This City Is Battling a Squirrel Scourge

The Richardson's ground squirrel weighs less than a pound, is about a foot long, and is native to the northern Plains. The little critter also is a ferocious tunneler and is exasperating the folks of Minot, North Dakota, where it's burrowing everywhere from vacant lots to the middle of town. North Dakota's fourth-largest city is fighting back, but even the pest control guy leading the charge acknowledges it'll be difficult to turn the tide. More from the AP:

• Numbers: Ground squirrels have been an issue in Minot, a city of nearly 50,000 people, for at least 20 years, but the problem has dramatically worsened recently, said Minot Street Department Superintendent Kevin Braaten. It's unclear how many squirrels live in Minot, but they likely near or even exceed the city's population. "There's got to be tens of thousands of them in the area," resident Joshua Herman said.

• Uphill battle: The animals have lived on the prairie for centuries. Outside of town, predators like coyotes, owls, and snakes love to dine on the squirrels. But in residential neighborhoods and downtown, where few predators live, the rodents can roam pretty freely. Herman noted that fighting the squirrels is akin to "one guy standing against a massive storm." "If I'm trapping but my neighbor isn't ... we're really not going to get anywhere with it, long term," he said.
• No safe space: Herman says the squirrels damage driveways, sidewalks, and lawns; create tripping hazards with their holes; and can harbor disease from fleas. North of town, Minot Air Force Base, which houses bombers and ICBMs, has fought the squirrels for years. Squirrels near Pashone Grandson's ground-level apartment dig holes near her door and eat her plants; one squirrel even got around her baby gate at the door and into her daughter's clothes in her bedroom. "It was a little scary," she said. "You don't know what disease they carry."
• Cute nuisance? Not everyone sees the squirrels as a pest. Some find the critters cute and fuzzy. In fact, Herman said people have sabotaged, stolen, or thrown out his traps and occasionally confront him when he shoots at ground squirrels with an air rifle, scolding him for hurting the wildlife, he said. "They are, you know, adorable, but they're a vermin and a pest and dangerous when they are allowed to proliferate," Herman said.