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Look what he stole for Halloween! Rodent caught on camera with its own pumpkin head nibbling on fruit hanging in north London garden
- Gill Merritt smeared peanut butter in a hollowed-out Halloween pumpkin and placed it in her garden
- She impaled the pumpkin on a metal rod and left it in her yard near a camera with a remote shutter
- Mrs. Merritt operates the camera remotely when the squirrel arrived on the scene and caught the rodent
- She said she was surprised how quickly the squirrel arrived in her yard because she had been expecting birds
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A gray squirrel has been photographed with its head in a carved pumpkin that had been in the garden of a house in north London before Halloween.
Gill Merritt took the photos after hanging the fruit in her garden.
She was then able to extract the rodent’s antics from her home using a remote control.
A visiting blue tit also joined in.
Professional photographer Gill Merritt set up a hollowed-out pumpkin with peanut butter smeared inside before impaling it on a metal pole in her yard to attract birds
Ms Merritt placed her camera in the garden with a remote shutter so she could take pictures from the inside so as not to startle the animals
Ms Merritt said: ‘The hollowed-out pumpkin is mounted on a steel rod and coated on the inside with peanut butter and crushed nuts, encouraging the birds to perform acrobatics as they search for the treats’
Ms. Merrit took the photo last year, but waited 12 months to share the images. She said: ‘I was setting up a pumpkin scene to photograph the many birds that come to visit.
The hollowed-out pumpkin is mounted on a steel rod and coated with peanut butter and crushed nuts on the inside, encouraging the birds to perform acrobatics as they search for the treats.
“I had my camera mounted on a tripod and pointed at the pumpkin through the back door, while I was sitting inside on the couch with a remote to control the camera.
“I had only just settled in when one of the resident squirrels snorted the nutty feast and stuck its head in the pumpkin.
“I was so shocked that I missed the first few shots, but the squirrel was very obliging and gave me several poses with his whole body hiding the steel bar.
‘From that moment on, of course, the birds never looked back.
“It reminded me of the many poses that the cartoon character Secret Squirrel performed, hence the name.”
Ms Merritt continued: ‘I had my camera mounted on a tripod and focused out the back door on the pumpkin, while sitting indoors on the couch with a remote to control the camera’
Ms. Merritt originally thought she could take pictures of birds trying to eat the peanut butter