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4-15-11
The variables in nature is what I find most interesting. If nature was always the same and never changed I think I would quickly become boarded with old Mother Nature. In fact the reason why Mother Nature is so diverse is because of these variables. If I’ve said it once, I’ve said it a hundred times, nature is dynamic and is always changing. Populations go up and populations go down. Even within a species, no two birds or animals are the same.
Heck, take the ordinary Eastern Gray Squirrel (Sciurus carolinensis) for example. You know, the average large gray squirrel that’s in everyone’s backyard. Even these common critters can be remarkably different. They come in many different colors. Some are black, some white, red and even blond. So what’s up with all of these color variations? First of all, these different colors are called “color morphs”. Which might be confusing to some. The word morph comes from the Greek –morphos, and means variant form or shape. Hummm, that doesn’t seem right. That seems to describe size or shape not color. So a better term might be poly-chromatic or many colored.
However the word morph is still better than the old terminology which was “phase”. For me the term phase means it’s temporary or that it changes over time. Nothing could be further from the truth. These different colored squirrels are born a specific color and stay that way. So I guess morph is better than phase.
The majority of these backyard visitors are gray but that’s not how it always has been. The black morph was the dominant color in many of the northern states back in the 1700 and 1800’s. The black morph has declined throughout the northern half of the US. and is now only found in localized pockets.
I have seen many different colors of these squirrels over the years. Some with tails that are different color from their bodies. Some with different color ears and some that are pure white. Pure white or albino squirrels are found only one or two at a time not in colonies like the black squirrels. These albinos have pink eyes and they don’t live very long. A couple years at the most. The total lack of pigment means their eyesight is not very good and their white fur makes them stand out like a neon sign for predators.
Recently I had a chance to photograph a blond squirrel. The homeowners reported to me that they had two or three of these unusual squirrels in their yard. After talking to them on the phone I drove over to their house one afternoon. Pulling up into their driveway a regular gray squirrel run up a tree. Well, I knew that couldn’t be what they were seeing so I parked. I put together my longest lens and camera body and set up to be ready to take a picture. Right away two Red Squirrels came into the bird feeding station. These little guys had extremely long hairs behind their ears making them look like they had ear tufts. But no blond squirrels.
Two hours later I am still waiting and no sign of the blond squirrels. My mind starts to wonder and I start thinking about all the things I need to get done. I start to make an exit plan in my head. I set a time limit of five minutes more before I pack it up and head out. With just a couple minutes to go, I see some movement. Climbing down a large tree trunk is the blond squirrel.
Since I am using my longest lens (800 mm) I am able to be far enough away that the squirrel doesn’t give me a second look and proceeds directly to the bird feeder. Over the next couple of minutes I am able to capture some great images of this interesting color morph. The squirrel feeds for just a couple minutes and turns and scampers off. I pack up my camera gear and head back to the office. Not a bad day in the wildlife photography business. Until next time…
Stan Tekiela is an author / naturalist and wildlife photographer. He travels the US to study and photograph wildlife. You can follow him on twitter.com and facebook.com or visit his web page at www.naturesmart.com