The morning air in Brixton felt the same as any other Wednesday. But a quiet fence line in South London was about to become the center of a global conversation. It started with a flash of grey fur. Then came the plastic.
A witness pulled out a phone to record a scene that seemed like a joke at first. The footage shows a grey squirrel perched high above the pavement. Its paws were wrapped around a bright, automated smoking device. And it refused to let go.
The creature was clutching the electronic stick like a piece of prized fruit. It leaned in close. It began to chew. But this was not a snack found in the canopy of an oak tree.
It was a discarded habit from the city streets below.
The video spread across the internet within hours. People laughed at the sight of a squirrel holding a vape. But the laughter stopped when the experts saw the grip of those tiny claws.
A similar moment surfaced back in 2024. A user named @carly.dane posted a squirrel with a device that didn’t belong in the woods. And now it was happening again in the heart of London.
The tiny teeth scraped against the plastic casing.
The world watched as the animal treated the electronic waste like a natural harvest. It looked like a parody of modern life. But the reality was much darker for the wildlife trying to survive the trash.
Everyone wanted to know why. Why would a wild animal choose a battery and wire over a nut? Many assumed the creature was hooked on the nicotine. They thought the squirrel was chasing a buzz.
The experts from Bangor University looked at the footage. They saw something different.
The scent of berries and tropical fruit was drifting through the park.
Craig Shuttleworth knows the red and grey squirrels of the UK better than most. He said that things used to be different. In the old days you would see lots of discarded cigarette butts. But he never saw a squirrel running around with them.
The difference is the smell. A normal tobacco product is not fruity. A vape is a different story. It smells like food. It smells like a reward. So the squirrel follows its nose into a trap made of metal and chemicals.
The animal was not looking for a fix. It was looking for a meal.
The plastic began to crack under the pressure of the squirrel’s jaw.
When the squirrel gnaws on the device, it isn’t just tasting the fruit. It is swallowing microplastics. And there is a hidden poison waiting inside the colorful shell.
Shuttleworth warned that the animals could ingest the nicotine anyway. They do not encounter this chemical in the wild. It is something you never want them exposed to.
The device is a ticking clock of toxicity.
@carly.dane
The RSPCA looked at the Brixton footage with a sense of dread. They see the viral video as a stark reminder of the danger. Discarded litter is a ghost in the park that haunts the wildlife.
Before the state ban, there were five million single-use e-cigarettes thrown out every week. That is five million chances for a squirrel to make a fatal mistake.
The trash piles up in the grass and stays there.
Evie Button from the RSPCA has the data to prove the cost. Since 2017, the veterinary poisons group has taken 680 calls about these devices. Most of them were about dogs. But the squirrels are the ones living in the middle of the mess.
The charity is urging people to hold on to their litter. They want the city to wait for a bin.
The squirrel on the Brixton fence eventually stopped chewing. It looked at the device one last time. But the damage from the fruity lure was already done.
Nature is trying to adapt to a world of plastic. And the price of a discarded habit is being paid by the smallest neighbors we have.
