Trapping Complete, Time for Monitoring

We have now wrapped up our trapping efforts for the fall of 2016 and are working to begin monitoring the movements of our newly collared squirrels through the upcoming winter. In all, we placed collars on eight squirrels, two on campus and six in the woodlot adjacent to the Eastern Trail. The two campus squirrels have been highly visible and can often be seen utilizing our new jar style feeder in front of the latin building. The six collared along the Eastern Trail have not been as conspicuous to the casual observer but have been showing up on the game camera on a regular basis.

A collared squirrel utilizes the Eastern Trail feeder earlier this week.

In the coming weeks, we will be working to equip up to ten feeders with RFID readers. This sensing equipment will be designed to pick up on the presence of a microchip in each squirrel's collar. When a squirrel reaches in to the feeder to grab some corn, the date, time, and chip number will be recorded. Hopefully, this will help to shed some light on the movements of our squirrels between campus and nearby neighborhoods over the winter. As with any new technology implementation, there will undoubtedly be some unforeseen hurdles to overcome. This process of brainstorming solutions to problems is great for kids and a lifelong skill that will serve them well beyond their high school squirrel researching days. 

On a related note, we have had other visitors at the Eastern Trail feeder since it has been loaded with corn and sunflower seeds. Songbirds, mice, flying squirrels, and a raccoon have all been observed on the feeder over the past week. 

A raccoon helps itself to a squirrel food "treat" on Halloween.