The Black Squirrels of Westfield, MA
Westfield, MA Black Squirrels
Black Squirrel History & Facts
- 10 London, Ontario Canada Black Squirrels were exported to Kent State University in 1961. Today they own the campus and the squirrels have been spotted in places such as: Warren, Cleveland, Barberton, Akron, and Canton.
- Ontario Black squirrels have been exported to the United States 4 times - in 1902, 1906 and twice in 1961.
- Black squirrels represent 1 out of 10,000 squirrels in North America. By North American standards this makes them rare.
- Most Americans have never seen a Black Squirrel.
- Japanese tourists flock to Nathan Phillips Square in Toronto to photograph the Black Squirrels there.
- Many children, seniors, and baby boomers are fans of Black Squirrels.
- The Black Squirrels in Victoria Park London, Ontario Canada are live tourist attractions with no admission
- The Black Squirrels that roam the grounds of the White House in Washington, D.C. are descendants of 18 Black Squirrels exported from Ontario in 1902 and 1906.
Black Squirrels in Westfield, Massachusetts
[via musingsofanoldman.blogspot.com]
Region's Black Squirrels Offer Genetics Lesson
By Stan Freeman of the Springfield Republican
"A lot of people think of them as a separate species from the gray squirrel. But they are gray squirrels, only a different color phase," he said.
Photo by David Molnar/The Republican Homer G. Perkins, who was on the board of directors of Stanley Park in Westfield for more than 50 years, holds a photograph of the park's carillon.
Gray and black squirrels do mate, said Marion E. Larson, a wildlife biologist with the state Division of Fisheries and Wildlife. The offspring can be either gray or black, and when two grays mate, the offspring can occasionally be black.
"And two black squirrels could produce black or gray colored squirrels," she said.
So why haven't black squirrels become as common as their gray cousins in this area? One reason is that the gene for black fur is recessive, meaning that it takes an uncommon pairing of parents to produce a coat of that color, Larson said.
As with all animals, including human beings, the features of the offspring are determined by the genes of the parents. A child gets genes from both its mother and father, and in some of those pairings of genes, one gene may be dominant, meaning it's the one that determines the feature, while another may be recessive, meaning that it gives way to the dominant gene. Only when two recessive genes are paired will the feature coded by that gene show up in the offspring. So it takes getting that recessive gene from both parents for the fur to be black. If either gene is the dominant gray gene, the fur will be gray.
Article excerpt via MassLive.com
Look Who's Talking About Black Squirrels
- The Black Squirrels of Westfield, MA | A Bird's Eye View
- Here in my hometown of Westfield, MA we have a large population of squirrels, and many of them are black. When people come to visit they are often amazed.
- Black and Blue - ~sings "Auld Lang Syne"~
- The Garden: Another source of beauty, calm and truth, despite the temerity of Black Squirrels. I love tending my garden and am grateful for my patch of greenness. It is somehow incredibly fulfilling to know that I am capable of ...
- Black Squirrels call Kent home - News
- Black squirrels can be seen around the city of Kent and have inspired a multitude of businesses and events. The squirrel's connection to the city is such that some consider them an unofficial mascot of Kent. ...
- Black squirrels!!!!!
- Not sure if this has already been posted, so apolo -- This message may have been cut off and the rest will only be shown to members. To become a member, click here --
More About Westfield, MA
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Westfield, MA 01085
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Nestled at the foot of the picturesque Berkshires, Westfield is a city in Hampden County, in the Pioneer Valley of Western Massachusetts, United States. It is part of the Springfield, Massachusetts Metropolitan Statistical Area. Westfield is bordered...
Feelin' Squirrely?
feel free to leave links to related squirrel pages or photos!
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- karen clark karen clark Dec 19, 2009 @ 11:29 am
- black squirrels...i am seeing more and more where i live-fair haven, new jersey. they certainly are "eye-catching"
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- inkserotica inkserotica Dec 5, 2009 @ 4:13 pm
- See loads of grey Squirrels, an occasional red but never a black one. Would love to though!
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- mknappdal@aol.com mknappdal@aol.com Dec 4, 2009 @ 2:40 pm
- Battle Creek, Michigan is crawling with black (and their gray cousins) squirrels. The story around town is that they were imported by W.K. Kellogg from England in the early 20th century. The story is probibly wrong, and they were most likely imported from London, Ontario, Canada. They are very entertaining to have as neighbors.
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- eccles1 eccles1 Nov 9, 2009 @ 3:00 pm
- I have never seen a Black Squirrel how beautiful they are !
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- momto4 momto4 Nov 1, 2009 @ 10:14 pm
- Interesting lens! A friend of mine found a squirrel that had a black back a gray belly and a brown tail living in their backyard. It was a very odd looking squirrel.
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- carol carol Oct 28, 2009 @ 8:30 pm
- We live in Northwestern CT and spotted a black squirrell in our yard just the other day. I thought that it was not a good sign like an omen or something GOD forbid then I thought it was a skunk until he turned around and didn't have a white strip
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- kiwisoutback kiwisoutback Oct 28, 2009 @ 3:28 pm
- Weird. I can't say that I've seen any black squirrels here on the south shore of Mass, or that these even existed before reading this. Interesting, I'll keep a look out. Squid Angel blessed!
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- KarateKatGraphics KarateKatGraphics Oct 28, 2009 @ 1:02 pm
- We have some very dark colored squirrels around here (Chicago suburbs)--not sure if they're officially black squirrels, but they sure look it. Interesting lens!
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