6/5/97

You have a very intriguing theory there. From what we can tell, "Tree Jumping" may not be a true Hazing Ritual, meaning that there isn't a lone squirrel judge present; however, given the number of "other" witnesses in the area of the jumping, you may have stumbled onto the "Animal Olympics" by which the "other" witnesses are the interspecies judges for various events. For example:

• Tree Jumping is a competition in which the participants are trying to outdistance each other (much like the human "Long Jump" and "Triple Jump.") Squirrels, cats, mice, rats, non-flying insects, monkeys, lizards, and frogs are the primary participants. The frogs used to be the reigning distance champions (i.e. The Calaveras County Frog Races), however squirrels have recently claimed the gold, thanks in part to the Flying Squirrels.
• We have witnessed several different species of animals running along-side squirrels in what appears to be tests of speed. The reason we don't think these sprints races are hazing rituals is because of the lack of the lone squirrel judge. Dogs, cats, squirrels, mice, rats, gazelle, impalas, and Cheetahs are the primary participants. Of course, the world record is held by the Cheetahs.
• Swimming competitions rarely involve squirrels, though occasionally squirrels will enter just for the hell of it. The primary participant in the swimming events are frogs, cats, dogs, rats, alligators, crocodiles, insects -- including the flying ones, and snakes. The gold medal has been see-sawing between the alligators and the crocodiles for a long time.
• The shot put event has been won consistently by the squirrels. The only other participants, the Monkeys (the species, not the band) and the Apes don't have the accuracy the squirrels have developed from centuries of participating in the pine cone chucking hazing ritual. No other animals participate in this one (hands with a grasping ability are a prerequisite) though there are judges from all species present. The unfortunate part of this competition is that humans seem to be the target of choice.

These are only a few of the events associated with the animal Olympics (not to be confused with the animalympics).