moldy nut in a packet

[TheSquirrel]

Hi,

If a moldy nut is found an a large bag of shelled hazelnuts, does it mean all the other nuts are affected even if they look ok? Can handling/picking up/inspecting a bad nut and then touching a good nut make the good nut bad?

If a hazelnut is shrivelled in appearance and looks white and mold-free inside when cut in half does that mean it is okay to give to squirrels?

I give my wild squirrel friends shelled hazelnuts and that's why I'm asking. I found one moldy looking soft disfigured nut in the packet after half of the bag had already been given out. I do check each nut before I hand them out - well at least the outside appearance of the nut, but this bad nut would have been in contact with other nuts in the bag.

[TheSquirrel]

Sorry, not sure if I should have posted this in Squirrel Nutrition. Please feel free to move it there if any administrators are reading this and you think it may be more appropriate, but it's also a mold concern I have rather than nutrition issue.

[Lighten-Up]

Please know that I am not an expert on nuts, and I am relatively new to working with squirrels since last August. So I welcome the opinions of others on this.

It is my feeling that one moldy nut in a bag does not automatically make the rest bad. Kind of like a moldy grape in the middle of a cluster does not require the whole bunch to be thrown out. Because mold can be toxic, I would be inclined to wash and dry the rest of them to get any residue off of them that might have rolled onto them, just as I would do the other grapes that surrounded the moldy one.

The fact that you already handed out half the bag before you saw this, and can't do anything about it now - I would just let that concern go. There is nothing you can do now.

Also in regards to touching a moldy nut and then contaminating other nuts. (similar concept to above) It is my opinion that doing that will not make a good nut "go bad", all that it would do was possibly put a small amount of mold contaminant on the outside of the good nut. Yes, this small amount of contaminant (mold) is not good, but our bodies and squirrel bodies are designed to properly eliminate these harmful things that exist at all times in our environment. A little "bad" contaminant should not pose a problem for a healthy squirrel.

All I am trying to say is that we should do all we can to eliminate harmful toxins but sometimes stuff happens and that is ok.

As for the "shrivaled nut?" If I am unsure about the healthyness of an item but don't think it is "bad", rather than give it to an animal specifically, I would be inclined to toss it outside randomly, not in a place where I feed them, so that they can find it and use their own instincts as to whether it is good or bad for them. That way, I am not endorsing the nut to an animal that may be trusting me to know if it is good. Does that make sense?

Hope that helps, maybe others have thoughts.


Hi,

If a moldy nut is found an a large bag of shelled hazelnuts, does it mean all the other nuts are affected even if they look ok? Can handling/picking up/inspecting a bad nut and then touching a good nut make the good nut bad?

If a hazelnut is shrivelled in appearance and looks white and mold-free inside when cut in half does that mean it is okay to give to squirrels?

I give my wild squirrel friends shelled hazelnuts and that's why I'm asking. I found one moldy looking soft disfigured nut in the packet after half of the bag had already been given out. I do check each nut before I hand them out - well at least the outside appearance of the nut, but this bad nut would have been in contact with other nuts in the bag.

[TheSquirrel]

Thank you for your reply, Lighten Up. Appreciated!

I've actually found out more information on mold from a squirrel rehabber since I posted this (also sent him a close up photo of the moldy nut), which may interest you, and have learnt that there are different types of mold (I've had very little knowledge on mold!).

The type found on the hazelnut in the packet is one of the more common types of mold like the mold that grows on bread, and is not harmful to squirrels. Squirrels encounter this type of mold all the time - this mold is actually also found in the ground! (Not that I'd give them a moldy nut anyway, even if it was this type)

The mold that is deadly to squirrels is invisible and grows on things like wet field corn and wet peanut shells.

[DarkLies212]

This is interesting, does the bread mold hurt humans if we ingest it? :thinking I don't know much about mold myself except that black mold is BAAADDD

[Lighten-Up]

Thank you for your reply, Lighten Up. Appreciated!

I've actually found out more information on mold from a squirrel rehabber since I posted this (also sent him a close up photo of the moldy nut), which may interest you, and have learnt that there are different types of mold (I've had very little knowledge on mold!).

The type found on the hazelnut in the packet is one of the more common types of mold like the mold that grows on bread, and is not harmful to squirrels. Squirrels encounter this type of mold all the time - this mold is actually also found in the ground! (Not that I'd give them a moldy nut anyway, even if it was this type)

The mold that is deadly to squirrels is invisible and grows on things like wet field corn and wet peanut shells.

Sure, you can send me the photo of the mold. I am always interested in learning. And yes, I was thinking mostly of the type of mold that you confirmed it was when I wrote what I did. The deadly mold is also found inside acorns that lay on the ground a long time, since an acorn is wet on the inside.

[TheSquirrel]

This is interesting, does the bread mold hurt humans if we ingest it? :thinking I don't know much about mold myself except that black mold is BAAADDD

Actually I think, if I'm not mistaken, that penicillin comes from this type of mold ( the blue type of bread mold, I mean, not the black one you mention), so I doubt it would hurt humans. I'm sure many of us have eaten mold by mistake. I also heard that even if you cut off a piece of mold from a piece of bread and eat the rest, (which many people do, including me) the microscopic mold spores would have spread throughout the bread anyway. But I don't think it's recommended to eat mold.

[TheSquirrel]

Sure, you can send me the photo of the mold. I am always interested in learning. And yes, I was thinking mostly of the type of mold that you confirmed it was when I wrote what I did. The deadly mold is also found inside acorns that lay on the ground a long time, since an acorn is wet on the inside.

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Hi, I've attached a photo. I don't know whether it's showing that clearly but it's kind of bluish in color. The nut was squidgy and soft. I let the company know this morning as I was worried after having given out nuts to the wild squirrels, and they noted the batch number down and I was refunded via Amazon, where I purchased it from - they said there was no need to return it.

[Lighten-Up]

Thank you for the photo. It is a little out of focus, but I can see where the blue mold is.

I do find the concept of mold and even bacteria very interesting. They often get a bad rap, but in balance we need them. They are an important part of the entire ecosystem we live in.