There are a lot of grey squirrels living in the vicinity of my apartment. My girl friend and I always carry nuts: Walnuts, Brazil, and Hickory (?Filberts or Hazel).
There are about 6-10 squirrels who know us and approach to get fed.
At various times I have noticed what I consider unusual behavior.
Recently, two squirrels approached. I gave a Brazil nut to the first and a Hickory nut to the second. The second squirrel went to the Hickory nut and ignored it. I picked the nut up. He came back a few seconds later and again decided not to take a Hickory nut.
This is the first time that any squirrel refused a Hickory nut and I wonder why. I examined the several nuts in my pocket and could see no difference among them. Perhaps the squirrel could sense something that I can not, but this seems unlikely.
Could the squirrel have wanted a Brazil nut, which he saw me give to the previous squirrel? This also seems unlikely. A human child might feel slighted at getting a cookie instead of a large piece of cake, and react this way. Would a squirrel? Is it possible that this squirrel did not recognize a Hickory nut as edible? This seems possible, since there are no such nuts growing near this complex. If this is the reason, then this squirrel must be lacking the ability to recognize any nut he has not previously encountered. No squirrel here has every ignored a Brazil nut, and then are certainly not native to Northeastern USA. Brazil nuts do not look anything like the normal foods eaten by local grey squirrels, so most of them must have general purpose nut-recognition functions wired into their brains. Was this squirrel lacking such a general purpose function?
A few years ago, there was an interesting incident which made me wonder about squirrel intelligence and/or consciousness.
My neighbor had a large dog who was old and fairly feeble. The dog could not walk up and down steps. His owner carried him. Once on level ground, the dog walked very slowly and it was obvious to me that he could not run.
While waiting for my girl friend I was feeding a squirrel, who returned every 2-3 minutes for another nut. When returning for the 4th or 5th nut, he saw the dog approaching and stopped. It took the dog several minutes to get near to where I was sitting at the entrance to my apartment. During this several minutes, the squirrel approached and retreated several times. Once he sat looking alternately at me and the approaching dog. The behavior suggested that the squirrel recognized that this dog might not be a danger. It suggested that he was applying intelligence rather than instinct to the problem. Was it safe to run up and get another nut? That dog looks very slow. I think I can outrun him if he attacks. Dogs are usually dangerous, but this one does not look like a threat. The squirrel waited until the dog was inside.
The incident made me wonder about whether that squirrel had consciousness and/or intelligence. Perhaps it was only two conflicting instincts, but it looked like a higher level brain activity.
Does anybody have any thoughts or the above, or has any one had a similar experience?
There are about 6-10 squirrels who know us and approach to get fed.
At various times I have noticed what I consider unusual behavior.
Recently, two squirrels approached. I gave a Brazil nut to the first and a Hickory nut to the second. The second squirrel went to the Hickory nut and ignored it. I picked the nut up. He came back a few seconds later and again decided not to take a Hickory nut.
This is the first time that any squirrel refused a Hickory nut and I wonder why. I examined the several nuts in my pocket and could see no difference among them. Perhaps the squirrel could sense something that I can not, but this seems unlikely.
Could the squirrel have wanted a Brazil nut, which he saw me give to the previous squirrel? This also seems unlikely. A human child might feel slighted at getting a cookie instead of a large piece of cake, and react this way. Would a squirrel? Is it possible that this squirrel did not recognize a Hickory nut as edible? This seems possible, since there are no such nuts growing near this complex. If this is the reason, then this squirrel must be lacking the ability to recognize any nut he has not previously encountered. No squirrel here has every ignored a Brazil nut, and then are certainly not native to Northeastern USA. Brazil nuts do not look anything like the normal foods eaten by local grey squirrels, so most of them must have general purpose nut-recognition functions wired into their brains. Was this squirrel lacking such a general purpose function?
A few years ago, there was an interesting incident which made me wonder about squirrel intelligence and/or consciousness.
My neighbor had a large dog who was old and fairly feeble. The dog could not walk up and down steps. His owner carried him. Once on level ground, the dog walked very slowly and it was obvious to me that he could not run.
While waiting for my girl friend I was feeding a squirrel, who returned every 2-3 minutes for another nut. When returning for the 4th or 5th nut, he saw the dog approaching and stopped. It took the dog several minutes to get near to where I was sitting at the entrance to my apartment. During this several minutes, the squirrel approached and retreated several times. Once he sat looking alternately at me and the approaching dog. The behavior suggested that the squirrel recognized that this dog might not be a danger. It suggested that he was applying intelligence rather than instinct to the problem. Was it safe to run up and get another nut? That dog looks very slow. I think I can outrun him if he attacks. Dogs are usually dangerous, but this one does not look like a threat. The squirrel waited until the dog was inside.
The incident made me wonder about whether that squirrel had consciousness and/or intelligence. Perhaps it was only two conflicting instincts, but it looked like a higher level brain activity.
Does anybody have any thoughts or the above, or has any one had a similar experience?
Squirrels are amazing. Like many other animals that are considered nuisances, I think their intelligence is often underestimated. There are many squirrels in my neighborhood, but I have never developed a relationship with any of them. Do the squirrels in your vicinity recognize you and know that you are trustworthy, or do you have to be patient and lure them each time?