Autumn had fallen upon the land, and Paul, the red squirrel, searched his territory for provisions. The boar appeared to be rushed. He scanned the forest floor thoroughly and kept his motivation high, as he needed to satisfy the demands of two. Meanwhile, the sow tirelessly arranged the nutrients in various chambers of the three storage dreys. The rainy weather changed by the minute. Dark clouds covered the sky most of the time, while beams of sunlight perforated through the clouds to reach the fertile soil. The ideal conditions for mushroom growth, it seemed, made the sow rub her hands in delight, shouting down from the nest, “Do not forget to get us a couple of funguses!” The male appeared swamped, running up and down the trees collecting conkers, chestnut walnuts, hazelnut acorns, pine nuts, and hickory nuts. An exceptionally versatile diet made life easier for the squirrels. They ate fungus, seeds, nuts, fruits, eggs, insects, caterpillars, small animals, and even young snakes.
Raindrops striking the ground caused tremors on the soil’s surface. This prompted earthworms to emerge from underground and reach the surface. Because they require a moist environment to thrive, earthworms find it easier to move across the soil when it is damp. Birds take advantage of this behavior by drumming their feet to simulate rain striking the ground, luring earthworms to the surface. Paul munched happily away on the protein-rich invertebrates until a big, beautiful orange oak bolete appeared on his horizon, in proximity to a poplar tree. He approached and carefully inspected it, snapping off a couple of snails that nibbled on the characteristically red-orange capped fruiting body. The squirrel struggled to keep his emotions at bay and looked up to the nest, shouting, “Look what I have just come across, Heather!” She put her head through the drey and said, “I could fit two large mushrooms if I pulled one of my legs in.” She simply could never get enough. Paul, the boar, found it rather disappointing that she failed to offer support but refused to get into an argument because he always had the best intentions and wanted to rock her world to make their relationship last forever… plus two days.
The boar faced a problem whose solution seemed impossible. While collecting more food, he kept brainstorming but ran into trouble with his thoughts. Out of nowhere, Garry the parrot flew into the forest and landed on a branch of a cottonwood tree. The squirrel monitored the large, vibrantly colored bird but fearlessly carried on gathering. His life experience provided him with sufficient information and knowledge to grasp that the parrot was not a predator, so he excluded the potential for a dangerous attack. The parrot never intended to harm anyone but scanned the area carefully. Some of those fallen nuts on the forest floor gravely awakened his appetite. He knew the territory belonged to the squirrel. He gently hopped down from branch to branch and finally landed on the ground.
“I am sorry for disrupting your action, but do you prohibit me from asking you a question?” The approach surprised Paul, but as an open-minded individual, he stopped his collecting and said, “Yes, of course. How can I help you?”
“I am on the search for the orange oak bolete, which is my keeper Kurt’s favorite mushroom. Kurt’s acquaintance Jack, the scientist who maintains his boat engine, prepared this mushroom when we visited him on First Avenue Island. Ever since returning to the mainland, we have struggled to find any of them. Kurt walked several miles in the pine forest near where we moored, but he found none of those delicious, beautiful, tasty mushrooms. A several-mile-long walk through the marshes, wetlands, and fields equally ended in dashed hopes. To his dismay, Jack refused to reveal the whereabouts of these mushrooms. He ordered me to fly out and find them. ‘You will never find these mushrooms in a pine forest, nor in fields, marshes, or wetlands,’” the amused squirrel replied. “These are exclusive to poplar trees. On infrequent occasions, you might find them under an oak, a beech, or a birch, but most of the time, they are under or near poplar trees.”
The parrot looked perplexed. The squirrel continued, “The orange oak bolete lives with the poplar tree, and they benefit from each other.” Therefore, farming this mushroom would be impossible.
The squirrel saw the fervor in the parrot’s eyes and offered him a well-thought-out deal. “I’ve collected many nuts and other nutrients which we need for the winter. Heather, my other half, asked me to provide two of these boletes to complete our winter stock.
Right now, those mushrooms are huge and weighty, and I would struggle to carry them up alone to the nest. Even if I break them, it requires several journeys, and I am already exhausted. So, if you will claw two large examples and fly them up to my drey, you are welcome to harvest from my humble territory. You and your caretaker are welcome to gather the remaining mushrooms. However, I must emphasize that this information is exclusive to you!”
“No issue, Paul,” replied the parrot! He hopped onto the wet, soaked ground and started picking at the bottom of the mushroom stem with his beak. The squirrel held the top of the stem, ensuring the mushroom did not break.
“Now fly them up to our nest and place them next to the drey. It is pivotal to situate them under branches and leaves to provide shelter from the rain.”
“Why not put them into the drey?” asked the parrot.
“Our nest lacks ventilation, and they would decompose swiftly because they are 95 percent water. Drying before storage is critical. They will significantly shrink in size and weight, which will provide me with the opportunity to carry them with ease into the drey.”
The parrot crawled through the mushroom’s stem and flew up to the spot the boar had shown.
The squirrel happily shared the location of the poplar trees and added this useful information. “Please let your keeper know that these mushrooms need to be cooked before consumption. Eating them raw or not thoroughly cooked can cause vomiting or diarrhea for some humans.”
“Are you sure that you will not have a problem if we take all the mushrooms from your territory?” asked the parrot.
“Not at all! Mushrooms come back year after year. I will have plenty for next year.” The parrot expressed gratitude, took one bolete, and flew back to the ship. A few hundred yards away from the ship, he spotted his keeper hunting for a rabbit in the nearby field.
The parrot continued his flight and brought the mushroom onto the boat, placing it in a cool environment on the underside of the vessel. He put on the kettle and jumped onto his swing, awaiting his keeper, Kurt, who appeared to have difficulties cornering the rabbit, who had heard of the name “Blade.”