Squirrels eat what type of nut

These opportunistic feeders are NOT picky and if you want to attract them to your back yard, you can put out some of the following:. Of course, you can attract them with other foods, as the list of what squirrels like to eat is huge. However, they can only get protein from nuts, which is why this is the best squirrel food you can give them. Their little fingers help them remove the shells along with their sharp teeth. Once they get the nut cracked open, they can store the nuts in their cheeks, which has excess skin that can stretch enormously to fit food.

They will carry multiple nuts back to their den to feed their young and bury the nuts in different places for the winter when there is a shortage of food. All the products I shared above are perfect for feeding grey squirrels in your yard or out in the wild.

I know in California, it is illegal to feed a squirrel, but they allow people to hunt tree squirrels. States like Illinois allows people to feed deer, but not squirrels. I always recommend checking the wildlife website in your area to find out what is allowed. This site is a good place to start.

Most states will be fine with you feeding the squirrels that come into your backyard, garden or anywhere on your property. But always make sure you do your due diligence first as every state is different and I am NOT an expert.

Like gray squirrels, red squirrels love eating nuts, They will enthusiastically collect and consume the following nuts:. While they are not as common where I live. As grey squirrels can kill red squirrels because they carry a disease called squirrel parapoxvirus.

Just like grey squirrels, they will eat from feeders, so you can attract them by filling a feeder or squirrel house with their favorite nuts. Before you feed your backyard squirrels peanuts , make sure that you know what kind are good for them.

Salted peanuts are a big NO NO. Their little kidneys cannot handle huge amounts of salt. If they are given huge proportional amounts of salted nuts, it can eventually kill them. Red and grey squirrels eat most kinds of nuts but they particularly love acorns, walnuts, pecans, hazelnuts, almonds, beech nuts, pine nuts and macadamia nuts.

If serving nuts to your squirrel guests, leave the nuts in the shell. Removing the shell provides squirrels with a way of sharpening their teeth and staying active.

Diet wise, both species of squirrels tend to be herbivores, although both type of squirrel are known to eat the odd bird egg if they are struggling to source other food.

You'll probably find that grey squirrels take quite a bit of the food for later as they love to bury their food supplies and return to it when they need it most. In fact red squirrels have the same diet to grey squirrels, which is where competitiveness over food and habitat has unfortunately led to this gentler squirrel's decline.

The biggest difference in grey and red squirrels is that while grey squirrels bury their food stash and remember exactly where they hid it away, red squirrels tend to be a tad forgetful and don't remember where they put their food! We'd hate for any squirrels to get poorly from eating in our gardens, so there are a few foods to avoid when preparing foods for them. Ways you can help the environment after lockdown. The best bird feeding stations for your garden.

The best squirrel baffles for your bird feeder. Celebrity and TV. Yours Magazine. Retirement Services. Red squirrels on the other hand are a little forgetful, giving grey squirrels the opportunity to steal their food stashes. Squirrels will generally try anything, however there are always some exceptions. To establish a healthy, nutritious dining experience for the squirrels in your garden, there are now special squirrel feeds available.

These feeds are specially formulated and will contain favourites such as maize, sunflower seeds, wheat and oats among others. Although their antics and acrobatics are quaint and great fun to watch, Grey Squirrels can cause severe damage to When did you last see a red squirrel and where were you? There are only about , Whilst some of us like to see squirrels bounding around the parks, most of us are not so happy to see them in our own Neither the common grey squirrel or the lesser seen, but indigenous, red squirrel are physically able to hibernate.

Are squirrels carnivore or herbivore? What food do squirrels eat? What nuts do squirrels eat?