Caught red-handed

For a while now, I’ve been noticing that the succulents in this planter are losing leaves at an alarming rate:

What used to be a relatively lush grouping of sedums, aeoniums, and friends has become a place of sadness:

My once proud Aeonium ‘Sunburst’ reduced to nubbins:

I’d been putting the blame on rats because, well, because they’re my go-to scapegoats and always up to no good. But I was wrong. I finally caught the culprit in the act:

Here it is, merrily chewing on a Senecio ‘Skyscraper’:

It stopped momentarily when it saw me, but then it continued nibbling with no care in the world. Only when I got to within three feet did it scamper away.

Here’s what’s left of Senecio ‘Skyscraper’:

None of the succulents in this planter are irreplaceable so I’m letting the squirrels do their thing. I figure they need to fatten up now in preparation for winter. And I won’t apologize to the rats — I’m sure they’re responsible for something.

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