California is full of enterprising squirrels just waiting to separate you from your hard earned trail mix.

This little guy works the botanical gardens in San Francisco along with his four friends.

Then there is this guy who controls the much sought after parking lot territory at pebble beach.

This one is a real puzzle though, what kind of funny looking squirrel is this?

Eastern grey squirrels can jump 8 feet from a standing start, so he probably could leap even further. Squirrels can reach amazing distances from a running start.

There were lots of them out.

A few of them were feeding off this tree eating buds or something. We’re not exactly sure.

While others were taking peanuts from an old man out on his electric scooter. Here’s one such squirrel making off with his peanut.

I finally finished managed to dig myself out from the snow-nami we had two days ago. Right after the last shovelful was gone—the sun decided to come out.

The squirrels came by for lunch, and this included our old friend piggy shown here.

Before the storm really got going, the squirrels came out to feed and seemed famished. Maybe they sensed the worsening weather?

They ate with urgency and vicious fights broke out, even drawing blood sometimes.

After they finished eating, the squirrels all disappeared and weren’t seen until after the storm had passed.

Here are some pictures of our friends during the storm.

 

He dropped by today and we were glad to see him.

Here is a shot taken on that warm, but soggy day.

I got a new telephoto lens this weekend. This shot, featuring one of our fall youngsters, was one of the first shots I took with it. I’m looking forward to really seeing what it can do.

This red squirrel named ‘Tortoiseshell’ has given birth to over 45 ‘kittens’ as part of Penthorpe nature reserve’s Red Squirrel breeding programme.

Photo © Annie Kerridge, used with permission.

Click here to view original web page at www.eveningnews24.co.uk

Recently we stumbled upon a site featuring amazing nature photography: At the Edge of the Wood.

It features photographs of squirrels and birds by KC Bailey that just blew us away.

All the photos on the site have a wonderful unity of style: a set with local flora against a black backdrop. The use of existing light and the saturated colours creates an otherworldly atmosphere into which animals can enter at will.

In some photos the animals are happy to stay and strike a pose. In others—and these are our favorites—we see birds and squirrels scatter in all directions in a panic.

KC explains:

[...]I am a professional photographer. I needed to test out my new radio triggers and the only thing around that was moving were the birds.

So I set up underneath the bird feeder and who showed up? Squirrels of course.

I had the black back drop and used it from the beginning, but this last year I’ve set up in one particular place and I’ve been making the little sets, if you will, with local flora.

I want to inspire people to look at the beauty right there in front of our eyes.

Mission accomplished KC!

KC also accompanies her posts with interesting information about squirrels, and links to research and news articles about our favorite animals.

©K C Bailey 2012—Used with permission.