College students enjoy a beautiful, sunny day with blankets on the grass, rockstar spritzers, an ignored book, and conversation. A squirrel in a nearby tree eyes the blankets and notices the students snacking on some Corn Nuts. It edges closer down the tree and leaps off. The unsuspecting students continue their conversation and sip on their spritzers. The squirrel begins to scamper toward the blanket. You watch in horror as the squirrel bounds to the girl waving her Corn Nuts in the air while telling her friends that she can’t believe it’s already week three. The squirrel reaches for her hand, snaps up the Corn Nuts, and nibbles the girl. The squirrel doesn’t care; people feed it all the time. She was just a vessel to a salty Corn Nut.
Students should not hand-feed squirrels; this is dangerous for both parties for multiple reasons. The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) discourages feeding wild animals. The USDA website states, “Animals accustomed to people often lose their fear of people and can become aggressive. Those that become too aggressive may have to be destroyed to protect people and property.” Squirrels should only eat food that they forage otherwise it can harm their bodies. If you hand-feed a squirrel, it will begin to see every person as a food source.
Feeding wild animals also increases the likelihood of contracting diseases. The USDA states, “Feeding leads to public health concerns. Too many animals in one place increases the chance of disease transmission to people and among other wildlife.”
I caught up with Doctor Julie Smith, a professor of biology at PLU. She has been teaching at PLU for 18 years and has a background in evolutionary ecology. When asked about students feeding squirrels on campus she had some concerns. “Feeding wildlife can result in animals spreading disease,” Smith said. “When animals start to become dependent on food, that makes it more difficult to forage on their own.”
Smith then explained her biggest concern about feeding the squirrels on campus: “Campus squirrels are Eastern gray squirrels and they are an introduced species. The native species, Western gray squirrels, have declined significantly. The Western gray squirrel is officially endangered.” She also mentioned that Joint Base Lewis-McChord (JBLM) is actively trying to preserve a habitat for the Western gray squirrels and that if people at PLU continue to feed the Eastern gray squirrels it might hurt JBLM’s efforts of preservation. The Eastern gray squirrels are generalists and can thrive in a multitude of environments, while the Western gray squirrels only live in wooded areas.
Feeding the squirrels on campus causes them to lose their independence. The campus squirrels are an introduced species and feeding them derails the survival of a native endangered species. Next time you see a campus squirrel, think twice about offering up your Corn Nuts.
