Portraits of an Eastern Gray Squirrel

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Portraits of an Eastern Gray Squirrel

October 3, 2015 by Mike Powell

When you happen to catch sight of a squirrel, do you just keep walking? I love to watch squirrels. They are so energetic and industrious, traits that I admire in humans as well.

Last week, this Eastern Gray Squirrel (Sciurus carolinensis) at Huntley Meadows Park seemed to be posing for me and we had our own little portrait session. The squirrel made many minor adjustments to its body position to provide mw with a lot of different looks. Towards the end of our photo shoot, the squirrel had to take a short break.

Sometimes when you have an itch, you just have to scratch it, as you can see in the final image.

Posted in animals, Nature, Photography, Portraits, wildlife | Tagged Alexandria VA, Canon 50D, Eastern Gray Squirrel, Huntley Meadows Park, Sciurus carolinensis, squirrel, Tamron 150-600mm telephoto | 13 Comments

13 Responses

on October 3, 2015 at 8:52 am | Reply Dan Antion

I always stop to watch the squirrels. We have a family of black squirrels in our neighborhood (I think they are still considered gray squirrels) and I almost can’t walk by until they get back in the tree. Great shots Mike!
on October 3, 2015 at 9:54 am | Reply New Hampshire Garden Solutions

There are squirrels running around everywhere at my new job and they’re relatively unafraid of humans so watching them up close has been a real treat.
Excellent shots of this one. He’s a bit of a ham, I think.
- on October 3, 2015 at 9:56 am | Reply Mike Powell
  
  They’re a lot of fun to watch. I agree that this one is quite the performer, truly a little ham.
on October 3, 2015 at 10:46 am | Reply Jet Eliot

You captured his personality Mike, so many different expressions! Squirrels have been so busy lately, I LOVE to watch them dancing and flitting through the trees, hopping and scrambling and scurrying. They move so much these days, that I don’t get to see much of their faces, so I really appreciate this portrait session he agreed to do with you. 😉
on October 3, 2015 at 1:53 pm | Reply svtakeiteasy

If there is one animal I miss from my time in Europe, it’s the squirrel. I love seeing them when I go back. So your post and beautiful portraits of this endearing creature is very special, Mike!
on October 3, 2015 at 4:05 pm | Reply Laura (PA Pict)

Charming photos. I love the sense of movement in them.
on October 3, 2015 at 5:44 pm | Reply Victor Rakmil

Wonderful.
on October 3, 2015 at 8:58 pm | Reply Carol Dunnigan

I stop and talk to them. 🙂
on October 4, 2015 at 2:54 pm | Reply Lyle Krahn

He must have known he had a good audience to give you a show!
on October 4, 2015 at 3:51 pm | Reply Charlie@Seattle Trekker

So charming, I love watching squirrels; I can easily spend hours doing that. You got such great images in your album.
- on October 5, 2015 at 4:56 am | Reply Mike Powell
  
  Thanks, Charlie. From responses to this posting I have learned that lots of folks enjoy watching squirrels–I originally thought that most people ignored them.
on October 5, 2015 at 12:09 pm | Reply Ed

The second pic down looks like he should have a smart phone in his hands..:-)
- on October 5, 2015 at 12:14 pm | Reply Mike Powell
  
  I think you’re right, Ed. He probably just received a text message and was checking it out.