BOSTON — Voracious squirrels are going nuts for Christmas lights in Boston.

The Boston Globe reports the furry rodents have chewed through electrical wires for the colorful, festive lights strung in trees on Boston Common.

City parks officials say they’ve received numerous reports about holiday light outages on the city’s online reporting app. One recent visitor noted nearly half the lights on the Common’s 47-foot Christmas tree were out, an issue the city says has since been addressed.

The lights are hanging in about 60 trees, the visitor’s center and other buildings in the historic downtown park.

The contractor hired to string and maintain the lights has turned to using an animal repellent derived from hot peppers to deter the animals. A parks department spokesman says the squirrels appear to have a fondness for copper.

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