Hell Bent For Leather (![[info]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif){kind=small} cloudchaser_s) wrote,@ 2008-11-08 09:09:00 |
|
What the- half skunk half squirrel?!
With a photo!
http://news.therecord.com/News/arti
Curious critter turning heads near Sauble Beach
November 07, 2008
Brent Davis, Record staff
Web edition
SOUTH BRUCE PENINSULA — In the 21 years they’ve lived on a rural property near Sauble Beach, Alice and Harry Hilliard have seen their share of curious critters.
There are lots of raccoons and skunks, for sure, and a black bear paid a visit one year. And there was Henrietta, the friendly wild turkey that once hung around.
But it’s a squirrel that’s turning heads these days. A black and white squirrel that looks as though it tangled with a skunk. Or a Holstein. Or Cruella de Vil from 101 Dalmatians.
“It really threw us off when we saw him,” said Alice. “We tried to get a picture, but it ran up a tree.”
He first turned up looking for spoils under their bird feeders on Thanksgiving Day, and he’s been pretty punctual in making a daily appearance ever since.
Kitchener’s Kevin Loader managed to snap some photos of the squirrel during a recent visit to the property with his wife, Hilary Kekanovich — Alice and Harry’s niece.
Markings like this are unusual, but not unheard of. This little guy is what’s known as a piebald squirrel — the term piebald applies to any animal displaying depigmented white fur.
The condition is genetically tied in to the development of the animal’s nervous system. According to some sources, it’s most common in horses but does affect other species.
With a photo!
http://news.therecord.com/News/arti
Curious critter turning heads near Sauble Beach
November 07, 2008
Brent Davis, Record staff
Web edition
SOUTH BRUCE PENINSULA — In the 21 years they’ve lived on a rural property near Sauble Beach, Alice and Harry Hilliard have seen their share of curious critters.
There are lots of raccoons and skunks, for sure, and a black bear paid a visit one year. And there was Henrietta, the friendly wild turkey that once hung around.
But it’s a squirrel that’s turning heads these days. A black and white squirrel that looks as though it tangled with a skunk. Or a Holstein. Or Cruella de Vil from 101 Dalmatians.
“It really threw us off when we saw him,” said Alice. “We tried to get a picture, but it ran up a tree.”
He first turned up looking for spoils under their bird feeders on Thanksgiving Day, and he’s been pretty punctual in making a daily appearance ever since.
Kitchener’s Kevin Loader managed to snap some photos of the squirrel during a recent visit to the property with his wife, Hilary Kekanovich — Alice and Harry’s niece.
Markings like this are unusual, but not unheard of. This little guy is what’s known as a piebald squirrel — the term piebald applies to any animal displaying depigmented white fur.
The condition is genetically tied in to the development of the animal’s nervous system. According to some sources, it’s most common in horses but does affect other species.
