New-Vegetable-1274 t1_jed0p26 wrote on March 31, 2023 at 2:54 AM

Reply to comment by becausefrog in Can anybody identify this pure white bird I saw in Watertown? by zzztak

Black squirrels are commonplace in Western MA and red ones in Northeast CT.

becausefrog t1_jed2wlo wrote on March 31, 2023 at 3:13 AM

Red squirrels are a different species than grey squirrels, but black squirrels are a gene mutation which can occur in either species. It's really fascinating. Melanism doesn't occur in humans but can be found in mammals, birds, and even lizards.