animal cutting branches off tree

[Frank]

I have squirrels doing this to my nut trees.

[Ralph Mowery]

I have a hickory tree that I have notices some small branches with leaves on them on the ground. Looking at the , they are about 1/4 inch in diameter and look like they were cut like a tubing cutter would cut a copper pipe.

What kind of animal would cut them off the tree like that ?

[terrable]

Squirrels do it to my maple trees, but not the oak or pine trees.

[Ralph Mowery]

I don't really hae a next door neighbor. Out in the country and this particular tree is in the middle of about 3 acres.

Could be the squirrels as someone mentioned as there are lots of them around. This is a nut tree. I just would not know why they would do this unless maybe the nuts are out on the branches too far for them to get to. They could cut off the branches and go to the ground to get the nuts I guess.

[dadiOH]

In ascending order of probability...

beaver rat squirrel neighbor kid

[Ralph Mowery]

I have not looked for the nests. This tree is at the edge of some woods at my back yard. I probably would not have noticed the branches if it had been in the woods instead of in the part of the yard I mow.

I will be looking when the leaves get off the trees. I have got to eliminate those tomato eaters and they got almost all my tomatoes this year.

[micky]

I think the most likely to use a tubing cutter is the plumber deer.

[Stormin Mormon]

Look for butt cracks on the ground?

[Dan Espen]

Almost certainly squirrels at work.

I'm pretty sure, they get out toward the end of the branch, bite it off and hold onto it. Then remove the nuts and drop the branch on the ground.

[Stormin Mormon]

Some observation might provide data. Binoculars, and a bit of time.

[Gordon Shumway]

It may be easier to see through an illuminated scope mounted to your AR15?

[Frank]

Wife chastised me the other day for bringing deer poop on my shoes into the powder room. Told her I had not even been in the yard that day.

Told her, bad enough, deer eating all our chestnuts, now they're sneaking in to use our powder room.

[nestork]

Ralph:

Does the cut in the branches look like this:

There's two kinds of beetle that cut small branches off of trees called either a twig girdler or a twig pruner. In both cases, the fallen branch still contains the larvae of the beetle, and should be burned in order to control the beetles from infesting the tree.

'Twig Girdler/Twig Pruner - Home - Virginia Cooperative Extension'

[Stormin Mormon]

I have seven wives and 35 children to bring ammo for my belt fed M60.

I send three or four kids out front to light matches, so I can see what I'm doing.

[Ralph Mowery]

The ones I saw look very much like the one in the pix. I will see if I can find where I tossed them out of the yard. If I find any, I will look to see if I can find the larva or egg in them. If so I will burn them as the artical says.

[JAS]

My yard is covered with cottonwood branches that the squirrels have chewed off.

>

[JAS]

Extension agent at the Univ of Nebr said squirrels chew where the branches join the tree for the sweet sap, said it would not hurt the tree.

[rbowman]

Likely. There aren't any nut trees around here but the squirrels are harvesting pine cones. Nothing like walking through the woods and getting hit in the head by a ponderose pine cone some squirrel just cut loose. Then they drag the cone to their favorite stump and extract the seeds. You see stumps that are in a foot deep pile of discarded scales from the cones.

The bad part is pine squirrels are pretty small and live, surprise, on pine so they're not worth eating.

[Stormin Mormon]

Padlock your fridge. They love maraschino cherries.

[Terry Coombs]

I've been dodging hickory nuts and white oak acorns . And I haven't tried them yet , but will be hunting some as soon as I get a scope on the .22 . Already got the scope , rings came yesterday , I might have to make the base rail .