Squirrels causing issues elsewhere are not a problem on the Santa Barbara coast

Issues with invasive squirrels have not impacted Santa Barbara at the level they have been seen in areas including parts of San Diego County.

Santa Barbara City Park Director Jill Zachary says there were some problems around 2008 but they have gone away.

“We are not actively pursuing any squirrels up there. We have wildlife that are natural predators and we prefer that natural predators take care of any kind of problems rather than us having to do it,” said Zachary.

An increase in squirrels could also bring a concern about fleas and diseases. At times some Mesa area residents have said they believe the squirrels contribute to bluff top erosion. Geologists say there are many contributing factors for the crumbling of coastal land including ocean and wind impacts.

The city has posted signs to remind people not to feed the squirrels or leave their food scraps behind.

“You can imagine even a little bit of food that someone might think is helping an animal out, we discourage them from doing that,” said Zachary.

Leftover tubes and other trapping devices that are still seen at the park are not in use now, but they did have bait in the past to control the squirrel population without a predator also getting the deadly substance.

The burrowing or ground squirrel is common in coastal areas. They not only live around the shoreline bluffs but often come out into the grassy area where the public walks and recreate.