castle Museum which I remember visiting as a child and climbing up to the top of Clifford Tower which I can’t do now. 

The Railway Museum was so amazing I spent most of the day there and I really didn’t want to leave.

I didn’t have time to visit the Jorvik Centre but it’s somewhere that I want to visit.

I also visited the York Museum which was really interesting and the Art Gallery.

Hopefully you have seen my post about the YMT card however, you might already know about it because you have been to York. It’s definitely worth getting.

I would love to visit York again but because of Covid 19 I will have to wait because I don’t feel safe enough to go anywhere. I was in the shielding group so I still don’t feel very safe.

It sounds like you have a lovely picture of the Shambles😁

Thank you again for your lovely comments and I will continue to post my photos👍

RAwarrior

@Grinchy

Yes she was telling me off because I stopped her from going into the bag by taking it away so she told me off🤣🤣🤣

They really do help me. I know you have helped and supported me a great deal recently which I appreciate😁 My interaction with the squirrels I suppose is a sanctuary in a similar way to your amazing Star Wars room😁

I have to find ways of dealing with my PTSD and one of the reasons I was so upset the other day was because I got verbally used when I was doing something that helped me to cope. 

I hope I don’t see the man in the park again and I will phone the Police next time.

RAwarrior

This is the Hazelnut thief making her approach to the bag and then jumping straight in🤣🤣🤣

RAwarrior

The last photo is a squirrel burying the nut. A squirrel rotates the nut you give it in their claws for a few seconds to assess the quality of the nut to decide whether to eat it or bury it for later😁

chiarieds

Hi @RAwarrior - many thanks for your kind comments too. I'm amazed it didn't take too long to gain a rapport with your squirrels. I will take onboard to try & tempt them appropriately with the right kind of nuts, thank you. I'm very fortunate to live in a very quiet environment with many managed trees.

Yes, I did see your post about the YMT card, which seems very good value for money, & which I hadn't know about. Altho I wasn't in the shielding group, I've known about the sad loss of life due to Covid-19 with my vet's husband, & more recently, my son's wife's Uncle. My friend & I talk about visiting York, but I doubt it will be this year. I haven't visited the York Museum, nor the Art gallery, which I'm sure I'd enjoy....hopefully one day.

RAwarrior

Hi @chiarieds
Thank you so much😁

I just seem to develop a bond with animals😁

I am sorry to hear about the your loses as a result of Covid😞

Hopefully you can visit York when it’s safe😁

I am still worried about Covid 19 because so many don’t wear masks, don’t social distance and gather in large groups so I only go to places like the park where I can distance myself from other people.

Many thanks again 😁

66Mustang

Great pictures, is that a walnut that one of them is holding, they look a little stumped by it

Cher_Scope

@RAwarrior

They are amazing photos.   We so need to find you a photo competition to enter!  The squirrel is almost posing for you 

RAwarrior

@66Mustang
Thank you so much😁

I only give them walnuts occasionally and the squirrel you are talking about is usually very nervous (he is the one that is always looking up at me in the photographs) however, I managed to get him to take the walnut from me and he was probably a bit puzzled but he ran off and ate it🤣🤣

RAwarrior

@Cher_Scope

Thank you so much😁

I’ve never entered a photography competition but I do like photography. 

I am also really happy that members of the online community like the photographs😁

I really pleased that I managed to take the photographs of the baby Moorhen as he/she was so cute and was still being fed by its parents.😁

There is also a family with three baby coots who I also feed which you can see in amongst the mallards😁

RAwarrior

The hazelnut thief 🐿

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Cher_Scope

They are brilliant!!! I've never seen squirrels so close to a camera before 

Saffy2000

I am loving your photo’s ... this little guy visits me nearly every day.     Makes me smile to see him. s little 

chiarieds

Hi @Saffy2000 - thank you for adding your lovely photo. I've got squirrels near me, so am going to try & tempt them with some hazelnuts.

RAwarrior

@Cher_Scope

Thank you so much😁

I do use the zoom on my iPhone as well as the squirrels move very quickly and I don’t🤣

I also really wanted to capture the Hazelnuts’s Thief expression once she had stolen the hazelnut🤣🤣

RAwarrior

@Saffy2000

Thank you so much for your lovely comments.  

I really do enjoy spending time with my little squirrel family🐿

Thank you so much for posting a photo of the squirrel in your garden. What a cute little squirrel😁

RAwarrior

@chiarieds

Thank you so much for posting again😁

Please let me know how you get with feeding the squirrels 🐿 

RAwarrior

@Cher_Scope
These are the forest squirrels in the forest  that I mentioned earlier🐿

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@Cher_Scope

Just to let you know I have posted some more photos of the forest squirrels that I also feed. I also feed a group of magpies and some waterfowl 🐿🦆

I hope that you and the rest of the online community like the photos 😁

chiarieds

Thank you @RAwarrior - the photos of the forest squirrels are lovely, & great to see.

RAwarrior

@chiarieds

Thank you so much for your lovely comments😁

I love visiting the forest as it’s so peaceful and I have my other little of group of squirrels there to feed🐿

There has been a lot of research in recent years about the benefits of forest therapy and it really helps me😁

Cher_Scope

@RAwarrior
This thread is like a beam of sunlight on a cold Tuesday morning!! Your woodland friends are the cutest.  
Are you going to be seeing them today?

Tori_Scope

Apologies @RAwarrior, I clearly had my Friday brain on 💤 The interview will be my reading for tonight!

Great photos yet again! I agree, you should definitely enter a competition. Local newspapers and magazines often run them.

I saw some coots, ducks, and swans in the park over the weekend and thought of you. You'll be pleased to know that I didn't feed them any bread

RAwarrior

@Cher_Scope

Thank you very much😁

The group of forest squirrels are really cute and there is a group of magpies there that I feed. The magpies come really close and I give them monkey nuts which they love and they break them with their beaks. There are also a couple of crows which are outnumbered by the magpies but I feed them as well😁
 I am going to the forest later so I will feed the squirrels 🐿 

RAwarrior

@Tori_Scope

Thank you very much😁

I hope you enjoyed your time in the park and I’m glad that you managed to see some coots, ducks and swans🦆

Thank you for your comments about the photos and I had never thought about entering a competition. 

Tori_Scope

I did thank you @RAwarrior. I saw lots of dogs too so it was a good day on the whole.

Have a look into some local competitions!

RAwarrior

@Tori_Scope

I'm glad you had a nice day in the park

I managed to visit my group forest squirrels today so I will be posting some more photographs  

Tori_Scope

Thanks @RAwarrior We look forward to it!

RAwarrior

@Cher_Scope
@Tori_Scope
Some more of my squirrel friends 🐿🐿

Cressida

@RAwarrior since reading these threads I am seeing squirrels everywhere I was sat in my garden and heard a commotion in trees at the end of it and a lot of grunts. 2 pigeons flew out of the tree and then a squirrel appeared and jumped from this tree onto my apple tree. I thought he had a huge bump in his throat but my son said it was a baby hanging around his neck! I've never seen anything like it. The squirrel was so quick though I only got a quick glance. 

RAwarrior

@Cressida

That’s really wonderful😁

Squirrels are really lovely animals🐿

It was great that you and your son managed to see a baby squirrel🐿

I do feed some of the squirrels that were probably born last year but I haven’t seen any of the babies that were born this year yet.

Cressida

@RAwarrior they are so flexible! When the squirrel was climbing the apple tree he looked so long, their bodies really stretch I was surprised at the noises, I don't know whether the pigeons were bothering the squirrel but there were a lot of grunts. 

RAwarrior

The hazelnut thief is back and the third photograph is her running away with the nut she stole 🤣

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@Cressida

They are really flexible and an example of that is the Hazelnut Thief helping herself🤣

Squirrels make so many different sounds and because I have been observing them closely I can recognise some of the sounds.

An example is when a squirrel is telling another squirrel to keep away they make a sound which sounds like an ape😁

They also make a vibrating sound to warn other squirrels to keep away or if they are frightened of humans.

The Hazelnut Thief does the vibrating sound whilst she is waiting for me to give her a hazelnut🤣

If I am feeding a squirrel I know there is another squirrel near by because the squirrel will make a vibrating sound. 

They also make what sounds like a crying sound when they are frightened especially when they have been chased by a dog😞

The squirrels I feed will all go into the trees and stay there in a vertical position even before a dog arrives. 

Chloe_Scope

RAwarrior said:

I think this is my favourite one yet @RAwarrior!!! ` 

RAwarrior

This is the squirrel that lets me stroke her and she is getting ready to jump on to my arm😁 

RAwarrior

I hope you all like the photos I have posted. They are a mixture of the squirrels in the park and the squirrels in the forest🐿

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@Chloe_Scope

Thank you so much 😁

The squirrel you are talking about is a really sweet squirrel and she is the one I can stroke. She walks along my arm takes the hazelnuts from my hand.😁

Cher_Scope

@RAwarrior These are brilliant  Is it a local park you visit?

Tori_Scope

I agree with @Chloe_Scope that these are some of your best yet @RAwarrior! 

I never realised how much their faces look like rabbit faces until now

RAwarrior

@Cher_Scope

Thank you so much and I’m glad that you like them😁

Yes the park is about a 15 minute drive away and the forest is about one hours’ drive away depending on traffic.

RAwarrior

@Tori_Scope

Thank you so much and I’m glad you like them😁

I never thought about them looking like a rabbit but sometimes when they run they do move a bit like a rabbit. 😁

Chloe_Scope

I do see a hint of rabbit now you mention it @Tori_Scope! 

RAwarrior

I thought some of you might find the last photo really funny 😂 

Tori_Scope

Caught red handed @RAwarrior

RAwarrior

@Tori_Scope

Yes I managed to take a photo of the Hazelnut Thief stealing🤣🤣🤣

RAwarrior

I really love the way they “assess” the quality of the nut by turning it before they decide what to do with it.🤣

RAwarrior

Cher_Scope

  Well hello there squirrel friends!! Were they well behaved today @RAwarrior ? 

Tori_Scope

I love the focus on this one @RAwarrior!

RAwarrior

@Cher_Scope

I haven’t been to the park today and these photos are from previous visits😁

As you can imagine I have lots of photos of squirrels on my phone so I try to post a mixture between the park and the forest squirrels😁 Many photos are from earlier visits.

I am hoping to visit the forest squirrels tomorrow🐿

On another note and I don’t want to turn this thread into a Covid 19 thread because I am already extremely worried about Covid 19 so I don’t even want to start😁 however, I know you mentioned Leeds in one of your posts so I hope you have seen the news about the infection rates in Leeds. It just came up as a news alert on my phone so I am just letting you know so you can stay safe👍

RAwarrior

@Tori_Scope

Thank you so much😁 
This is the squirrel that lets me stroke her and she is waiting to climb on my arm😁

Cher_Scope

@RAwarrior Ahhh, have fun tomorrow if you visit the forest squirrels!

Thank you for that advice about the covid-19 rate in Leeds, it's something I briefly saw in the news and I'm going to keep an eye on 

RAwarrior

@Cher_Scope

Thank you very much and I’m looking forward to visiting the forest as it’s is so peaceful😁

The story is on Sky News. 

Please look after yourself 
👍

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Some more of my forest friends🐿

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Cress

Lovely pictures as usual!
I think of you as the Beatrix Potter lady that takes me for a walk in the park each day...lol
Loved the squirrel helping himself...gives a new meaning to 'click and collect' lol

RAwarrior

@Cress

Thank you so much for your lovely comments😁

I’m really glad you like the photographs.

 I really do enjoy spending time with the squirrels 🐿 It really helps to take my mind away from the pain caused by my RA and OA but it also lifts my mood😁

The squirrel helping herself is one that I have been feeding for a while and if I turn my back she just goes into the bag and helps herself🤣

I have posted lots of pictures of her😁

I also feed a group of magpies and crows when I feed the squirrels in the forest 😁

It really helps me to focus on something positive and I really love animals and wildlife😁

RAwarrior

I forgot to add that it really cheers me up when I can bring a smile to someone else’s face when I post photos of the squirrels, ducks etc😁 

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Chloe_Scope

Looks like you've had a busy weekend @RAwarrior! Great pictures.

Cress

Thanks for my morning dose of fresh air...lol

Dont think I'd be brave enough to get that close to a swan but they are beautiful!

RAwarrior

@Chloe_Scope

Thank you very much😁

Yes it was really great to see my forest squirrels 🐿, the waterfowl and just being outside.😁

RAwarrior

@Cress

You’re welcome😁

I have never had a swan come that close to me but he knew I had food😁 I gave him swan and duck which I buy as I have previously mentioned bread is extremely harmful for ducks, swan, geese etc.

I also threw the food into the water as swans need to eat their food with water. 

RAwarrior

Cher_Scope

Ahhh hello woodland friends!!  Are these from today @RAwarrior? It looks like you had fun 

Grinchy

lovely new photos, i love this thread!

RAwarrior

@Cher_Scope

Thank you very much 😁

No the photos are from the weekend. I managed to visit my forest squirrel family and the waterfowl. 

The swan was literally demanding that I feed him but he wasn’t aggressive😁

The baby cygnets were really cute as well 😁

RAwarrior

@Grinchy

Thank you very much😁

I really enjoy visiting my squirrel families and the waterfowl. 

As I have said previously it really helps to lift my mood😁