Squirrels Find a Beachfront Home, but Not Everyone Welcomes Them

At first glance, the rocks below the concrete promenade appear to be moving, rippling like waves across the ocean.

The scene is a blur of skittering, scattering, rodent activity. The squirrels--there are certainly hundreds of them crawling over one another--are multiplying. It’s bearing season, and the little ones, tiny next to their snack-fattened parents, have gathered an audience.

Some of the people leaning against the metal railings on the San Buenaventura beach promenade think the squirrels are cute and funny. But lots of people--including public health officials--find the rodents to be a nuisance. They would like to banish the squirrels from their habitat on the beach, saying that they are nothing more than flea-carrying vermin.

Although they seem to have been here for as long as anyone can remember, the squirrels only began to thrive in great numbers in the last decade, after the city had the 60 to 100 feral cats that prowled the area removed and taken to a sanctuary in the desert.

“That allowed the squirrel and rat population to increase exponentially,” said Kathy Jenks, director of the Department of Animal Regulation. “It took a meeting of the minds to decide the cats were a problem. I don’t know what’s going to happen to the squirrels.”

Though no one can say exactly how many squirrels there are along the beaches, there are a lot. With El Nino rains over the last few years, there has been an explosion of plant growth, the perfect habitat for rodents. And with the plants has come a new battalion of squirrels.

“To see them all right by the seashore is strange. They don’t strike me as cute. They have those especially ratty, skinny tails,” said Joann Larson, a visitor from landlocked Turlock who found herself oddly fascinated by the creatures.

Although their brethren in northern Ventura County bear that scourge of the Middle Ages, the bubonic plague, which is spread by fleas, officials say that these squirrels probably do not carry the life-threatening disease.

So far there have been no reports of squirrel bites, and as a result the city has done little to thin their ranks. But that doesn’t mean parks officials like the animals.

“We have a problem, and it’s not a new one,” said Terry Murphy, a supervisor for the city’s parks department. “People in the community throw food over the sea wall. We’re really trying to prohibit folks from feeding them.”

What many squirrel fans may not realize is that it’s a misdemeanor to feed the rodents.

Attempting to remove the squirrels, though, could raise a hue and cry from fans.

“It’s a 50-50 tossup between people who like them and people who don’t,” Murphy said.

Besides their potential for carrying disease, they also cause some damage.

The squirrels deserve some blame for beach erosion, officials said, because of their penchant for digging tunnels and weakening the ground, offering the chance for ocean water to seep in and wear the sand away.

But the animals have their supporters.

Joe and Lori Gaskill of Ventura make regular trips to the promenade with bags of peanuts.

“How could you not love them?” asked Lori. “They’re just like our little pets. They practically eat out of our hands.”

At this point, the city has no plans to remove them. But Smith warns spectators against getting too close.

“They look real cute and nice, but they do bite,” he said. “They are wild rodents.”