Meet the Black Squirrel

1. Monte
   June 11th, 2009 at 7:35 pm

   Although uncommon where I grew up (Chicago), Black Squirrels were not totally unheard of. I would see them every now and then in my yard. I didn't know they were a sub-group of the grey squirrel though. Neat!

2. Cosplay Diary
   June 11th, 2009 at 7:37 pm

   I live in the New York City Metro area and black squirrels are common. I grew up in the Bronx and live in Westchester County. I have a family that lives in the tree next door. There mom is grey. Little bastards are all over my feeders, but I love 'em!

3. Geeksaresexy
   June 11th, 2009 at 7:38 pm

   There's a few black squirrels where one of my aunts live... In trois-rivières, Quebec, Canada... she had like 2 that were coming daily in her backyard to beg for some nuts

4. Shanelle
   June 11th, 2009 at 7:42 pm

   My hometown (in east-central Indiana) is one of those pockets of unusually high numbers of black squirrels. I wouldn't say they outnumber the grays, but they're definitely common. I'd say the population is split 60/40 gray/black. It's been that way for a very long time--my grandfather remembered it being the same when he was a kid.

5. KG
   June 11th, 2009 at 7:52 pm

   We used to live in a wooded area near the Missouri River outside of Omaha, Nebraska--we had several black squirrels there.

6. DarthMoo
   June 11th, 2009 at 7:53 pm

   I like to feed the squirrels (unshelled mixed nuts, no peanuts!) some weekends here in DC. Lafayette Square, the park behind the White House, is the best place to do it. There are quite a few black squirrels there. Always cool to see one.

7. vonskippy
   June 11th, 2009 at 7:58 pm

   So can we actually call them "black" squirrels or will the PC ninnies jump in and make us call them something somebody imagines as being less offensive.

8. hazelshade
   June 11th, 2009 at 8:25 pm

   Black squirrels are everywhere in the DC metro area (in fact, the whole time I lived there I don't think I ever saw a regular old grey/tan one.) They look disconcertingly like rat, which are the other main wildlife in the city, and because they are feed by the tourists/tourists garbage, in some areas they have lost much of their fear of humans and will come way too close for comfort.)

   Also, be on the lookout for the white squirrel (I'm assuming some kind of albinism) that lives by the Vietnam Memorial!

9. Alex T
   June 11th, 2009 at 9:04 pm

   weird, where I'm from in southwestern Ontario, almost all squirrels are black.

10. MrMarfan
    June 11th, 2009 at 9:05 pm

    It's all Obamas fault.

11. Kalel
    June 11th, 2009 at 9:06 pm

    I confess -- I've been traveling throughout the US, blow-drying rats.

12. B
    June 11th, 2009 at 9:20 pm

    Here in southern Michigan I only see black and red squirrels, not a single gre one that I remember. We sometimes get a black squirrel with a red tail though.

13. Dude Manbro
    June 11th, 2009 at 9:40 pm

    During the summer of 2001 I was working in Princeton, NJ, there were several black squirrels frittering about in a local park. Never saw one before that, they're almost always gray in NJ.

14. Chadams
    June 11th, 2009 at 9:40 pm

    These little f-ers are tenacious. When I was at the U of IA they had little concern for the student walking around them. They'd just scurry on by without little regard as to whether or not your going to trip on them.

15. Some Canadian Skeptic
    June 11th, 2009 at 9:47 pm

    Black squirrels are rare? It wasn't until I was 18 and moved away to college that I learned that there was even such a thing as a Grey squirrel. They're friggin EVERYWHERE around my place (central Ontario)

16. J
    June 11th, 2009 at 9:55 pm

    I live in Ottawa Canada and I find the black squirrels extremely common around here, the red ones though I rarely ever see.

17. craig
    June 11th, 2009 at 9:57 pm

    Rampant in the Bay Area around the Stanford campus. Palo Alto is a black squirrel haven.

18. SarahC
    June 11th, 2009 at 10:03 pm

    yeah, come to ontario.. the land of black squirrels. I think I've seen maybe a few grey ones in my life.. all the rest have been black.. or black with white markings

19. james tracy
    June 11th, 2009 at 10:13 pm

    Back home we refer to them as "Los Negros Peligrosos."

20. Nimeye
    June 11th, 2009 at 10:15 pm

    Yup, here in Omaha they are everywhere. I think its about a 50/50 split.

21. J to the Covert
    June 11th, 2009 at 10:24 pm

    yup, here in the DC, my backyard is full of two familys, one of greys, and one of blacks.

22. Miss Cellania
    June 11th, 2009 at 10:31 pm

    There are plenty of black squirrels here in southeast Kentucky. About half the squirrels in my old neighborhood were black. And they arre much smaller than the gray squirrels, so I thought they were a different breed.

23. sandyra
    June 11th, 2009 at 11:18 pm

    We have black squirrels and the regular red/brown kind in mid-Michigan on Olivet College campus but we have one squirrel that has a black body and a red tail.

24. sandyra
    June 11th, 2009 at 11:20 pm

    Oh! I forgot. We also have the tiny gray squirrels which we call "fairy squirrels". They are very small, quick and hard to see. Sometimes you think a leaf is falling off a tree but it's really a fairy squirrel.

25. Emmers
    June 11th, 2009 at 11:27 pm

    Black squirrels are extremely common around where i live (southwestern Ontario). Probably half of all squirrels i see are black.

26. Chelsea
    June 11th, 2009 at 11:47 pm

    Uhh, black squirrels have been in Iowa for like, ever.

27. astrodex
    June 11th, 2009 at 11:51 pm

    I never saw one here (Boston) until about 5 years ago and now I see them about once a week. Not sure how many squirrels I see in a week. Ten thousand seems like a lot. They don't seem to be as black as the one in the photo. More of a very dark brown.

28. conanismyidol
    June 12th, 2009 at 12:32 am

    I went to Kent State University in Ohio and the campus has tons of black squirrels everywhere. They are so cute. Our radio station was named "Black Squirrel Radio" and there is even a "Black Squirrel Festival" that happens each year.

29. JoeD
    June 12th, 2009 at 12:48 am

    Never seen a black squirrel in Fairfax, VA. However, I've trapped over 30 grey ones in my yard. They've made a nest in the roof of my patio and have eaten away at the patio wood and the wood on my kids' playset. Once upon a time I thought they were cute. Now, I HATE them.

30. Johnny Cat
    June 12th, 2009 at 1:04 am

    Never seen a black squirrel, but I agree that the animal's tendency to not get out of the way is annoying. George Costanza would agree.

31. BSmith
    June 12th, 2009 at 2:12 am

    We've always called them the black squirrels of Arlington- there's always been quite a few of them here just outside of Washington, DC. I did some reading and found that they were introduced to the DC area at the beginning of the 20th century at the National Zoo.

32. Jamie
    June 12th, 2009 at 2:15 am

    Ditto on the black squirrels in DC. I also saw a white squirrel on the field outside Navy Med in Bethesda, MD.

33. BikerRay
    June 12th, 2009 at 6:01 am

    Another Ontarian (Ontarioan?) here... Agreed, just about all the squirrels here are black. Unless you seem them on the road, in which case they're red and black.

34. ted
    June 12th, 2009 at 6:40 am

    Funny myopic attitude in the article. You haven't seen a black squirrel before, so it must be something unusual.

    Say, I've heard about a new species of bird on the rise. It can't even fly, and it lives mostly in cold climates. It's called a penguin - ever heard of it? Ever seen one? No, I bet you haven't, but you may be seeing one soon!

35. Padraig
    June 12th, 2009 at 8:01 am

    Loads of them in the backyard...

36. Kev
    June 12th, 2009 at 8:07 am

    I was going to say that black squirrels are somewhat more common than greys here in Southern Ontario, but I see everyone else in Ontario beat me to it.

    It's the little red monsters that are more rare.

37. smee
    June 12th, 2009 at 8:39 am

    everyone knows that black squirrels come from mirkwood forest.

38. linty
    June 12th, 2009 at 9:02 am

    also from ottawa and i had no idea they were rare. They eat out of my garbage can daily.

    Not a huge fan of them though, they look kind of rat-like.

39. nafalie
    June 12th, 2009 at 9:50 am

    When I visited Toronto several years ago my mom and I saw a black squirrel downtown and we had never seen one and my mom being as strange as she is, started making a clicking noise and soon the park area was filled with black squirrels. I thought it was a Canadian thing or my mom has a special black squirrel calling gift.

40. Nat
    June 12th, 2009 at 10:10 am

    Only one in ten thousand are black? I guess no one told the squirrels in Vancouver, because I'm pretty sure most of them are black. We have a ton of them here on the island too.

41. Rexmons
    June 12th, 2009 at 10:13 am

    The Bronx Zoo is overrun by Black Squirrels.

42. rosekat
    June 12th, 2009 at 10:34 am

    Yeah they really are the majorty in Southern Ontario. I've observed them to be more aggressive than the grey squirrels. They are scrappers to be sure, many with scars and frayed tails. They are the ones who will jump on your face for no reason.

43. Eri
    June 12th, 2009 at 11:38 am

    ...Odd. You can't look at the window in Ohio without seeing like 5 black squirrels. I had no idea they were rare.

44. raykylefit
    June 12th, 2009 at 11:58 am

    it really is funny that they are so rare. i went to school in DC and there are ONLY black squirrels--especially in the Georgetown area. they were remarkably friendly, too.

    DC also had a few albino squirrels, too. when i moved there, i had no idea the squirrels would leave such an impression.

45. C.C.
    June 12th, 2009 at 1:11 pm

    In N.W. Wisconsin I've just started noticing a rise in black squirrels, normally we just see grey and red, but I've seen more of the black ones in the last couple years.

46. Persephone
    June 12th, 2009 at 1:45 pm

    I live in the San Francisco Bay Area. Black squirrels are much more common where I work, while gray squirrels predominate where I live. I don't think I've ever seen a red squirrel. I figured the black squirrels moved here for the art scene.

47. Gauldar
    June 12th, 2009 at 1:52 pm

    Do red squirrels taste different from black ones? In Ontario I can agree we have always had a large supply of the black ones.

48. EEM
    June 12th, 2009 at 1:52 pm

    These guys are all over the south bay. I LOVE THEM!

49. Bill
    June 12th, 2009 at 3:15 pm

    A neighbor from Michigan brought a bunch of black squirrels with him and now we have them in our community in east Tennessee. It's funny to see people do a double-take, as they previously were not common here.

50. D
    June 12th, 2009 at 3:32 pm

    There are pockets of white squirrels in some Twin City suburbs. They are not albino - they have black eyes. Those are very cool.

51. Luci
    June 12th, 2009 at 3:38 pm

    I was wondering if anyone would mention KSU. The campus is literally crawling with black squirrels! I love seeing them, as they are relatively rare in Akron where I live. It's weird considering the short distance between the two cities, but I pretty much only see them in Kent.

52. s@m
    June 12th, 2009 at 4:11 pm

    Seems like all the squirrels in NW Arkansas are red. Black and grey ones sound exotic. I've never seen a light brown one like Secret Squirrel.

53. Nate Derby
    June 12th, 2009 at 4:40 pm

    Love these little bastards! Toronto is swarming with them...used to feed them peanuts right of my hand when I lived up there. Just grey's down here in Western NY though...

54. Zach
    June 12th, 2009 at 9:27 pm

    The Curse of the Black Squirrel...

    http://www.sua.umn.edu/handyandy/HandyAndyIII.jpg

55. Wafflesnfalafel
    June 12th, 2009 at 10:55 pm

    We don't have any black squirrels in Seattle, just greys and the native small brown ones, but just north across the boarder they are all over Vancouver, BC.

56. rataplan
    June 12th, 2009 at 11:07 pm

    I live in Toronto and last summer I saw a white squirrel in Trinity Bellwoods park.

57. juneberry
    June 12th, 2009 at 11:45 pm

    I grew up in Westchester County NY (someone else mentioned it) and there were tons of black squirrels there. My neighbor made friends with one and it would sit on his shoulder. I had no idea they were rare.

58. Beatrix Kiddo
    June 13th, 2009 at 3:10 am

    I've lived in south, north, and central Florida and Grey squirrels are EVERYWHERE. I've never seen a black one. I'll have to keep an eye out.

59. Mouserz
    June 13th, 2009 at 5:54 am

    HEY HEY HEY, African-American squirrel thank you very much.

60. Eleni
    June 13th, 2009 at 10:33 am

    I also live in Ottawa and I rarely see gray squirrels. The black ones are everywhere, though.
    And my cat keeps catching red ones.

61. Mar
    June 13th, 2009 at 2:17 pm

    I was pretty amazed to find out that black squirrels are as uncommon as this article explains. I live in south-western Ontario (Canada) and it is actually quite rare to see a grey or a red squirrels; black squirrels are everywhere!

62. JamesM
    June 13th, 2009 at 5:49 pm

    I saw nothing but Black Squirrels in DC and Maryland areas (Chevy Chase Circle, for example, tons.) but haven't really seen them anywhere else. I remember commenting to my friend's parents that they looked kind of cute and they shot me an evil look. Apparently they tend to be a bit more bold, tenacious and destructive than most squirrels. In Chicago, they all run away from people...

63. Just another Alex
    June 14th, 2009 at 12:02 am

    Yeah, as my fellow Ontarians have said, there are lots of black squirrels where we live. Ad to everyone who mentioned the odd white squirrel, we have a bunch of them too. Exeter, Ontario, has a bunch of 'em, and their not albino. Just white.

64. OneMoreGadget
    June 15th, 2009 at 1:37 am

    Really thought this was a joke at first. Canadians only seem to have black squirrels. That's all we have...never seen a red squirrel in my life. Black ones are everywhere. I've seen thousands upon thousands in my life time.
    This must be an april fools day joke or something.

65. Morgan
    June 15th, 2009 at 7:04 am

    We definitely have more black squirrels in my neighbourhood here east of Toronto, in fact, that's all I see in my yard.

66. Frau
    June 15th, 2009 at 1:52 pm

    I have seen Black Tassel Eared squirrels in my area, just outside of Albuquerque NM.
    They really stand out compared to the regular ol' brown squirrel.

67. Beakman world
    June 21st, 2009 at 2:17 pm

    fact,do you know their is another type of squirrels, that also exsit in the good U S of A and that is the reddish brown squirrel.The main rereason,is when one species split off of one another.Mutation and enviormental factors,can also play a big role.I,m Beakman and now I,m lost.

68. Duke
    June 24th, 2009 at 4:08 pm

    Have lots of grey squirrels (actually more brownish red, but I don't assign the names) here in San Antonio, but I recently noticed a couple of black ones close by. They also seem to be larger than the greys. Unfortunately one I've kept my eye on ended up as road kill a week ago, so I don't have him to look out for!

69. sefa
    June 24th, 2009 at 5:43 pm

    vonskippy, you beat me to it.

    The first and only time I saw a black squirrel was on the UBC campus in Vancouver. I posted a pic to my smugmug page and (sort of) jokingly referred to him as an "African-Canadian" squirrel.

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