Nov. 26, 1998 Michael Steele and Peter Smallwood are researching
the nutty truth on squirrels and acorns. "Are squirrels
dispersers and planters of oak forests or pesky seed predators?
The answer is not a simple one," says Steele, associate
professor of biology at Wilkes University in Wilkes- Barre, PA.
"Gray squirrels may devour many acorns, but by storing and
failing to recover up to 74 percent of them, these rodents aid
regeneration and dispersal of oaks." The two researchers are
studying why squirrels cache only certain acorns of the 32
species of oaks across eastern North America. The studies by
Steele and Smallwood, associate professor of biology at the
University of Richmond, could have a significant impact on oak
forest regeneration. "Tree squirrels are one of the most
important animals for helping oaks spread, because they store
acorns in the ground, practically planting baby oak trees," says
Smallwood. The researchers note that evidence is accumulating
that along with blue jays and a few other small