Well, it was only a couple of weeks ago we had a black bear strolling along our deckrail, today it was our black squirrel.

He/she’s been around more this year than usual and I’ve also seen one (just once) that was in between normal gray squirrel in color and this black one. In cold areas black squirrels have an advantage because their dark coat absorbs more heat than a gray coat so they need to eat less to keep warm. Our old friend Wikipedia tells us that black individuals turn up in most populations of gray squirrels and are more common than the gray form in some areas.

Wikipedia also reveals: “The black subgroup seems to have been dominant throughout North America prior to the arrival of Europeans in the 16th century, since their dark color helped them hide in virgin forests which tended to be very dense and shaded.”

So originally, most gray squirrels were actually black!