Squirrel
Food
Good Food
Hazelnuts, walnuts or pecans are great food for squirrels. Just make sure they're natural and not salted. Since their teeth never stop growing, gnawing on the shells will keep their teeth in check, so favour whole ones if you can. They will also eat seeds, buds, fruit, vegetables, mushrooms, insects, or on rare occasions bird's eggs (although they'd have to be unusually desperate for the latter). They mostly prefer nuts, and because they're not found all year round, they will cache them (usually in the ground) for later. Squirrels are quite sneaky and secretive about where they bury their food, often pretending to bury it several times before and after actually doing so, to confusing animals that might be watching (like corvids or woodpeckers).
Food Warnings
Peanuts should not probably be avoided entirely for squirrels. Even the aflatoxin free ones can cause health issues in any quantity. Raw peanuts (that's the ones in the shell) should definitely not be given, as they can contain a toxic fungus that is lethal to squirrels.
Other foods to avoid are:
-
Sugary foods
-
Processed foods
-
Salty foods
-
Dried fruits (like raisins)
-
Dried maize
-
Wheat
-
Bitter almonds
-
Brazil nuts
-
Peas
Sweet almonds are actually OK to give squirrels in small amounts. Although they contain cyanide, the amounts are quite small. If you're confused or concerned about which foods to give them, just stick to hazelnuts and walnuts.
Photo Tip
Giving squirrels nuts in the shell is better for their teeth, but most often they will be triggered into running away to bury them, and thus not so fruitful for photography. You can try to give them multiple hazelnuts at once (above), which sometimes results in them hilariously trying to hold two in their mouth at the same time for what seems like minutes at a time. Ultimately, you're better off giving them crushed nuts when you want them to pose for photos. You'll just want to paint out the mess they leave on the ground, if you're anything like me...