Black Squirrel
#11
Join Date: Feb 2003
Location: Minneola, Central Florida, USA
Posts: 246
RE: Black Squirrel
I' ve been wondering the same thing. I saw my 1st black squirrel in VA a few years ago and now I see a decent amount of them. This is in Northern VA. There are mostly grey squirrels here, w/ a few blacks. A few months ago, i saw what appeared to be an albino squirrel in Arlington, of all places.
Chubber
#14
Spike
Join Date: Feb 2003
Location: NY USA
Posts: 81
RE: Black Squirrel
I believe its called melanism...just the opposite of being albino. I suppose there are more blacks than albinos because the white/pink stands out too much and makes them easier targets for predators as well as cancer from the sun
#15
Join Date: Feb 2003
Location: Parris Island SC USA
Posts: 63
RE: Black Squirrel
I currently live in South Carolina and have never seen a black squirrel here but I' m originally from South Louisiana and I' ve seen 3 or 4 down there. I don' t think they' re all that common around those parts.
#16
Spike
Join Date: Feb 2003
Location: NY USA
Posts: 81
RE: Black Squirrel
Here are some links, check them out if you want:
http://www.pec.on.ca/naturestuff/fauna_mammals.html
(info about melanism)
http://www.roadsideamerica.com/set/squirrels.html
(towns claiming to have high albino squirrel populations)
http://www.roadsideamerica.com/set/squirrelsblack.html
(towns that claim to have high melanistic populations, even a pic of a albino and melanistic together)
http://www.pec.on.ca/naturestuff/fauna_mammals.html
(info about melanism)
http://www.roadsideamerica.com/set/squirrels.html
(towns claiming to have high albino squirrel populations)
http://www.roadsideamerica.com/set/squirrelsblack.html
(towns that claim to have high melanistic populations, even a pic of a albino and melanistic together)
#20
Join Date: Feb 2003
Location: jackson NJ USA
Posts: 23
RE: Black Squirrel
Today was opening day of PA small game (squirrel). Me and my buddy got way back in the woods and as he was rasslin' with a freashly shot Grey i saw a black squirrel in the distance. it' s the first one i' ve seen out in the wilds of PA and i went after it like a man gone wild. Well, to make a long story short, he got away. But after seeing that mount in BHW' s post i' m going to make sure that next old Blackie Bushy-Tail doesn' t get away. They are awesome to see and it makes hunting an already great game species even better. pound for pound nothing beats the excitement and sport of squirrrel hunting, and that' s a fact!!!!!