All of our Gray Squirrels are gone...

I'm sick over this. Sometime between last fall and this spring, the Gray Squirrels in the valley I live in, and there were literally MILLIONS of them, have disappeared. It seems they were the victims of some kind of mite that caused them to get mange, and their sores got infected.

When I moved here in '07, there were so many squirrels in and around my town that you couldn't drive down the street without having to slow down to keep from hitting one crossing the street. Now, nothing. There have been a few sightings here and there of 1-2 squirrels, but statistically now there are none.

The article I was able to dig up after a while said a possible cause was the number of squirrel feeders in the area. People loved the squirrels and their antics and nearly everyone I know had a squirrel feeder or two in their yards. This caused the population to grow to more than the natural food sources could provide. Congregating at the feeders allowed for the transfer of these mites from one squirrel to another.

Such a beautiful sight... a large Gray Squirrel with its HUGE bushy tail scampering along the rail of my deck... is no longer. So sad to me that in our haste to be near them, we've made them all go away.

I'm so bummed over this that I've bawled my eyes out a number of times.

I expect they will recover.

It's hard I guess to identify such pretty and enteraining creatures as rodents, but you are exactly right, and some people here see them as pests due to the fact that they ARE rodents. I've read more than a few "good riddance" posts on the community websites here and find them disturbing, but now have a better grasp of the importance or non-importance of this event.

What bothers me most is that the root cause for the die-off could be purely man-made.

Again, thanks for the perspective. It helps.

I hope that your little community has an upswing and you'll get to enjoy that kinder life again soon. Are your songbirds in good health?

Part of what I love about where I live is the proximity to all sorts of wildlife. (I'm on the border of a national park.) I spend a lot of time watching all the comings and goings in my little stand of woods.

Hopefully the remaining squirrels will repopulate the area soon. :(

money problems.

We have lots of them in my area.

that are scampering around my neighborhood. There is no shortage of squirrels in the North Georgia area. They are everywhere.

I am overrun with them.

I think these populations rise and fall cyclically. If mites caused the population to fall, the lack of a host will cause the mites to decrease as well, and the squirrels will come back. I doubt they are gone permanently.

The squirrels around here are total degenerates.


All Squirrels Must Die - How to kill the little bastids

last i heard gray squirrel populations were booming worldwide, including places where they've been introduced and become pests such as england

i would never put up a squirrel feeder, it would only encourage them, but if i hear of anyone thinking of doing it, i'll tell them not to

:(

and whether that could be affecting wildlife.

GM food despite what is posted on teh nets, is not toxic to mammals. But again, I only am a biologist in biotech, i don't know anything.
And actually one of the things that have been infecting squirrels in the last few years has been prions, the "organism" (scientists debate if they are actually alive like viri) that causes mad cow disease. Natural die offs of animal populations from parasites and such happen quite frequently

And I don't want them! Cute, but pesky little critters.

stuffing his little furry face with bird seed. However, he is keeping the cats amused.

Put out a bird feeder and the squirrels will be back in droves.

come get some

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=777vJrssQL8&feature=related">you think

Maybe they left for a reason? :tinfoilhat:

came from!

here from my childhood. Then all of a sudden, Gray Squirrels started to show up. And the Grays are so much more aggressive than the bigger Foxes that they have taken over. Even though I resent the Grays, I certainly hope that they stay healthy.

And I think most of them live on my farm.

They will be back in your area. Rodent populations are always boom & bust.

I could send several hundred and some chipmunks as well!