By: Ken Chadwick
The squirrel population in Manchester, Lancashire & Cheshire has grown over the last 20 years to the extent that they have grown to be a major pest dealt with by Squirrels Pest Control
<BR><BR>The grey squirrels which we see in our parks and gardens (Sciurus carolinensis) are not native to the U.K., having been brought here here less than 200 years Canada and America.
<BR><BR>Like other members of the family Sciuridae, the Grey Squirrel is a hoarder; it hoards food in numerous small caches for later recovery. Some hoards are temporary, particularly those made near the source of a sudden surfeit of food.
<BR><BR>Other caches are more permanent and are not used until weeks later. It has been estimated that each squirrel makes several thousand hoards each season. The squirrels have very accurate spatial memory for the positions of these hoards, and use distant and nearby landmarks to find them. Smell is used once the squirrel is within close range of the hoard.
<BR><BR>The nest of the squirrel is called a dray (or drey) and it is standard for the female to have two litters per year, each of two to four young..
<BR><BR>They can be minor problems, rooting bulbs and stealing food intended for birds but become major pests when they enter our houses.
<BR><BR>It is increasingly common for Trafford Pest Control to be called out to properties where a nest has been placed in a loft or attic space.
<BR><BR>Squirrels are true rodents and as such have continually growing teeth; the actual word rodent comes from the Latin word rodere meaning to gnaw or eat away and this they do very successfully.
<BR><BR>It is rare to enter a roof void where a dray has been made and find that they have not damaged cables or water pipes, indeed it is estimated that up to 40 percent of fires without an obvious cause may have been started by rodents chewing wiring.
<BR><BR>Unfortunately they can also chew through water-pipes, especially with the modern movement towards plastic piping.
<BR><BR>As if that was not enough, many household insurance policies do not cover damage by rodents so if a squirrel floods your house by going through a water pipe in the loft you may find yourself without insurance cover.
<BR><BR>Removing Squirrel Pest Control requires a professional, often because the law regarding squirrels is complicated and ever changing. You cannot simply buy a packet of rat poison from your hardware store and deal with them that way as you would be committing an offence.
<BR><BR>Furthermore you cannot trap them and release them some distance away, not only would removing a squirrel from the area of its food stores probably cause it do die of starvation, it is also breaking the law under the Wildlife & Countryside Act 1981 which makes it illegal to release a grey squirrel in Britain.
<BR><BR>That applies also to rescuing and/or releasing injured squirrels.
<BR><BR>In most cases trapping is the most realistic option and this must be done in a specific manner with routine, timed inspections of the traps.
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Bio:
Ken Chadwick B.A.(Hons) is a <a href="http://www.harrierpestprevention.co.uk">Pest Control</a> professional as <a href="http://www.manchesterenvironmentalservices.com">Manchester Pest Control</a>. He frequently appears on radio and TV talking about <a href="http://www.harrierpestprevention.co.uk/squirrels.html">squirrels</a> and other pests.
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