The causes of damage by Red and Grey squirrels

Autor: R. E. Kenward
Rok vydání: 1983
Předmět:
Zdroj: Mammal Review. 13:159-166
ISSN: 1365-2907
0305-1838
DOI: 10.1111/j.1365-2907.1983.tb00277.x
Popis: Squirrels cause damage by competing with man for nuts, fruit or grain crops, by competing for food with animals favoured by man, by gnawing human constructions and by stripping bark from trees grown for timber. Competition for food with man, game or livestock can best be prevented by excluding or destroying squirrels. Competition between Grey and Red squirrels in Britain is not yet understood, but the Grey squirrel may be more successful in deciduous woodland because it is better adapted to foraging there and for surviving food shortage than its congener. Gnawing power cables can be prevented by coating with glass beads as a repellant. The reasons for bark-stripping are not clear, but it may well be triggered by food shortage, or possibly by agonistic behaviour, and the extent of damage may then be influenced by variation in the sap quality of the trees. Habitat management, to reduce the winter food supply for squirrels, and perhaps also to increase food availability during the summer damage period, may provide less costly control measures than killing squirrels.
Databáze: OpenAIRE