Of a grown-up Nutkin

I guess Nutkin the happy hopping squirrel has grown up after all. I am glad he made through last winter and through spring and summer. Now, in the late Fall I see him still at his antics. There is this hickory tree next to my deck in front of the house that every year made plenty of nuts. This is the tree that Nutkin and his furry cousins like to play and collect nuts from. They say hickory nuts (the meat in it) is second to none. They taste better than walnut or pecan. The only problem we human have is that the meat in it is so little and not worth cracking them up. Not with the squirrels which have little sharp teeth that can nibble the thick hard nut in seconds to get to the tasty meat.

Recently I saw Nutkin playing chase me around the tree with his cousins and friends. It was fascinating to see them chasing each other. They circle the tree trunk by hanging on to each other's tail. they go round and round up and down. They look so fat in their shiny brown coat. Their bright eyes look so intelligent and so happy.

They like to tease the dogs. Now that Buddy has the whole front yard to himself, the squirrels have to make a detour every time they want to get to the hickory tree. They just run near enough to excite Buddy and jump on to the tree. That makes buddy mad and that makes Nutkin and his cousins and friends jubilant. I could see that Nutkin and his friends were applauding themselves. I guess danger makes life more exciting even to the critters.