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Purple squirrel captured in Pennsylvania
Experts aren't sure what caused the critter's unique coloring, but they do have several theories.
Fri, Feb 10 2012 at 1:43 PM
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RAINBOW RODENT: Percy and Connie Emert captured the squirrel on Sunday, Feb. 5. (Photo: Accuweather)
A couple in Pennsylvania trapped a purple squirrel on Sunday, Feb. 5, but experts aren’t certain what’s behind the critter’s colorful coat.
Percy and Connie Emert of Jersey Shore, Pa., caught the brightly colored rodent when trying to keep squirrels away from their bird feeders. Connie said she had seen the animal on her property before but no one believed her.
"I kept telling my husband I saw a purple one out in the yard. 'Oh sure you did' he kept telling me. Well, he checked the trap around noon on Sunday and sure enough, there it was,” she told Accuweather.com.
The Emerts kept the squirrel in a large cage for a couple of days, feeding him peanuts, but they released him back into the wild on Tuesday. They say they have no idea why the animal is bright purple.
Accuweather Senior Meteorologist Henry Margusity said that the squirrel could have fallen into a Porta-potty. Dan Kottlowski, also an Accuweather meteorologist, has another suggestion. "Squirrels get into all kinds of stuff. He could have gotten into some purple ink or purple paint at some point."
Ink from toner cartridges was the theory behind a purple squirrel named Pete that was seen in the U.K. in 2008. However, the Pennsylvania squirrel’s uniform color seems to rule out ink as the cause.
Kris Pillai, a professor at Pennsylvania’s Lock Haven University said that the animal’s coloration could be caused by bromide. "This is not good at all. That color looks very much like Tyrian purple. It is a natural organobromide compound seen in molluscs and rarely found in land animals. The squirrel (possibly) has too much bromide in its system."
Bromine occurs naturally in seawater and is mostly harmless, but when combined with chlorine, it can form dangerous compounds called brominated trihalomethanes, which have been linked to cancer and birth defects.
High levels of chlorine and bromine have been recorded in wastewater created by hydraulic fracturing, the process of pumping chemical-laced water into shale rock deep below ground to release natural gas. Hydraulic fracturing is practiced throughout Pennsylvania.
Fans of the squirrel on Facebook have made other suggestions for the critter’s curious coloration, ranging “Someone from PETA threw paint on it” to “Maybe he’s a Minnesota Vikings fan.”
The purple squirrel has amassed more than 3,500 Facebook fans and has almost 400 Twitter followers.
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A Twitter account, eh? There are days I love Twitter and days I don't. Jokey Twitter accounts based on current events make me want to put a fist through the wall. Who gives a damn what the "Escaped Zoo Snake" has to say about American Idol? In two months, we'll be saying, "Huh?" to "Purple Squirrel" Twitter.
Percy and Connie should talk to the people in the beauty parlors in their neighborhood. I am sure that the some of the beauticians were responsible for the origin of this creature with a color of royalty.
I bet it's the Fracking !!! Imagine what it will do to us humans !!
I think it looks pretty natural is it possible it was just born that way like people with difrent color hair?!
"Fracking", really? What justification is there to bring this up?
Did you not read the article?
We read in ancient text of people who were dark blue and purple, both the Christian and Hindi sacred histories. While now visibly extinct, wouldn't doubt recessive genes survived in us, as well as in the Animal kingdom. As extinctions rage, could very well be nature's battle to reintroduce into the visible world the genetic recesses that are better able to adapt to and survive the present influx of contaminants. Not sayin'. Just wonderin'.
They're not extinct; they can be found in KY. See http://abcnews.go.com/Health/blue-skinned-people-kentucky-reveal-todays-...
Maybe the color was caused by fracking, or maybe the animal was dyed by opponents of fracking to raise alarm bells. Most likely the squirrel is getting ready for lent.
I think he's purple for the Baltimore Ravens who beat the daylights out of the Steelers in the playoffs. Mwahahaha!!
It's just purple for Lent..
as long he is all right not sick people leave him alone
Someone was feeding the squirrel Brazil nuts. They are so high in bromine that I almost gave myself bromine poisoning eating too many last year because I was buying them every week at the farmer's market. Almonds and pistaccios have bromine, too. but not as high.
Oh great. In addition to causing groundwater to become combustible, fracking is causing squirrels to turn purple?!?
Ain't progress grand... :P
he is just very cold and needs a hug but mind your nuts
ugh, why can't the squirrels eat from bird feeders people??
I agree. If people would put out enough food for all the animals it wouldn't be a problem. Or put out squirrel food in addition to bird food. Squirrels need to eat, too. I had ducks coming to my bird feeder a couple years ago. The following year I barely got any birds at all.
My husband says this could actually be a genetic predisposition. Too bad they didn't keep him around for a little discovery research.
Its got into some old ladies purple hair coloring!!!!!!
Maybe this is a little obvious, but maybe its a domesticated squirrel and was someone's pet. We had a white cat once that we coloured pink with a safe dye for Halloween.
FRACKING?
Fracking is using water pressure to crack rock. it's a mining technique
"Hydraulic fracturing (also called "fracking"), a method for extracting oil and natural gas"
No fracking way...
And it is TOTALLY safe and can't at all result in chemical spillover into the water table and cause natural gas or chemicals used for the rock softening properties to end up in your local water supply.
And remember Kids if you see a flash: make like Tommy the turtle and duck and cover!
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