The bane of agricultural operations both at home & at work. More of a pest than prairie dogs & pocket gophers combined. Not bad to eat when young, edible with a good condiment when old. They nest in my wood pile. As fully arboreal as any tree squirrel. Have seen sharp-shinned accipiters make predation attempts but none I've witnessed have been successful. Why won't the bobcat, long-tailed weasel, raccoon, five species of canid (red, kit & grey foxes, coyote & feral dog) & striped skunk eat rock squirrels, rather than getting after my poultry?
The bane of agricultural operations both at home & at work. More of a pest than prairie dogs & pocket gophers combined. Not bad to eat when young, edible with a good condiment when old. They nest in my wood pile. As fully arboreal as any tree squirrel. Have seen sharp-shinned accipiters make predation attempts but none I've witnessed have been successful. Why won't the bobcat, long-tailed weasel, raccoon, five species of canid (red, kit & grey foxes, coyote & feral dog) & striped skunk eat rock squirrels, rather than getting after my poultry?
When I was doing my MS thesis work in SW Colorado, these guys would get into my live traps, kill and eat the smaller rodents inside.
Real pests.
Thanks for the thot, darwinsdog. I hadn't thought to use the "direct removal" method to keep them out of my traps. I just tried to get to them first.