Coyote

On my recent photo tour to Yellowstone National Park, we had a hard time finding any wolves. The Gray Wolf is always the main species that we want to find and capture images of, but on this year’s trip, it just wasn’t happening. One day, while searching for the wolves, I found some fresh wolf tracks in the snow. I was able to track the wolves for about 5 miles before they turned off and headed up a partially frozen river, which was too dangerous for us to follow due to the thin ice. It was such a disappointment. 

While pursuing the wolves, we managed to find the next best thing, Coyotes (Canis latrans). So, let’s take a look at one of the coolest critters that often gets overlooked. Saying that the Coyote is a unique critter would be an understatement. There is only one species of Coyote. Unlike foxes, which have around 12 different species, such as the Gray Fox, Red Fox, Swift Fox, and Kit Fox. The Coyote is native to North America and nowhere else. It is truly an American animal. Around the country, it is called or referred to by different names, such as Prairie Wolf or Brush Wolf. Of course, it is not a type of wolf. 

The Coyote was first scientifically described by naturalist Thomas Say in 1819. Mr. Say had a copy of the Lewis and Clark Expedition journal in his hand, which first described the Coyote in 1805. Say was the one to distinguish between the Gray Wolf and the Coyote. The name Coyote comes from the Nahuati (Aztec) word, which translates to “barking dog”. The name and spelling were officially adopted and became the standard name in the 1880’s. 

Coyotes are often seen in small groups in winter, especially during the mating season, which is in February. Pair bonds form in the couple of months leading up to the breeding season. Since a Coyote’s main diet is small mammals such as rabbits, squirrels, mice, and voles, they don’t need to hunt in large packs like the wolves, which hunt prey that is often larger than themselves. 

Over a 4-week period in Yellowstone this winter, my group found and photographed about 20 different Coyote. Each encounter was special, fun, and exciting. While they are definitely not wolves, they are truly wolf-like and always make for wonderful images of this unique American animal. Until next time…

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Weasels

I am fascinated by tiny predators. These mini but mighty critters, such as Elf Owls, Short-tailed Shrews, and American Kestrels, are very small in size and stature but are able to make a living by preying on smaller animals. Their ability to capture, neutralize, and overcome their prey is amazing, especially when you consider their tiny size.

One of the more amazing tiny predators is the weasel. There are three species of “true” weasel in America. Each one of them is very small and looks very similar. The smallest of these is the Least Weasel (Mustela nivalis). Not only is it the smallest, but it’s also the least common. It is found in much of the eastern half of the U.S. and into Canada and Alaska. And talk about tiny, this mighty little one is only 6-10 inches long, including the tail, and is considered one of the smallest carnivores alive. It weighs only 1-3 ounces, which would be the same weight as one slice of commercially produced bread.

The Short-tailed Weasel (Mustela erminea), sometimes also known as a Stoat or Ermine, is found in the western states and parts of the upper Midwest and New England. It is the next largest weasel. This one is 7-14 inches, including the 4-inch tail. It weighs between 2 and 6 ounces. A stick of butter is 4 ounces by comparison. 

The Long-tailed Weasel (Mustela frenata) is the largest of our three weasel species. The long-tailed is 12-20 inches, which includes a 6-inch tail, hence the name, “long-tailed”. This weasel weighs up to 12 ounces. This would be about the weight of a can of soda. 

We did have another encounter with a Long-tailed Weasel. My group of photographers was busy following a coyote that was running down a frozen river. The coyote was running from something or running towards something, and we wanted to find out, so we followed. Suddenly, the coyote turned off the frozen river and ran straight up a steep hillside in deep snow. The wind-blown snow slowed the coyote down enough to capture some fun action pictures. Within a minute or two, the coyote was over the hill and out of sight. 

As we reflected on the events that just took place in front of us, one of the guests said she saw something moving on the hillside. As I turned, I immediately saw a Long-tailed Weasel in its pure white coat and black-tipped tail popping up out of the snow. 

When these weasels are hunting, they move quickly and decisively. The snow on the hillside was deep enough for the weasel to dive into the snow and disappear, then pop up again, which made capturing images of this speedy critter difficult. At one point, it popped out of the snow and stood still long enough to get my camera to acquire focus. Suddenly, it took off running on top of the snow. As I followed with my camera, I was able to capture one of my favorite images of my 4-week-long trip to Yellowstone. Until next time…

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There is a small and common bird that is often described as “bland” that visits your yard each winter, and perhaps you don’t even know it. It is charcoal gray in color with a white belly. The males are darker than the females. They have a small pink bill, which is really the only splash of color on this bird. They have a pair of white outer tail feathers that stand out strikingly against the dark tail, but are only seen when the bird is in flight. 

So, what is this common and unnoticed bird? It is the Dark-eyed Junco (Junco hyemalis). The Dark-eyed Junco is a type of New World sparrow. This means it is not related to the sparrows found in Europe, Asia, or Africa. They are unique to the Americas. In summer, it is found in the northern reaches of Canada, well into the Arctic, and in several of the northern tier states, where conifer forests can be found. 

Its genus name, “Junco” is from the Latin word for rush or reed and refers to the grass-like plants. The species name “hyemalis” is also Latin and means winter. So together its scientific name means “a winter bird that lives in reeds”. Well, they got part of it right. They are a winter bird, but it’s not usually seen in reeds or cattails. In summer, they live in conifer forests, and in winter, they are found in open areas. 

The Dark-eyed Junco shows up in most backyards in late fall or early winter. They are found in each and every state in the nation during winter and even parts of northern Mexico. To say they are widespread and in everyone’s backyards would be an understatement. 

They are highly migratory, with the females moving further south than the males. The males tend to stay in the northern states, which gives them a head start when returning in the spring to the breeding grounds. Every study shows that the males who return to the breeding grounds first obtain the best territories. 

These birds can look highly variable depending upon where you live. There are around 15 subspecies of the Dark-eyed Junco, and this is the very thing that drives a lot of people crazy, me included. So, let’s just say that no matter what your Junco looks like, it is still a Dark-eyed Junco. 

For the past 50 or more years, it was believed that small songbirds like the Dark-eyed Junco had no or very limited ability to smell anything. It was thought that the olfactory system in these birds was underdeveloped to the point of being non-functional. However, recent studies done with Dark-eyed Juncos show just the opposite. They do have the ability to smell and even identify individual family members by their unique odor.

Now the most recent studies show that the Dark-eyed Junco have cryptochrome molecules located in the retinas if their eyes. These molecules create light-activated chemical reactions that are sensitive to the Earth’s Magnetic field. In other words, the birds can see the magnetic poles, allowing the birds to determine which way is north or south. 

To add to this amazing superpower, the Juncos have a strong sense of smell that helps the birds use the odor of the land to help them determine their exact location. It is thought that the birds can smell the landscape as they move about during migration. Experiments are showing the birds can smell the chemicals in the soil, lakes, streams, and other habitats. These two amazing senses help the birds to navigate across unfamiliar territory when migrating. 

Combining these senses helps determine how far they need to fly during migration and when and if they have reached their final destination. As you can see, we are just starting to understand the superpowers that many birds possess. The next time you look out your window and see one of these Juncos, think about how these birds eyed and smelled their way to visit your backyard. Until next time…

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Stan Tekiela is an author, naturalist, and wildlife photographer who travels extensively to study and photograph wildlife. He can be followed on Instagram and Facebook. He can be contacted via his website at naturesmart.com.

Black-backed Woodpecker

Winter in the Northwoods is a very special place and time of year. There is just something exceptional and inviting about the absolute silence, stillness, and wildness that combines to make it a great place to be alone and experience nature. 

The wildlife in the Northwoods is unlike any other habitat. Several interesting and unique species occur here. Sure, many of the more familiar species also occur here but it’s the Northwoods specialists that really interest me. 

Recently, I spent some time looking for a Northwoods specialty bird, the Black-backed Woodpecker. The Black-backed Woodpecker (Picoides arcticus) is also known as the Arctic Three-toed Woodpecker. Right now, you might be thinking to yourself, Three-toed Woodpecker is a strange name. Obviously, this bird must have only three toes. Let’s take a closer look at this and see what is interesting about this woodpecker. 

There are 241 species of woodpecker in the world. We have 23 species here in North America. All of these woodpeckers around the world have four toes, except for three. Yep, you got that. Of all the woodpeckers in the world, only three of them have three toes. They are the Three-toed Woodpecker (Picoides dorsalis), the Black-backed Woodpecker (Picoides arcticus), and the Eurasian Three-toed Woodpecker (Picoides tridactylus). So, two out of the three species of woodpecker in the world that have only three toes live right here in the Northwoods. 

The advantage of the three toes in this woodpecker allows them to lean further back and thus deliver a more powerful hammering blow to remove the tree’s bark. While they pound directly into a tree trunk like other woodpeckers, much of what the Black-backed Woodpecker does is more of a glancing blow. This sideways pecking flecks or peals, the outer bark off the tree, which exposes the larva stage of the beetles, which is the majority of their food source. 

The larvae range from 2 to 15 mm in length. Each one is a protein-packed package of food. While photographing the Black-backed Woodpecker over 2 days, I watched as they pulled one larva after another out from under the newly flaked bark. When they find a tree with a good amount of bark beetle larvae they usually stay on the tree for upwards of 15 or 20 minutes, moving up and down, flaking off the bark and exposing the larvae underneath. 

After two days of searching and photographing the Black-backed Woodpecker in the great Northwoods in winter, I was ready to warm up and get back to the office. Until next time…

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Stan Tekiela is an author, naturalist, and wildlife photographer who travels extensively to study and photograph wildlife. He can be followed on Instagram and Facebook. He can be contacted via his website at naturesmart.com.

Coveted Tree Cavities

A cavity in a tree, excavated by a woodpecker, seems normal enough, but when you stop to think about it, this simple cavity in a tree is absolutely remarkable. So, let’s take a closer look at the humble woodpecker cavity.

According to the IOC (International Ornithological Committee), there are 241 species of woodpecker in the world. Here in America, we have 22 species of woodpecker, ranging from the small Downy Woodpecker to the giant Pileated Woodpecker. All these woodpeckers have one thing in common- they all excavate cavities to use for nesting. Because of this, woodpeckers are considered primary cavity-nesting birds. In other words, woodpeckers are the primary users of the cavities that they excavate; however, there are an estimated 75-80 species of non-woodpeckers that also rely on these cavities to nest. These birds are called secondary cavity nesters, and their very existence depends upon woodpeckers. A study published in 2017 found that nearly 20% of all bird species in the world rely on cavities in trees for either roosting or nesting.

Most woodpeckers only use the cavities that they excavate for just one brood of young birds. Woodpeckers excavate in dead or dying trees with just a few exceptions. Live trees/wood are too dense and hard for the woodpeckers to excavate. Over the life span of the cavity, it may host dozens of families of baby birds from a wide variety of secondary cavity nesters.

Depending upon the woodpecker species or how soft the wood, it takes anywhere from four to twenty days for a pair of woodpeckers to excavate a cavity. I say “a pair” because both the male and female do the work. It all depends upon the level of decay in the wood. Obviously, the softer the wood, the faster it goes. Only a small handful of woodpecker species excavate cavities in live trees. The overwhelming majority are excavated in dead trees or dead limbs of live trees.

In the world of woodpeckers, parenting duties are shared by both adults. Cavities are excavated by both males and females, but the males do slightly more work. When it comes to incubation, the female does most incubating during the day, and the male does the night shift. After the young hatch, both parents bring food to the begging babies.

So many of our most beloved birds, such as Eastern Bluebirds, Mountain Bluebirds, and raptors such as American Kestrels and Screech-owls, are dependent upon large woodpecker cavities. In one recent study, it showed that of all the cavities found in a forest, only 10 percent of the natural cavities were being used, but 80 percent of the old woodpecker’s cavities were utilized by secondary cavity nesting birds.

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Stan Tekiela is an author, naturalist, and wildlife photographer who travels extensively to study and photograph wildlife. He can be followed on Instagram and Facebook. He can be contacted via his website at naturesmart.com.

I think a lot of people believe that nature can be predictable, on a regular schedule, or completely understandable. An experience that I had yesterday shows that nature can never be predictable or understandable. 

I am writing to you from cold and snowy Yellowstone, where I am in the middle of leading two groups of photographers on a winter wildlife photography adventure. Yesterday, while in a very remote part of the park, accessible only by large snow coaches, think monster truck, that it is, very comfortable for traveling long distances in snowy conditions. We spotted a Red Fox (Vulpes vulpes) on a distant snowy ridge. It was clearly hunting because it stopped often to cock his head from side to side while listening to small mammals under the snow. 

This looked like it might turn out to be a good photographic opportunity, so we climbed out of the snow coach and started to set up our tripods and cameras in anticipation of capturing some hunting action. One of the major goals of these photo adventures is to capture images showing the winter environment and how the animals interact and survive in harsh weather conditions. 

The fox clearly saw my small group and paused to look at us before it went to a wind-blown snowy ridge and sat down and curled up to rest. Of course, we were all disappointed, but I figured it was worth waiting around to see what transpired. After 45 minutes, the fox got up and stretched. The fox started moving towards us, and I thought we might get lucky, but instead it turned and disappeared behind a short snowy ridge. 

After a few minutes, we could see the fox pouncing on the snow surface, like a Polar Bear does when trying to break through sea ice to catch marine Seals. What happened next was the hard to understand and totally unpredictable part. The fox came up from the snow with a Long-tailed Weasel (Neogale fermata) in its mouth. I was shocked. I have heard about this happening but never witnessed it myself. 

The Long-tailed weasel is a slender, carnivorous predator that makes a living by eating small mammals such as mice and voles. They are a fierce predator that has brown fur in summer and changes to bright white in winter. They are super active hunters moving across the snowy surface, then burrowing into the snow to find their prey. They hunt both day and night to find their prey in burrows underground or in trees. 

They range from southern Canada down across most of the United States and into Mexico. They are one of the larger weasels and appear hyperactive when out actively hunting. The point is, the Long-tailed Weasel is a predator and an efficient killer. So, it’s difficult to understand a predator killing another predator but yet right in front of us, this happened. 

I am continually amazed at the complexity of Mother Nature and how it finds ways to survive in the most surprising ways. 

All of this took place over 300 yards away on a bright sunny winter day, so unfortunately, the images I was able to capture and not of very high quality. In fact, they are terrible images, but I did manage to process one of the images to illustrate this story and show you what happened. You can see the long white tail with a black tip, clearly showing that it is a Long-tailed Weasel. It doesn’t happen often, but predators do kill other predators, and here is just one more example of how it goes in the wilds of Yellowstone. 

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Stan Tekiela is an author, naturalist, and wildlife photographer who travels extensively to study and photograph wildlife. He can be followed on Instagram and Facebook. He can be contacted via his website at naturesmart.com.

Snowy Owl Christmas Bird Count

Every year, within a two-week window around Christmas Day, I participate in a long-time traditional bird count, called the Christmas Bird Count or (CBC). This is a worldwide effort by volunteers to take one day to go out and count all the birds they can find within a pre-defined area. 

To understand this better, let’s look back in history. In the late 1800’s, it was a Christmas holiday tradition to go out with your family or friends and participate in “Side Hunts”. This was a contest to see which group could shoot as many birds and small animals as possible, including songbirds. 

In the year 1900, an Ornithologist named Frank Chapman, an officer in the fledgling Audubon Society, which would later be incorporated into the official Audubon organization in 1905. He suggested that instead of killing birds at Christmas, we should count or take a census of the birds. In the first year, 27 bird watchers went out and counted birds in 25 different locations in Toronto, Ontario, and Pacific Grove, California. And with those humble beginnings, the Christmas Bird Count began. 

Today, nearly 100,000 volunteers participate in the CBC annually, making the CBC one of the world’s largest citizen science projects. It takes place mainly in the western hemisphere from Canada through the United States, down through Central America, and into the Caribbean. Europe has a similar, yet much smaller, CBC that is run by several different groups. 

For my CBC, I am assigned a unique area that includes a large metropolitan airport and the surrounding area. It was a very sunny but cold and windy day. The wind is never a friend when trying to see birds, especially when the temperatures are well below freezing. Over a 6.5-hourday (the days are short at this time of year), I saw hundreds of birds, most of which are common and widespread. 

But every now and then, you come across a species of bird that makes all the effort worth it. I was searching for an open, wind-swept area with my binoculars. Just before sunrise, we received a light dusting of snow. Now with the clear skies and winds over 20 mph, it looked like we were having a mini ground blizzard. I searched and searched and eventually saw a shape standing out against the white snow. From a distance, I studied the shape, trying to make it into a Snowy Owl, but the longer I looked, the more it appeared like a mound of snow. I moved a little closer and took another look. Then, just as I was going to give up and move on to another area, I saw the pile of snow swivel its head, and a pair of squinted yellow eyes appeared. It was indeed an adult male Snowy Owl trying to take shelter behind a large pile of snow. 

I was able to grab a couple of images without disturbing the owl or causing it to fly. It was another memorable CBC. To consider volunteering to be a CBC’er yourself, check your local bird clubs or Audubon Society. It will be well worth your time. Until next time…

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Stan Tekiela is an author, naturalist, and wildlife photographer who travels extensively to study and photograph wildlife. He can be followed on Instagram and Facebook. He can be contacted via his website at naturesmart.com.

To the casual observer of nature, you may not notice some strange things going on in the natural world at this time of year. For example, the other day I was passing by a large pond and noticed a small flock of Hooded Mergansers. These are small duck-like diving birds. The males have a set of black and white feathers on their head that they can raise and lower, like a hood, hence their common name, to flash a bright white patch of feathers to the females during the mating season. What I observed was that the males were actively raising and lowering their hoods, trying to impress the females. Normally, this wouldn’t be notable, but this is happening in late November. Definitely NOT the breeding season. 

As you can imagine, I like to attract different species of birds to my yard, so it should come as no surprise that I scatter some whole and cracked corn occasionally on the ground to feed my local flock of Eastern Wild Turkey. A small group of adult male turkeys, called a Tom, stops by every couple of days, and a slightly larger group of females also stops by. One day, I looked out my office window, and I could see one of the male turkeys in full display, with his tail fanned, his wings drooping to the ground. He was working very hard to impress the females. Of course, the females were not impressed and completely ignored him. Once again, normally this wouldn’t be very notable, but it’s the time of year that makes it stand out and unusual. Turkeys breed in spring, not fall. 

I could add to this list of interesting nature oddities, but I think you got the idea. So, what’s up with this out-of-season behavior? This is a well-known biological condition that happens each autumn or early winter. Technically, it is called gonadal recrudescence. Yep, if you read that correctly, you might understand that it is a condition where the gonads in males wake up and start to produce testosterone and push the male back into breeding condition. 

So, let’s back up a minute and take a look at what goes on during the “normal” breeding season. Each spring, the amount of daylight increases each day. The time from sunrise to sunset is called the photoperiod. Each day, the photo period grows longer and longer. It’s the duration of daylight that kicks off the breeding season in birds, reptiles, and more. 

In the fall, the photo period is getting shorter each day, but at some point, the total amount of daylight in the fall will match the photo period that occurred in the spring breeding season. So, when this happens, the males perceive the daylight as the same as spring and are tricked. The reproductive organs are also tricked and start to recrudescence or become active. 

When this happens, the male starts to move into breeding condition. For the amphibians like frogs, the male will start to call. For turkeys, the males start to display for the females. If you are a Hooded Merganser, you swim in front of females and display your bright white hood, and so on and so on. 

But as the days become shorter and shorter, the recrudescence subsides, and the male moves away from the false breeding conditions. All of the males’ displaying and calling fades away. He won’t return to these conditions until the length of daylight increases again in spring. 

To the keen nature observer, these kinds of unusual behaviors are interesting and notable. I, for one, love to see these kinds of behaviors because it helps me to more fully understand what is happening in the natural world. Until next time…

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Stan Tekiela is an author, naturalist, and wildlife photographer who travels extensively to study and photograph wildlife. He can be followed on Instagram and Facebook. He can be contacted via his website at naturesmart.com.

Walking through the autumn woods on a carpet of fallen leaves is a wonderful experience. The air is filled with the scent of decaying leaves, combined with the bitter bite of winter weather. Each footstep is muffled by the carpet of leaves except for the occasional small stick or twig that snaps underfoot. Because the leaves have fallen, you can see great distances in all directions. 

During the summer, this same walk would be much different. The view would be restricted by the thick, dense green leaves, and the sounds and smells would be much different. So, a walk in the autumn woods is like no other time of year. It is one of my favorite times to be out and about. 

I was recently thinking about this while I was out walking in the woods the other day. I was out looking to capture some video and/or images of White-tailed Deer buck in the rut. The rut is a term used to describe when the male White-tails deer are out seeking females for breeding opportunities. For the White-tailed Deer, the entire spring and summer have been building up to this time. The bucks have been growing antlers and putting on weight all in preparation for the mating season. 

Starting in Oct of each year, the male White-tailed Deer slowly move into breeding condition. This means they are more focused on finding females for breeding. As the days and weeks go into autumn, the male has physiological and behavioral changes to its body to accommodate the season of breeding. A surge of testosterone will trigger the shedding of the velvet that once covered the antlers during the growing season. Their neck thickens, and the fur on the neck becomes bristly.

The bucks will start rubbing their antlers on small sapling trees, stripping off the bark and then rubbing their scent glands, which are located on their face and head, on the newly rubbed trees. Males will also make a scrape by pawing at the ground, clearing leaves and sticks from a small round area, about 2 feet in diameter. The males then urinate in the newly exposed soil. Directly above the scrape is often a low-hanging branch from a tree. The males will chew or lick this stick, which also leaves a scent behind. 

All of these activities by the male serve to attract females and to announce that the male is ready for breeding. It is often said that the males will stop eating during the rut. While the males can and will lose weight during the mating season, they continue to eat during the mating season. The amount of eating is reduced, since they have been feeding heavily all summer to prepare for this time of year. Bucks will also take a mid-morning break and sit down and chew their cud while resting for a couple of hours. 

Each autumn, female White-tailed Deer are receptive for mating for just a short period of time of about 24 to 72 hours. This means that the window of time that the female can become pregnant is very narrow. Timing is everything in the reproduction department of the White-tailed Deer. This means that males need to follow around females for several days who are close to estrus before having an opportunity to mate. If she doesn’t become pregnant the first time, she will come back into estrus again later in approximately 28 days. 

Each autumn, the rut shows up in the forests and fields, just like clockwork, and we are the beneficiaries of all this effort by ensuring that we have a healthy White-tailed Deer population. Until next time…

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Stan Tekiela is an author, naturalist, and wildlife photographer who travels extensively to study and photograph wildlife. He can be followed on Instagram and Facebook. He can be contacted via his website at naturesmart.com.

Even the most common critters in nature can have aspects, behaviors, or characteristics about them that I find amazing, and I am hoping you might also. The Eastern Gray Squirrel (Sciurus carolinensis) has got to be one of the most common and overlooked critters in America. They are found throughout the entire eastern half of the country, and a nearly identical cousin is found in the western half.

So, the other day, when I was driving back from a presentation I had given about nature to a large group at a college, I spotted an Eastern Gray Squirrel black morph, and I thought, here is an extremely common critter with so many cool stories to tell.

Black Squirrels are the melanistic variation of the Eastern Gray Squirrel. In other words, they are just a regular old Eastern Gray Squirrel, but happen to have extra melanin in their fur that makes them black. Melanin is just a pigment in the fur. So, the question is, why are they black? While we may never know why, there are some observations that we biologists can make.

Black Squirrels can be found throughout the range of the Eastern Gray Squirrel, but the Black Morphs tend to be more frequent in the northern portions of its range, especially around the Great Lakes Basin. For example, the Black Morph forms the majority of the population in the Canadian province of Ontario and the state of Michigan. During the 19^th and 20^th centuries, the Black Morphs were introduced to many places across the eastern half of the country because people liked the way they looked.

Many cities, municipalities, schools, and parks have adopted the Black Squirrel as their mascot as a symbol for their community, and some have even passed ordinances that protect the Black Squirrels.

The dark fur is believed to come from a variant pigment gene. A study in 2014 showed how the pigment gene can be the determining factor in whether the squirrel will be gray or black. Another study points out that the variant pigment gene was originally found in dark morph Fox Squirrels. Fox Squirrels (Sciurus niger) are another tree squirrel found in much of North America. The pigment gene jumped from the Fox Squirrel to the Gray Squirrel after an interspecies mating occurred centuries ago.

Some research shows there are some benefits to the Gray Squirrel having black fur (melanistic). One theory is that Gray Squirrels have an advantage of better concealment in deciduous (trees with leaves) forests, while Black Squirrels have the advantage of concealment in conifer (trees with needles) forests, which are found in more northern states. In addition, another study in 1989 showed that the gray morph had better concealment while sitting still, while the black morph had better concealment while in motion.

The second theory for dark fur is thermoregulation. Studies show that black furred squirrels had an 18 percent lower heat loss when the outside temperatures fell below 14° F, along with a 20 percent lower metabolic rate. So, this suggests that the black coat gives an advantage in northern regions.

So, what determines if a mating pair of squirrels produces black offspring? Gray Squirrels have two copies of the gray pigment gene, and Black Squirrels have either one or two copies of the black pigment gene. If a Black Squirrel has two copies of the black gene, the offspring will be jet black in color; if it has one copy, it will be a brownish-black. Only around 10 percent of the Eastern Gray Squirrel is believed to be jet black. In areas with many Black Squirrels, litters of mixed colored offspring, being gray, grayish black, and jet black are common.

As you can see, there are so many interesting things to consider in even the most common of our wild critters. Now multiply this by the number of cool critters on the planet, and you can see we are surrounded by amazing and fascinating behaviors and characteristics of even the most common animals. Until next time…

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Stan Tekiela is an author, naturalist, and wildlife photographer who travels extensively to study and photograph wildlife. He can be followed on Instagram and Facebook. He can be contacted via his website at naturesmart.com.