Prince Charles is so 'infatuated' with squirrels that he names them and feeds them nuts inside his house
- Prince Charles talks about his fondness for red squirrels in a new issue of Country Life that he guest-edited.
- The Prince of Wales says he lets the "incredibly special creatures" into his home in Scotland and feed them nuts, according to People.
- Prince William told Country Life that his dad is so "infatuated" with red squirrels that he even names them.
- Charles is a patron of The Red Squirrel Survival Trust (RSST), a national charity focused on the conversation and protection of red squirrels in the UK.
- Since the 1950s, the number of red squirrels in the UK has dwindled from around 3.5 million to an estimated 140,000 today.
Prince Charles has revealed his love of squirrels in a new issue of Country Life that he guest-edited in honor of his 70th birthday on November 14.
The Prince of Wales is 'infatuated' with red squirrels
According to Charles, he is particularly fond of the red squirrels that live around Birkhall, an estate in Aberdeenshire, Scotland, that he inherited from the Queen Mother in 2002.
"[The squirrels] come into the house at Birkhall and we get them chasing each other round and round inside," he wrote in one article for Country Life, according to People.
"Sometimes, when I leave my jackets on a chair with nuts in the pockets, I see them with their tails sticking out, as they hunt for nuts," he continued. "They are incredibly special creatures."
Charles has been a longtime advocate for wildlife conservation
In a separate interview, Prince William told Country Life that his dad is so "completely infatuated" by the animals that he gives them names, in addition to letting them inside Birkhall.
William also said Charles' "passion for the environment and natural world" is something he wants to pass on to his three children, Prince George, Princess Charlotte, and Prince Louis.
The Prince of Wales has been a patron of The Red Squirrel Survival Trust (RSST), a national charity focused on the conservation and protection of red squirrels in the UK, since 2008.
According to the RSST, if no action is taken, the red squirrel is in danger of becoming extinct in England within the next 10 years. Since the 1950s, the number of red squirrels in the UK has dwindled from around 3.5 million to an estimated 140,000 today.
Currently, about 75% of the UK's red squirrel population live in Scotland’s woodlands, parks, and gardens.
Read more: 22 animals that are in danger of disappearing forever
A candid video shows an encounter Charles once had with a red squirrel
Royal fans may remember a clip from 2015 that shows Prince Charles mesmerized by a red squirrel in Scotland.
In the video, which Clarence House shared on Twitter in honor of Red Squirrel Week, Charles watches, smiling ear to ear, as a squirrel comes through an open door into the house he's in.
"So funny, these creatures, they really do make me laugh," the prince says.
"They're very naughty," Charles continues. He adds, breaking into laughter as the squirrel starts eating a nut, "It's like people collecting strawberries or raspberries. They always stop to have one or two."
To mark #RedSquirrelWeek, we're sharing an encounter The Prince of Wales once had with a red squirrel in Scotland.https://t.co/nyHcFJMpFT
— Clarence House (@ClarenceHouse) October 1, 2015
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