Little did I think that one month after writing my second post (about squirrel pox in Wicklow) that I would be writing something very similar - squirrel pox in South Dublin hit the RTE News on Thursday. With expert advice, surveying of the local red squirrels started on the hill last November. However as of today, it has stopped. Sadly, but I'll never know for definite but it is possible that the squirrel tubes being used may have progressed the spread of the disease. A red squirrel was found dead last weekend and it was confirmed that it was infected by the fatal pox disease carried by grey squirrels. My only hope is that the remaining small population survives this outbreak.
The saying there is more than one way to skin a cat seems appropriate. This may be a stumbling block to the fight against the grey squirrels. I'll just go around to the other side for a clearer view.
Hi there. I live in Toronto, Canada, and earlier this year, my wife, Jean, and I were in the Wicklow Mountains when we came upon a Red Squirrel. To us, they actually look somewhat like our American Red squirrels, but boy, do they have long ears! We were shocked to learn that U.K. and Irish Red squirrels in the Wicklow Mountains are contracting the pox virus from Grey squirrels, and dying. We have far to many Grey squirrels here at our feeders. But up north near Algonquin Park we have seen a few Red squirrels. We feel very lucky to have seen two Red squirrels in Ireland. We have posted some of our pictures and video of our Red squirrel sightings in Ireland, and Canada for anyone interested at: http://frametoframe.ca/photo-essay-red-grey-squirrels-canada-ireland
ReplyDeleteHi Bob, It was great to get your comments. Yes the European red squirrel is in difficulty here in Ireland, the UK and also in parts of Italy due to the introduced grey. Here in Ireland, a Phd student is doing really exciting work on the interactions of grey squirrel/red squirrel and pine marten dynamics. In parts of Ireland, it would appear that where the pine marten is making a come back, that the red squirrel is also and at the same time the grey is in decline. I will take a look at your red sightings. Thanks for sharing. Hope you enjoyed your trip to Ireland.
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