James E. DeKay, who compiled the 
Natural History of New York, pub- 
lished in 1842, gives the length of the 
fox squirrel as from 25 to 30 inches; 
the common grey squirrel is about 15 
inches, or a bit longer; the black squir- 
rel at 12 to 14 inches; the red squir- 
rel at 11 to 18 inches. 
These are almost the exact propor- 
tions I have also noted. All the black 
squirrels I have ever seen were larger 
than red squirrels but smaller than the 
average grey. Darned funny if they are 
merely black grey squirrels they 
wouldn’t grow up! 
It is certain that the common grey 
squirrel occurs in many color phases 
and peculiar combinations. Every 
squirrel hunter knows this. I have 
seen them white, grey and brown, with 
black head and legs, with white belly, 
with brown belly, etc. And, possibly, 
they may occur occasionally in a com- 
plete black coat. It may easily be that 
this variation of color, and now and 
then a black one, has lead to some con- 
fusion in cataloging our squirrels. 
When they were plentiful, and natural- 
ists could study hundreds of specimens, 
they were given a separate family 
name. Now that they are scarce, lump 
them in with the greys and let it go 
at that. 
DeKay states that Cuvier, in the first 
edition of Régne Animal, supposes the 
black and grey squirrels to be variants. 
In the second edition he is silent upon. 
the subject, and the American edition 
supposes the black squirrel to be a color 
variant of the grey. 
And that is how it began. 
Up to that time everyone thought the 
black squirrel just as much a separate 
species as the red. Many of the older 
naturalists—Harlan, Godman, Richard- 
son, as well as DeKay—who lived when 
this squirrel was plentiful, held that it 
was a separate family. 
It must be admitted that the black 
squirrel disappears before the grey, 
just as the grey vanishes before the 
red. In certain districts of western 
New York, where there were formerly 
none but black squirrels, their place 
has long been occupied by the grey. 
Going, going—gone! 
Once killed by the thousand to pre- 
serve the grain fields, now the coveted 
prize of every squirrel hunter. Brothers 
all, if not a separate family. 
So now let the wigs rain on the green 
when naturalists disagree—I, for one, 
will always think of Blackie as a sepa- 
rate species. 

Page 633 





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