In 1876 a Victorian banker “decided to release into the wild a pair of grey squirrels he had brought back with him from a business trip to America. Other landowners, viewing the non-native species as a fashionable garden novelty, soon followed suit.”
They were released everywhere in the US for a similar reason. Towns wanted squirrels for the furry aesthetic. Before squirrels just hung out in the forest.
In 1876 a Victorian banker “decided to release into the wild a pair of grey squirrels he had brought back with him from a business trip to America. Other landowners, viewing the non-native species as a fashionable garden novelty, soon followed suit.”
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2012/sep/05/red-grey-squirrels-cornwall
Rich English people and destroying native populations name a better combination.
They were released everywhere in the US for a similar reason. Towns wanted squirrels for the furry aesthetic. Before squirrels just hung out in the forest.