Q: I want to have several pine trees cut. However, I don’t want to impact nesting squirrels, particularly if they have litters.

A: Squirrels are breeding right now so there’s not much chance of having babies in a nest. But if you remove a tree having a nest filled with adults they will have a hard time finding another warm place to live in winter. The youngsters produced by winter breeding activity will be old enough to take care of themselves by May-June, so you could remove the pines then. On the other hand, a good pair of binoculars should allow you to see any nests present at this time of year.