People still think that the Letchworth Black Squirrels only exist in Letchworth. Not so! Much to the chagrin of Letchworth residents, they are also in other parts of Hertfordshire such as Hitchin and Stevenage, as well as Cambridgeshire, Buckinghamshire and Bedfordshire. The Letchworth name was a bit of a misnomer. Apparently they were rare and were a local adaptation/phenomenon called Melanic Squirrels due to the fact that they have very high levels of the pigment melanin in them and are in fact only a dark Grey Squirrel. They are not as rare as Albino squirrels though. They’re a local variant. Obviously from the Grey squirrel, but are more aggressive and will attack the Greys (and win) giving them an edge over the Greys, therefore breeding more and increasing their numbers and enlarging their habitat.

Retribution I think, for importing the American Grey Squirrel in 1876 into Cheshire, which decimated the native Brown Squirrel. Evolution in progress and nature bloody in tooth and claw. This particular squirrel was photographed in the graveyard of the beautiful St Mary’s Church in the centre of Hitchin itself.