That bushy tail looks handy in this weather! Stunning pictures capture beauty of red squirrels in icy garden 

  • Photographer Geert Weggen, 46, set up a specialist 'studio' in his back garden in Sweden to capture the scenes
  • He uses seeds and nuts to entice them, adding: 'They will even touch me as long as I respect their boundaries'
  • Red squirrels do not face same threat in Sweden as in Britain, where they are being decimated by American greys

By DAN BLOOM FOR MAILONLINE

Published: | Updated:

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They're notoriously shy, but a photographer had these woodland squirrels eating almost from the palm of his hand after he set up a 'studio' in his icy back garden.

Geert Weggen equipped his home in the Swedish village of Bispgarden with camera equipment, lighting and wintery backdrops, including plinths covered in ice, red berries and pine cones.

The Dutch-born 46-year-old, who works as a carpenter, then enticed the animals using seeds and nuts - resulting in these spectacular images. 

'Animals will do almost anything for food and every animal will get used to a human in time,' he said. 'They will come very close or even touch me as long as I respect their boundaries.

'For me animals are honest. I love that. They surprise me and make me laugh. I use mostly sunflower seeds and peanuts to entice the squirrels, and I feed them walnuts or hazelnuts to reward them.'

Red squirrels do not face the same threat in most parts of Europe as they do in Britain, where American greys were introduced in the 1870s and now vastly outnumber their red counterparts - largely thanks to carrying a pox which is deadly to their bushier cousins.

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Picture perfect: Photographer Geert Weggen captured these magnificent images of squirrels - from the comfort of his back garden

Picture perfect: Photographer Geert Weggen captured these magnificent images of squirrels - from the comfort of his back garden

Shy: The animals in the Swedish village of Bispgarden can be seen poking their noses through the gaps in frost-covered twigs

Shy: The animals in the Swedish village of Bispgarden can be seen poking their noses through the gaps in frost-covered twigs

Alert: Red squirrels do not face the same threat to their existence elsewhere in Europe as in Britain, where greys were introduced in the 1800s

Alert: Red squirrels do not face the same threat to their existence elsewhere in Europe as in Britain, where greys were introduced in the 1800s

All in red: Mr Weggen, a carpenter, carefully staged plinths of ice surrounded by red berries to offset the animals' fur in his pictures

All in red: Mr Weggen, a carpenter, carefully staged plinths of ice surrounded by red berries to offset the animals' fur in his pictures

Character: 'For me animals are honest, said the Dutch-born photographer. 'I love that. They surprise me and make me laugh'

Character: 'For me animals are honest, said the Dutch-born photographer. 'I love that. They surprise me and make me laugh'

Mr Weggen added: 'I use mostly sunflower seeds and peanuts to entice the squirrels, and I feed them walnuts or hazelnuts to reward them'

Mr Weggen added: 'I use mostly sunflower seeds and peanuts to entice the squirrels, and I feed them walnuts or hazelnuts to reward them'

Chilly: The photographer's Swedish village is further north than the Shetland and Faroe Islands off the northern tip of Scotland

Chilly: The photographer's Swedish village is further north than the Shetland and Faroe Islands off the northern tip of Scotland

Crystal-clear: Squirrels do not hibernate during winter, but remain active and build themselves 'nests' called dreys, often in tree hollows

Crystal-clear: Squirrels do not hibernate during winter, but remain active and build themselves 'nests' called dreys, often in tree hollows

The photographer said: 'Animals will do almost anything for food... They will come close or touch me as long as I respect their boundaries'

The photographer said: 'Animals will do almost anything for food... They will come close or touch me as long as I respect their boundaries'

Staged: Instead of typical studio backdrops, Mr Weggen built a column of curled barbed wire and topped it with red berries
Staged: Instead of typical studio backdrops, Mr Weggen built a column of curled barbed wire and topped it with red berries

Staged: Instead of typical studio backdrops, Mr Weggen built a column of curled barbed wire and topped it with red berries

Habitat: The animals are most common in the type of evergreen forests which spread for vast areas across Scandinavia, including Sweden

Habitat: The animals are most common in the type of evergreen forests which spread for vast areas across Scandinavia, including Sweden

 

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