Squirrel Mind Is Not Monkey Mind

Walking on the edge of the woods this morning, the sounds of heavy objects crashing through leaves and limbs caught our attention. It was unusual enough that Bella, the 5-pound poodle, barked. We paused to investigate. The noise was coming from a large black walnut. After a minute or so, I found the source. A tiny red squirrel was chewing nut stems: one nut after another plummeting 100 feet to the ground. Recently I read in Willpower that chimpanzees are incapable of planning ahead: when consistently fed only once a day, even when offered huge amounts of food, they never hoard. This dinky-brained squirrel, however, obviously had a long-term project on its mind and was implementing it on a grand scale. I wonder if he/she had a partner on the ground?