Animal shelter shares adorable snaps of baby squirrels left orphaned by ‘cruel’ traps in Royal Parks – weeks before a BAN on rescuing and releasing the ‘invasive’ creatures
- Adorable pictures capture baby grey squirrels playing and climbing on logs
- Snaps taken in London rescue centre that nurses young and injured squirrels
- It comes after wildlife activists warned against trapping squirrels at this time
- Said they could be raising litters, which would then be left to starve to death
Adorable photos of fluffy baby squirrels rescued from London’s parks have been released after an adult was photographed dead in a trap.
The heartwarming images of the lively grey squirrels dashing over logs, grabbing a branch and pawing a toy giraffe were taken at rescue centre Urban Squirrels in south-west London.
It comes after environmental activists branded the Royal Parks ‘barbaric’ and ‘especially cruel’ when a dead adult was pictured in a trap in Kensington Gardens.
They warned squirrels should not be killed at this time of year because they may be having their second litter, meaning if the mother is killed the babies will starve to death in the nest.
Adorable photos of fluffy baby squirrels rescued from parks across the UK have been revealed after pictures emerged of an adult squirrel dead in a trap in Kensington Gardens. (Pictured: Squirrels at the rescue centre in London)
CJ the City squirrel pictured suckling some milk in May at the London-based rescue centre
It comes after these images of a slaughtered squirrel in Kensington Gardens, run by the Royal Parks, were released. Wildlife activists have warned against killing the rodents at this time of year as they may be having a second litter, which would then be left to starve in the nest
Cute photos show the bundles of fluff playing with each other at the centre as they are nursed back to health.
One can be seen clutching a milk bottle between its paws while another tries the patience of its neighbouring squirrel friend.
The bushy-tailed youngsters spend time recovering at the centre, before being released back into the wild.
Natalia Doran, 55, who set up Urban Squirrels in 2014 for her autistic son Jonathan, 27, said they take in orphaned and injured squirrels and hand-rear them for wild release.
‘I founded it when I was looking for work for my son, who is a young adult with autism’, she explained.
‘He wanted to work with animals, but it’s impossible for him to work in a setting that isn’t for him – so we volunteered with London Wildlife Protection together.’
Three squirrels pictured clambering on a log at the centre, which is run by Urban Squirrels. Its founder, Natalia Doran, said they rescue orphaned and injured squirrels
A sleeping baby squirrel at the rescue centre. Their licence to rescue the squirrels, from Natural England, limits them to 12. However, in three months time the licence will be revoked
‘And then over time it became clear that squirrels were an obvious area of need.’
Natalia posts pictures of the adorable squirrels in the rescue centre on social media to tell their life story as they are gently nursed back to health.
One triumphant post shows her holding up one of the centre’s youngest squirrels, named Hanwell, moments after he opened his eyes for the first time.
‘This means he does not need to be fed at night anymore,’ she said. ‘Hello, sleep! Five feeds during the day, but no night feeds!’
Another post from last month describes how rescue centre resident Sunny, who had a misaligned jaw, enjoys annoying the ex-trap squirrel, Cledward, who had his arm amputated, when he is let out of the cage.
And a third snap shows CJ the City Squirrel dutifully suckling as he is nursed back to health.
Natalia is raising awareness following the picture of a squirrel killed in Kensington Gardens – and Natural England’s decision to revoke rescue and release licences for grey squirrels in three months.
A young squirrel plays with a toy giraffe as it is nursed back to health at the centre. Natalia said they get up to 15 calls about injured squirrels in need of aide at the weekend
Three blind baby squirrels that were rescued by the organisation after their mother disappeared. They are pictured here after they passed the 50 gram mark
Three young squirrels pictured curled up under a log fast asleep. The organisation nurses them back to health before releasing them back into the wild
The move means that any rescued squirrels will either have to be put down by vets or left in captivity for the rest of their lives.
Speaking about the dead squirrel in the trap, Natalia said: ‘We know that the Royal Parks kill a very high number of squirrels every year.’
‘This is barbaric at any time, but is especially cruel during the breeding season, when babies either starve in the nest, or fall out and slowly die of their injuries.
‘The Royal Parks maintain that their culling methods are humane. Does this sound humane to you?’
Wildlife campaigner for Animal Aid, Jade Emery, called for an end to the culling of grey squirrels in the Royal Parks.
‘There is something particularly heinous about leaving these traps out during breeding season when mothers could be killed, and condemning baby squirrels to such a terrible fate,’ she said.
The deadline for revoking the licences, after an EU directive defined them as an invasive species, has previously been extended from March 2019.
The grey squirrel was introduced to the United Kingdom from North America and quickly out-competed the native red squirrel for habitat and food throughout most of the country.
Hanwell, one of the centre’s youngest squirrels, pictured after he opened his eyes at the centre following regular feeding
Hanwell the squirrel drinks from a tube. He came into the centre covered in enormous fleas, said Natalia
The Royal Parks said they aim to create an environment where many different species can ‘co-exist and thrive’.
‘Sometimes, where there is absolutely no alternative, this involves humanely controlling small numbers of certain animals as a last resort,’ said a spokesman.
‘Without the careful population control of grey squirrels, other species across the parks would fail to thrive or could disappear altogether, major damage would be caused to native and ornamental trees, nesting birds would be disrupted, and plants and bulbs would be dug up and damaged, impacting the quality of our horticultural displays.
‘Unfortunately, the more park visitors feed squirrels, the more their numbers will continue to increase if their population is not controlled.
‘It’s important to say that we don’t take any of this lightly and our aim is to ensure that no animal endures prolonged suffering.
‘To achieve this, we use the most humane traps possible and our teams are fully trained in animal welfare, operating to the highest possible standards.
‘All traps are out of public view and are regularly checked.’
A spokesman for Natural England said the government is ‘determined’ to protect the highly threatened red squirrel.
They also said they had to comply with the EU Invasive Species Regulation 2014 to manage ‘non-native species’.
Two five-to-six-week-old baby squirrels. Natalia said this pair will shred fruit and nuts if they can get their claws on them
A squirrel at the rescue centre in London pictured tucking itself in for a snooze
Source: Read Full Article