Megan's Nature Nook
Nature Notes, Phenology, Photography, Fun Facts, Trips, Maybe Even a Bad Joke or Two... and More!
Usually once a week I work down at the Rapids Lake Education & Visitor Center in Carver, MN. Last week, after a walk, on my way back up the path to the Visitor Center, I stopped at the bird feeders for a bit to watch. Right away something unusual caught my eye. Its white body stuck out from the brown, tan, and green vegetation under the feeders. Was it a bird? A mouse? A squirrel?? Yes, it was a squirrel! But not just any squirrel; a partially bald Red Squirrel (Tamiasciurus hudsonicus) with a mohawk down its back! I had never seen anything like this before, so I reached into my coat pocket and pulled out my phone to see if I could snap a picture before it scurried away. Unfortunately for me, my phone does not have a very good camera, but I did manage to get a few pictures. Despite having terrible pictures, I was still pretty excited about this crazy bald squirrel I had seen so I sent a few pictures to my nature loving friends anyways. I wanted to share with them this very interesting, very odd, little red squirrel! Two days later I was down at the Rapids Lake again and kept checking out the window to see if I could spot “Baldy.” I hadn’t seen him all morning and was starting to wonder if something had happened, but in the afternoon, I finally saw him eating seeds under the feeders. This week I remembered to bring my camera in hopes of seeing Baldy and being able to get a better picture. Lucky for me, when I looked out the window at lunch, Baldy was there again under the feeders. I quickly grabbed my camera and stealthily snuck up to the feeders to get a few pictures. Here is Baldy: See how he has just a narrow strip of hair down his back, and some on the front legs, head, and feet? And he’s missing the fluffy squirrel tail! The Naturalist in me had me wondering why this little squirrel was partially bald, so I did a little research on hair loss in squirrels. Here is what I found: Hairless Squirrel Causes 1. Mange - caused by microscopic mites that burrow into the skin.
I am guessing that Baldy has a fungal disease since his skin doesn’t seem to have any problems, just the hair issue. Also, he does seem to have some white fuzz on the “bald” spots, which could be a result of hair breaking off near the skin. Hopefully he can build up immunity soon and start growing hair back before it gets too cold! Otherwise he may be needing a squirrel sized sweater. As for now, it doesn’t seem to be bothering him. I’ll continue to keep an eye out for Baldy and hopefully see some hair growing back soon. Until then, maybe the mohawk will make him look like a Tough Guy Squirrel and he won’t be made fun of for balding by the other squirrels and birdies at the feeder. Come see Baldy for yourself at the Rapids Lake Education & Visitor Center under the feeders happily munching away. For more information about Squirrel Hair Loss, visit: https://www.agriculture.purdue.edu/fnr/wildlife/newsletter/may05.html https://sciencing.com/squirrels-lose-hair-5090876.html UPDATE: To read an update on Baldy the squirrel and hear how he is doing, click on the button below
3 Comments
Elana
11/17/2017 10:18:17 am
Do they make squirrel sized toupees? (Asking for a friend).
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Jd
11/17/2017 11:50:20 am
Keep us updated!
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Kim
10/17/2023 09:26:56 am
So I have two baby red squirrels that I cought in my roof. Trying to catch the mom. Anyway I held one because it was so cold that it was almost dead. So I held it to give warmth.. can I catch anything..
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