258 Transactiojis of the [Sess. 



brandies, pries into crevices in quest of hidden food, ventures out 

 almost to the extremity of very slender twigs, sits up on his hind 

 legs, and throws himself into a variety of curious attitudes. Should 

 another Squirrel come upon his feeding-ground, the speed and agility 

 displayed in the ensuing chase is most wonderful, and probably 

 exceeds what any one unacquainted with his powers would imao-ine 

 him capable of In the food on which the Squirrel subsists there 

 is considerable variety. Fir-cones, beech-nuts, acorns, and haw- 

 thorn-berries are staple articles of diet ; young shoots of the Spruce 

 Fir are also frequently gnawed through, to enable him to eat out the 

 heart of the small buds which grow around the stem of the shoot ; 

 and, unfortunately for his own preservation, his somewhat- omniv- 

 orous appetite leads him even to attack the bark of trees. The 

 different species of Pines are those generally attacked, and, in some 

 instances, serious injury is done to the tree. In an old wood I 

 once saw many large Scotch Firs with long strips of bark eaten off 

 from the upper part of their trunks, and on some of the trees there 

 were bare patches six or eight feet long, and about half a foot 

 broad. The occasional indulgence of this taste marks out the 

 Squirrel as an animal to be destroyed ; and in the interests of 

 forest preservation there is, I own, a necessity for keeping their 

 numbers within certain limits. But that is all that requires to be 

 done, for when in moderate numbers, any injury inflicted will, I 

 think, only be of trifling consequence. 



About October the Squirrels leave the large pine-w^oods, where, 

 during the summer, the most of them have been rearing their 

 offspring, and spread themselves into more open ground. Clumps 

 and groves are then visited, and excursions made from these to 

 straggling trees in search of food. At this season they may often 

 be seen on the ground feeding on the seeds and nuts which have 

 fallen from the trees. When they arrive at a spot where food is 

 abundant, a halt is made, and slioidd a suitable abode for the night 

 be near, in the shape of a few Fir trees, residence is there taken up. 

 If such a spot be in the vicinity of dwellings, the Squirrel very 

 soon, if unmolested, becomes so familiar as to sit on the ground 

 and eat with composure while you are looking at him six or seven 

 yards off. When moving forward, where the trees stand some dis- 

 tance apart, much caution is used to ensure safety. The nearest 

 tree is made for at full speed, and vphen that is reached, a survey 

 is made all around to see that no danger threatens. Then, with- 

 out ascending the tree, off he starts to the next. If pursued, the 

 Squirrel does not seek refuge in the nearest tree if it be small, but 

 pushes on to a larger. At times, however, he would seem to be 

 more venturesome, for one was brought to me by a person who 

 killed it out on a hill. If htmted from tree to tree, some notable 

 leaps are taken from the point of one branch to another ; and I 



