A black squirrel. I had never seen one before this little guy started showing up at our bird feeder last winter. Now there are probably three of them that share our yard with the grey squirrels. Some articles on the internet say that there are many areas with significant populations of black squirrels in the northern states. They are a natural variation in the coloring. It is supposed that they used to be more abundant before European settlement in the New World when dark forests covered the land. When the settlers cleared the land for agriculture, the lighter coloring of grey squirrels was an advantage in hiding from predators. In some areas, the black squirrel is making quite a comeback. I guess our yard is one area. I'm very happy about that. I just find them fascinating and (you guessed it) beautiful.
I had forgotten what a wonderful writer you are, Sarah...
ReplyDeleteReally enjoying hearing your innermost conversations in the midst of winter. AND, of course, delighting in the one thing beautiful! This is reminding me of the 5 minutes spent on "Sunday Morning" where there are no words spoken, just beautiful scenes and sounds of nature.. Quite peaceful and spiritual.
Keep up the posting, please. This is lovely~
K