Sometimes lurker here.

This is a new one on me. Why do squirrels store mushrooms in trees. I thought they were poisonous other than morels.

We even saw our little furry friend laying up cherry tomatoes in the trees, So help me I wouldnt believe it if we had not seen it while walking through our pine forest.

rvbulinda

-- ron bulinda (rvbulinda@yahoo.com), September 28, 2001

Answers

Response to squirrels

Squirrels, like chipmunks, are "hoarders", they store away quantities of available food for winter, even if it turns out that they don't particularly like a certain food, if it is readily available in quantity, they will store it. I guess their motto is better safe than sorry!

-- Annie Miller in SE OH (annie@1st.net), September 28, 2001.

Response to squirrels

I just out, the the mushroom called "stumpers" is very edible and supposed to be delicious. Havnt tried them yet,, but witgh the wet fall,, there is a big boom this year with them

-- stan (sopal@net-port.com), September 28, 2001.

Response to squirrels

Gosh, many mushrooms are wonderful to eat! I collect and dry, or sautee and freeze, or eat freshly cooked many gallons of wild mushrooms on those years they are good. What you need is someone local who really knows what is safe to eat, and can take you out to gather a time or two. Just learn one or two that are reliably safe, and then expand out. That squirrel may be eating better than you!

-- seraphima (gardener@com.post), September 28, 2001.

I would guess that squirrels ar running on built-in instinct. Mushrooms dry well (OK, a bit of mould, maybe, the way the squirrels do it, but probably still leave something edible, which is better than nothing). I don't think the cherry tomatoes would go as well (although hey - sun-dried tomatoes?), but I think they're probably running on instincts that have been developed to work with native berries which are higher in sugar and acid, lower in water, and would probably "raisin up" quite OK.

-- Don Armstrong (darmst@yahoo.com.au), September 29, 2001.