28 NOTES ON SOME HABITS OF THE SQUIRREL. 



to whom I had mentioned my intention of jotting down the 

 present notes. In the Field article it is said "Early in the 

 Autumn squirrels begin accumulating food, which is stored in 

 holes in trees in the neighbourhood of the nest." With this state- 

 ment the Natural History Text Books I have searched are in exact 

 agreement. No other method of laying up food for winter use is 

 either expressed or implied; though their feeding in winter upon 

 the seeds of the pine and fir cones is mentioned. I have never 

 myself seen squirrels in the act of conveying food nuts and 

 acorns to stores in holes of trees, nor have I ever come across 

 such stores, though I do not for a moment question the exercise of 

 these habits. But I have observed them for many past years 

 busily engaged in picking up acorns and burying them singly over 

 considerable spaces of ground in the immediate neighbourhood of 

 the supply. There stands on my lawn, within 25 yards of my 

 windows, a large Turkey oak, on which there are in most years 

 more or fewer acorns, in some seasons very large crops. As soon as 

 the acorns begin to drop (about the beginning of October) several 

 squirrels are at their daily work, beginning early in the morning 

 and continuing at intervals all day. The space immediately under 

 the tree is searched carefully, and, even though the acorns may be 

 lying thickly on the ground, yet it might appear to the observer as 

 though there were some difficulty in finding them, for, undoubtedly, 

 there is a good deal of evident discrimination and discretion 

 exercised before one is taken in the mouth and conveyed rapidly 

 to a short distance from the tree. As soon as the burying ground 

 is reached a little hopping about and sniffing among the grass 

 reveals the proper spot, where a small hole is hastily scratched with 

 the fore paws, the acorn is thrust in with one or two pokes or dabs 

 with the mouth, and still more hastily covered with eartli by a 

 scratch or two. The squirrel then returns equally expeditiously to 

 the source of supply, and the operation is repeated for an hour or 

 more at a time. What length of time may be the longest for a spell 

 of work I cannot say, but certainly after a busy bout the animals 

 disappear for a time, though only to return again at intervals 



