Black squirrel

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Black squirrels are a melanistic phase of the Eastern Grey Squirrel. They are common in northeastern North America and, in some places, outnumber the grey squirrels by a ratio of about 10 to 1. They have also been found in the UK.

Marysville, Kansas is known as "Black Squirrel City" and you can be fined if you run over or kill one there. The town celebrates its heritage by having an annual "Black Squirrel Night". Council Bluffs, Iowa is also known for an abundance of the squirrel. The Haverford College mascot is, in fact, a black squirrel. They are also on the campus at Howard University, Michigan State University, as well as the University of Maryland, though grey squirrels outnumber black ones. Black squirrels were introduced to the Stanley Park Peninsula in Vancouver, BC prior to 1914 and have since spread throughout Vancouver, the North Shore and into the Fraser Valley area surrounding the city. It also seems that these squirrels have made their way from Vancouver into Washington State (specifically, Whatcom County).

Photo of Washington State Black Squirrel

The campus of Kent State University has a large population of black squirrels. The squirrels were not native to the area; however, ten rare black squirrels were imported from Canada in February 1961 by Larry Woodell, superintendent of grounds, and M. W. Staples, a retired executive of the Davey Tree Expert Company. When first released, the large, black-spiked squirrels were frequently mistaken for skunks. Today they own the campus. The Black Squirrel Festival started in 1981 as a day-long event held on the Student Center Plaza to introduce new students to campus and community organizations. Now it features barbeques, live bands, and local artisans. The black squirrel is an unofficial symbol of Kent State University. Mount Union College, about an hour away from Kent State, is also home to a large population of black squirrels.

They are common in and around the Bronx Zoo in New York City, and have been seen in Central Park, Manhattan and Peter Cooper Village, Manhattan in abundance.

In the UK, they are (rarely) found around the town of Letchworth Garden City in Hertfordshire, as well as the villages of Girton, Madingley and Oakington near Cambridge. The squirrel is starting to become more visible in the Chiltern Hills area of Baldock in Hertfordshire.

The are also a number of black squirrels in eastern russia, it was recently reported that they managed to capture and eat a wild dog. It is thought they were driven to this act because of a severe shortage of food. They managed to nibble the dog to it's death^[1].