MICE AND VOLES. 175 



(Fig. 34), especially in Conifer woods. They feed on most 

 kinds of tree-seeds, but chiefly on acorns, and beech and hazel 

 nuts ; they eat the flowering buds of Oak, Beech, Maple, 

 Sycamore, and Conifers in late winter; and in summer and 

 autumn pick cones to pieces, even before ripe, to suck the juice 

 and eat the seeds. Hence seed-production is poor wherever 

 squirrels are numerous. But the greatest damage they do is 

 when, during spring and summer, they seat themselves on the 

 branch-whorls of Conifer poles or trees and gnaw the soft bark, 

 often completely girdling the top, which then dries, rots, and 

 ultimately falls off. In the North of Scotland so much damage 

 of this sort has been done, especially in Scots Pine and Larch 

 woods, that the landowners in Ross, Cromarty, and neighbour- 

 hood had to form squirrel clubs for shooting and trying to 

 exterminate this pretty but excessively destructive pest; and 

 over 15,000 were shot within five or six years. They are very 

 destructive in some parts of Ireland, where they are said to 

 have been introduced about fifty years ago by two boys letting 

 loose a pair given to them as pets. Trapping is less effective 

 than shooting during the nesting time in May, when a charge 

 of small shot will kill both mother and brood. Where squirrel 

 raids are not permitted during the nesting season, the best time for 

 shooting them is in February, before the game birds begin to lay. 

 Mice and Voles do damage by eating seed and gnawing 

 plants in nurseries and plantations (Fig. 34). Their attacks 

 are often hard to combat, and sometimes this can only be 

 effected when nature restores the proper balance by increase of 

 natural enemies, or by epidemic disease. Mice and voles are 

 always found in woods adjoining fields. The wood-mouse lives 

 in the woods, but the voles infest the fields in summer, and live 

 in the woodlands in winter. Both are very prolific, and increase 

 enormously during a mild winter followed by a dry spring and 

 summer. But hard frost without snow, heavy rain followed by 

 frost, and cold damp weather often kill them off in a short time. 



