tags: eastern gray squirrel, Sciurus carolinensis, mammals, Image of the Day
Eastern Gray Squirrel, Sciurus carolinensis, in Central Park, NYC.
Image: Bob Levy, author of Club George. [wallpaper size].
The photographer writes; I watched this Gray Squirrel dig out an acorn and proceed to gnaw away at it. There was nothing particularly unusual about that. Only after I downloaded the image did I notice the mud all over its meal. The animal made no observable effort to clean the acorn and I imagine that a considerable portion of it must have been ingested. Judging by how enthusiastically the animal devoured the muddy acorn I wondered whether mud might be a Gray Squirrel condiment for a reason. Could there be a nutritional or digestive benefit? Maybe, but I for one won't be doing any personal taste testing. But seriously folks, does anyone know if ingesting soil somehow benefits the squirrel?
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From the looks of his eyes, he's clearly in the vanguard of evil super squirrels bent on world domination.
I for one welcome our new sciurid overlords.
The squirrel has the same demon-possessed look that my alpha-male chinchilla has.
Sciurids, heck. I for one welcome our new Rodentia overlords.
Some animals eat soil for the mineral content, I've been told. Not sure what's in the Central park soil, but it might be something the squirrel needs.
Or maybe the squirrel just don't care, and the soil certainly doesn't hurt it.