January 13, 2005
Photo feature: A squirrelly squabble
Several squirrels were seen and heard squawking up a storm Friday near where the Suzzallo and Allen libraries meet. Passers-by watched (see below), and occasionally even ducked, as several angry squirrels hissed at each other near what appeared to be a nest made of paper strips and other materials. Steve West, assistant dean for academic affairs and a professor of wildlife ecology, says what got the squirrels so stirred up was probably — you guessed it — mating, which starts fairly early in the year among squirrels. The situation was probably that of a female in estrus and several males gathering about looking for their opportunity. “It happens earlier in the year than you think,” said West, who added that the females will have their litters in spring and then the process will start again in early summer. The squirrels at the UW, he said, are the Eastern Gray variety and not native to this area. They were introduced to the Northwest in the 1920s. No squirrels or bystanders were harmed in the shooting of this photo.
