Squirrels are fluffy climbing acrobats who are increasingly finding themselves in gardens. Nature lovers often ask themselves whether and how the animals should be fed. If you want to support them, you should take the natural conditions as a guide.
What do squirrels eat in nature?
Squirrels eat primarily plant foods such as nuts, fruits, seeds, grains, buds, flowers and bark. They also occasionally eat animal foods such as insects, worms, bird eggs and snails. Your menu varies depending on the season and food availability in nature.
What do squirrels eat in nature?
Squirrels adapt their diet to the season. They are omnivores and mainly collect nuts, fruits such as berries or seeds and grains. Plant materials such as buds and flowers, bark or tree sap flowing from wounds are also eaten. Occasionally you may see squirrels eating lichens and mushrooms, as well as animal foods. As predators, they capture worms, bird eggs and young birds or insects, snails and larvae.
Needs of a Squirrel:
- about 100 spruce cones per day
- corresponds to an average amount of 80 to 100 grams
- In winter, squirrels eat about 35 grams per day
- very high water requirement
Excursus
How do squirrels eat?
Squirrels hold their food with their front paws
Squirrels hold their food with their front paws. They use their teeth to tear off the covering scales to access the valuable contents of a spruce cone. Hazelnuts and walnuts are opened after a few seconds when the animals gnaw a hole in the shell with their front incisors. These then serve as a lever to break the nut open. This behavior is not innate. Young squirrels learn to crack nuts from their parents.
What do squirrels eat in winter?
When the cold season approaches, squirrels have to stock up. In order not to starve in winter, an adequate supply of food is very important. The animals prefer to collect seeds, which they bury directly on tree roots or push under protruding pieces of bark and between forks of branches. To find supplies again, they use their keen sense of smell. Every year there are seeds that are not found and begin to grow. Squirrels therefore play an important role in forest rejuvenation and renewal.
European Squirrel Behavior:
- Deciduous forests: no food in winter, so storage is essential for survival
- Mixed forests: Burying seeds ensures survival
- Coniferous forests: offer enough cones in winter so that squirrels don't have to stock up
What do squirrels eat in summer?
In spring, after the snow has melted, the animals hunt for protein-rich insects and worms. When the breeding season begins, squirrels appear as nest robbers. However, they do not pose a threat to native songbirds. Trees are an essential source of food. In addition to nuts, squirrels particularly like to eat fresh twig shoots and buds or bark in spring.
Is feeding useful?
Squirrels usually find enough food in nature so that supplementary feeding is not necessary. Studies show that the stock does not benefit sufficiently from additional feed. However, helping individual animals is good for the soul and feeding them in the garden offers children a special nature experience because they can observe the animals up close.
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Mast year
The mast year has a special meaning in forestry. Trees that produce particularly high-energy seeds follow a cyclical fruiting process. In most years, deciduous trees produce little to no fruit. Every six to ten years there is the so-called mast year, in which the tree invests all of its energy in seed production.
Why the tree follows the mast year strategy:
- Survival: Germination rate is higher the more seeds are formed
- Regulation: Reproduction rate of predators low in years with few seeds
- Success: small populations cannot fully utilize the fruits of a mast year
Food supply
The composition of the forest tree population changes due to forestry methods. Mixed forests with trees of different ages provide good sources of food. However, such species-rich forests are becoming increasingly rare, so squirrels are retreating to urban areas. Here, too, parks and gardens have few old trees. In winter there is also the risk that squirrels will not be able to find their supplies again due to high snow cover or ground frost.
What can you feed squirrels?
You can offer food to the animals in the garden or on the balcony using simple means. Foundlings need human help in certain situations. In case of illness, malnutrition or injury, it is necessary to contact qualified personnel.
Offer food
In summer but also during the cold season, automatic feeders (€22.00 on Amazon) are often visited in the garden. A window makes it easier to see, while a flap protects the food from unwanted guests. Squirrels prefer to get peanuts from the feeder, which they can easily open with their paws.
How to feed correctly:
- do not set up ground-level feeding stations
- multiple places in the tree reduce competition
- regular cleaning is important so that pathogens do not multiply
- offer unpeeled hazelnuts and walnuts, carrots, sunflower seeds, apples and grapes
- avoid leftover food or bread due to the risk of mold
- offer peeled nuts for young animals
Tip
Avoid cow's milk as it can cause diarrhea in squirrels and, in the worst case, lead to death.
Emergency food for foundlings
Helpless, hungry baby squirrels often seek contact with people
Small squirrels are more likely to seek proximity to humans when they are hungry and desperate. They crawl up your trouser leg or come into the apartment via the balcony through open windows. You should not scare away such animals because they are no longer cared for by their mother and need help.
| from week | Food | Quantity |
|---|---|---|
| one | 2 parts fennel tea and 1 part puppy milk substitute | 1 to 2 ml |
| four | Milk mixture and whole grain porridge for infants | 3 to 4 ml |
| six | Mixture of whole grain porridge with pureed apples | 6 to 8 ml |
Tip
It takes three months until young animals can look after themselves. They should definitely grow up with other squirrels so that they learn survival strategies.
Feeding baby squirrels
Infants a few days old receive their milk through a needleless insulin syringe with a rubber plunger. If the animals are a little older, an injection syringe with a capacity of two or five milliliters is recommended. Young animals need to be fed every two hours. Nighttime feedings end in the third week. From the sixth week of life, four meals per day are sufficient.
Feeding tips:
- feeding in an upright position while lying half on your back
- taking breaks during feeding
- feed in small quantities as too much fluid intake can be fatal
If you are unsure or the young animal shows symptoms, you should contact an expert rescue center. Nature conservation organizations such as NABU and LBV are happy to help concerned citizens and can put them in touch with nearby associations.
Squirrels can eat mushrooms that are poisonous to humans.
Frequently asked questions
What should I avoid when feeding squirrels?
Squirrels should definitely be fed uns alted food
Exotic fruit mixtures have no place in the squirrel feeder, even if the animals happily accept these delicacies. S alt, sugar or other additives can be harmful to your he alth. It is better to put together the food yourself and concentrate on local nuts, seeds and fruits. Kernels infected with mold pose a he alth risk. Soft food is not suitable for feeding alone. Squirrels' teeth grow continuously and require constant wear. Therefore, always mix in hard nuts.
How can I make a food mix for squirrels?
It's a myth that squirrels like to eat acorns. Their name is derived from the Old German word “aig” and means something like quick. You can make feed mixtures according to your creativity. Mixtures of seeds with and without shells are particularly valuable for animals of different ages. Fruits ensure water supply.
An orientation:
- Chestnuts, pine nuts and pine nuts are particularly popular
- Beechnuts, hazelnuts and walnuts form a good base
- Hornbeam seeds, sunflower seeds and cones enrich the mixture
- Rosehips, sloes and rowan berries serve as delicacies
- Watermelon and grapes bring refreshment on hot days
Should I offer water for squirrels?
The climbing artists have a high water requirement, which they often cannot adequately cover in the hot summer months. It therefore makes sense to offer a bowl of fresh water next to the feeder. This also makes sense in winter, because in snow-free months with permanent frost there is often no water supply.
Where should I set up the feeding station?
Feeders and water bowls should always be placed in an elevated position. On the ground, the animals are easy prey for predators while they eat. There should be no free grassy area between the feeding area and the nearest tree. After collecting, it is important that the animals can retreat directly to higher branch forks. Therefore, attach the house directly to the tree on a branch.
How can I help squirrels?
Design your garden so that wild animals can find enough food and hide. Hazelnut and fruit bushes provide an ideal habitat for squirrels. Dead tree stumps serve as a good hiding place for the acrobats for their winter supplies.
