Friday, October 9, 2009

Black Squirrel Oddity


I found something completely exciting today! The pictures I have here are really not very clear, but they show something that I never thought I would see. What I have for you today is an oddity, something very unusual and unique! What I have is a black squirrel with a patch of white fur on his tail!

Now let me explain what is so compelling about this. most black squirrels that you would ever see are a solid black color. A black squirrel is actually a type of eastern gray squirrel with extra melanism in its fur. I don't know why they are still classified as grays because their fur stays black and they have black furred offspring. If you want to know more about black squirrels you can look at this post: Black Squirrel

There is a strange side effect to all of these squirrels being so dark though. Supposedly in rare cases some of these black squirrels will be born as albinos. They are completely white instead of the normal black color. It's not always a case of complete albinism though. There are variations that range from the animal being all white with the eyes being pink as well. That's a complete albino. Others are all white with normal dark eyes. And there are still others that only have small patches of white fur.


The last kind is what I have here today. This may be one of the oddest creatures I've seen so far. I guess if you watch long enough, you're bound to see some strange things. What's even more strange is that I had just been looking at pictures of white squirrels. I stumbled across them after doing a little bit of reading about black squirrels, so I decided to search out the white ones.

I found this particular squirrel while I was just getting back to the front of the nature park, after a nice relaxing hike yesterday. I watched it for a long time at a distance. I knew I'd never be able to get any decent pictures of it, but I tried anyway because you just never know when you might get lucky.


After about a minute it turned a certain way and I saw that white patch of fur at the end of its tail. I began furiously taking as many pictures as I could get, hoping for some small evidence that I was really seeing this. These pictures are the best of what I ended up with, and they clearly show that white patch of fur. These three are more than I expected I would get.

This gives me hope that one day I'll get to see a complete albino squirrel. And this might even be a small omen that I'll again get to see that mysterious white creature that I followed a few weeks ago. I had the distinct impression that one was maybe a fox or some other sort of canine. It might have been foolish to follow it, but that color drew me like a magnet.

I still hope that one of these days I'll get to find out what that creature was. A man can dream...

22 comments:

  1. I've seen some black squirrel with white patches of white, and some with patches of red on them around here..but can't get a picture of them. They are too fast for my small camera..

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  2. It'd be easy to recognise this squirrel if you see him again. Maybe for your next poll we could name him ;-) I vote Jack.

    When do your squirrels go into hibernation?

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  3. You keep dreaming, Ratty...you have to so we can get the product of your pursuits! I loved seeing the white-streaked squirrel. I don't know anyone who studies the squirrels like you do. It is great!

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  4. The last sentence is the best!! A man can dream... the camera is his pillow.

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  5. My wifes hair is black with a small "white patch" on the right side. I think it looks pretty cute. I'm not sure but I don't think I've even seen a black squirrel.

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  6. A mini Skunk! LOL

    I was thrilled to see a squirrel on my son's wedding day in the UK, we don't have them here in Cyprus.

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  7. Albino animals usually don't last long. My albino peahen just got bruised by other peacocks. Maybe because the color are so bright and outstanding. Still, I hope you'll find one Ratty :)

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  8. It's good to have a dream. That squirrel is pretty cool. My first though was that this is what happens when squirrels and skunks party together...lol Oh that is pitiful.

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  9. "I don't know why they are still classified as grays because their fur stays black and they have black furred offspring."

    If animals are fertile with each other, as I believe to be the case with gray squirrels and black squirrels, they are considered to be the same species. Some species of animal have what is called "color phase" where they are known to have several different colors. Sometimes these color phases mix together; other times they appear in distinct populations.

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  10. We have both an albino squirrel and a black squirrel in the neighborhood. By the way they hung around together and the size of the black one I thought maybe the black squirrel was the child of the albino. My neighbors thought I was nuts. Maybe not. I hate squirrels but those two have a place in my heart. They are really cute together.

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  11. What a neat thing to see Ratty!! Hope you find that albino one someday..LOL

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  12. What a great find Ratty, maybe you will see it again. And keep dreaming, it makes live more interesting.

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  13. Oops, that should have been 'life' not 'live'. It's been a really long day.

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  14. @Icy BC
    My camera isn't much more than yours. Check and see if yours has a mode where you can hold down the button and continuously shoot. Then you can get pictures of anything.
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    @John
    If I see that white patch again I'll recognize him right away. Maybe I can get some good pictures then. A pole for him might be good.

    These squirrels don't hibernate, but they hide more in the winter, to keep warm.
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    @The Retired One
    I study the squirrels because they were the first wild animal that I remember being close by when I was a kid.
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    @Jen Chandler
    I was only excited at the time I saw the white creature, but then I also found it creepy after I got home and began thinking about it.
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    @Rainfield
    If we don't have our dreams there is no hope.
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    @Joe Todd
    My hair is mixed with gray all over. It began to turn like that as soon as I was 20. Black squirrels gather in small isolated areas and don't go far, but they seem to be distributed all across the country.
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    @Glynis
    I thought of the skunk thing too. :)

    It's always fun to see something from back home. It would be interesting to find out which places in the world have squirrels and which don't.
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    @Ann
    I keep a lot of dreams. More than one is even better. It gives a better chance of one coming true. I thought of the exact same thing with the skunks.:)
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    @ Elizabeth Barrette
    That's an excellent explanation of the black and gray squirrels, and the correct one. The black and the gray do stay in separate populations. We have many black squirrels, but not many grays.
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    @Jen
    You might have been correct about their relation. Two unique squirrels together like that sounds fun. I understand your feelings about squirrels. I get to see them as strictly forest creatures, so I get to have fun with them.
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    @Ginnymo
    I hope I do too. That would be an incredible sighting. :)
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    @SquirrelQueen
    I hope I see it again. Now I know where it lives. Dreaming is what makes life fun. :)

    Live or life, I still understood. I make little mistakes like that all the time. :)
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  15. I've never seen a black squirrel, gotta say it kind of looks like a skunk.

    peace,
    mike

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  16. @Mike Foster
    He reminded me of a skunk too, but I'm glad he's not. We have a lot of skunks here, and the smell can be horrible at times.

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  17. what a great find ratty! skunk squirrel is what i'll call him...hehehe. have a great day...hugz!

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  18. hmmm, i think i saw one black squirrel before since i paid more attention to them after reading your blog, but still did not manage to take a picture, they seem to be very rare though. now, maybe, i should pay attention to albino squirrel?

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  19. very interesting. And I wonder if other animals leave it alone, thinking it looks like a skunk! Talk about camouflage!

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  20. My husband and I saw what we thought was a skunk in Myrtle Beach, SC. We turned around and were able to sneak up on the creature. It turned out to be a black squirrel with white ears. We have never seen a black squirrel and thought it most unusual to be in the Grand Dunes area just a couple hundred yards from the ocean. It was exciting!

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  21. My husband and I thought we saw a skunk in Myrtle Beach,SC. We turned around and were able to sneak up behind the creature which turned out to be a black squirrel with white ears. We have never seen a black squirrel and what a surprise to find it in the Grand Dunes area just a couple hundred yards from the ocean!

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    1. @The Darlington Myrtle Beach
      I'll be you'd find a pretty good sized population of them in the immediate area of the black squirrel you found. But go a few miles away and you'll never see any. That's the way these little guys seem to like it.

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