Squirrel Surveys

Last week I set up a couple of squirrel feeders in Hobcarton with a trail cam focussed on each of them. Every April/May we seed a number of boxes across the forest and then count the red squirrels that use each box over a 2 week period. From that we can get an idea of how many there are overall and if numbers are remaining steady. 
It took four days for a big dark red/brown male squirrel to locate this box and about 30 seconds for him to learn how to lift the lid and take out a nut. He didn't even nibble this one but took it straight to the base of the tree and buried it in the moss, before zipping back up for more. 
The other box had had no visitors except one Jay in the week. We'll have to see what happens over the next seven days.