The Manitoba maple, a much reviled tree, considered an aggressive invasive by some (though it is, as the name suggests, native to the prairies), does have some redeeming values, one of which is that it provides an abundance of food for squirrels and birds in lean times, particularly when many other shrubs and trees may have already had their fruit or seeds eaten, or may be having an off-year, when production is low. The black squirrel is, of course, a grey squirrel but the melanistic version of.