How many white squirrels are there in Brevard?
First, the Brevard white squirrel is no longer restricted to the city of Brevard. Although released near Johnson and Main Streets (see Barbara Mull Lang’s account) in the early 1950’s they have spread by one means or another to over a fifty mile radius in western North Carolina (see distribution map). The annual Brevard Squirrel Count only covers a 3 square mile area following the original city limits (before any annexations) and is not meant to be a census. Not all squirrels will be out during the one hour count and not all squirrels that are out will be seen by the counter. Thus, the Count, itself, vastly underestimates the number of squirrels but it is, we think, an accurate estimate of the percent white. Using other methods we estimate that there are approximately 3-5,000 squirrels (white plus gray) in the study area. Multiplying that number by the percent determined by the annual count (now approaching 33.3%) we come up with about 1,000 white squirrels. Pretty impressive when you
First, the Brevard white squirrel is no longer restricted to the city of Brevard. Although released near Johnson and Main Streets (see Barbara Mull Lang’s account) in the early 1950′s they have spread by one means or another to over a fifty mile radius in western North Carolina (see distribution map). The annual Brevard Squirrel Count only covers a 3 square mile area following the original city limits (before any annexations) and is not meant to be a census. Not all squirrels will be out during the one hour count and not all squirrels that are out will be seen by the counter. Thus, the Count, itself, vastly underestimates the number of squirrels but it is, we think, an accurate estimate of the percent white. Using other methods we estimate that there are approximately 3-5,000 squirrels (white plus gray) in the study area. Multiplying that number by the percent determined by the annual count (now approaching 33.3%) we come up with about 1,000 white squirrels. Pretty impressive when you
