Acorn Shortage in Eastern America
If you live on the East coast of America, you might be wondering why it is so easy to walk without hearing constant crunching this fall and winter. The main reason is that oak trees have failed to produce as many acorns, if any at all, this year. I am so used to always seeing tons of acorns scattered all over my yard or pathways and this year I have yet to see many myself. Scientist have been unable to find any acorns at all in certain regions of Virginia, Maryland, Pennsylvania, West Virginia and other nearby states. This has left many, including myself, wondering where did they all go?
The clue to discovering the answer come from last year when there was a much larger than normal production of acorns. Since their production runs in cycles, it seems logically normal that there are less fallen nuts on the ground. The basic idea is that the trees are exhausted from last year thus not able to make as many this year. Also attributed to the shortage is a wetter than average spring season. Some scientist are completely baffled that in some areas there are absolutely none to be found. Even with a shortage, it seems strange that some oak trees aren’t making any at all, while others have normal yields.
The biggest question some have is how are the squirrels going to survive? With less amounts of acorns, how are they ever going to survive? The squirrels will be fine as they are extremely adaptive creatures and will find new sources of food. They always seem to find food from the plants in my garden. There has also been past instances when acorns were not present for years and squirrels were able to survive without them. If you really feel bad for them this winter, you could give them some food to help them make it through:
Barbara Prescott, a wildlife rehabilitation expert, agreed that squirrels are not fussy about their diet. She suggested that residents leave whole (not crushed) corn, peanuts and sunflowers in the seed as backyard treats.
