We're a hit at parties.

We met some new people this weekend! I'm sure they'll be eager to hang out with us again. How not, with conversations like this?

"I heard something about how grey squirrels are killing off all the European red squirrels by taking over their habitats."

"Yeah, I was just reading about that. Apparently it's partly because they carry some disease that doesn't harm them but kills the red squirrels, and partly because they're bigger and greedier and start eating the nuts earlier."

"That's what she said!"

"Quite."

"Sorry, I couldn't help myself."

"No, I understand. It would be a crime to let it go by, really."

"Good, good."

"Anyway, Steve and I sometimes pretend that I'm a big oblivious grey squirrel and he's a little meek red squirrel."

"..."

"..."

"..."

"Not in bed."

"No, I think it's great that you're so open about it."

Comments

[ben]

Well, ok, but, in what respect, then?

[Parenthetical]

I'm not sure if we're talking about the same red squirrels, but the eastern fox squirrels arrived in the 19th century (they were often directly imported to California - in the 1870s, for instance, they were brought specifically to convalescent homes set up for former Confederate soldiers to make it feel "more like home") and have, over the years, out competed the native gray squirrels. Interesting if they're now finding themselves in trouble.

(At Davis, you can see numerous eastern fox squirrels bearing tags - they're trying out a birth control system designed to limit the impact of invasive species with the squirrels as the guinea pigs.)

[redfox]

In the domains of eating and trying to get a word in edgewise, Ben.

This is in the UK and Ireland -- this time it's that the gray squirrels were the imports, and the smaller local red squirrels, which are smaller and redder than fox squirrels, very cute, are getting out-competed.

I am intrigued by the system for birth control for invasive species! I hope it works.

[Parenthetical]

Yeah, I should check the university website and see if they're doing updates on it. It sounded like a potentially excellent strategy to keep population down.

And ahh, I somehow managed to read right over "European" in the paragraph above. What a provincial, assuming that everyone always is talking about California.