228 WOODLAND CREATURES 



I found her new nest in the plantation; it was 

 quite a hundred and fifty yards from the first, 

 and it was wonderful that she moved the little 

 things so quickly as she did. Why the removal 

 was undertaken is another matter, but evidently 

 there was something she did not like about the 

 nest in the spruce, and so built a new one in 

 a more secluded spot. But it annoyed me to 

 think that a squirrel had made a nest, and 

 reared her young ones, in a tree practically 

 touching the house, and I never even suspected 

 her presence until she betrayed it by carrying 

 them away. 



There can be no question that squirrels have 

 a weakness for eggs, and will also kill callow 

 nestlings, and I strongly suspect that this one 

 had eaten the eggs of the sparrows. Many rodents 

 are liable to succumb to such a temptation if the 

 opportunity arises ; indeed, it is astonishing what 

 a number of creatures there are, which are 

 popularly supposed to feed only on nuts, grain, 

 etc., which will eat flesh if providence puts it in 

 their way, ditto eggs if they chance upon them. 

 Mice, for instance, take heavy toll of the eggs 

 of those small birds that nest on, or near, the 

 ground. 



Of course the squirrel is principally a vegetarian ; 

 that it eats nuts is notorious, and every nut- 

 gathering boy is aware that his greatest competitor 

 is that dainty sprite in golden-red which flashes 

 through the trees and bushes. But the general 

 belief that the squirrel is a most provident little 



