"I never expected that I would meet a little white squirrel in Guishan during the Chinese New Year. I'm so lucky!" At noon on February 21, Mr. Yi, a Wuhan citizen, and his wife were walking in Guishan Park when they unexpectedly encountered a snow-white squirrel. The little guy was lively and smart, not afraid of strangers, and even interacted with the two elderly people for nearly two minutes. The scene was warm and healing.
Little white squirrel. Photo by Mr. Yi
On the fifth day of the first lunar month, the sun was just right at noon. Mr. Yi and his wife climbed the steps from the southern foot of Guishan Mountain. When they were halfway up the mountain, a small white figure suddenly jumped into their eyes – a pure white squirrel was jumping in the forest. Its two big black eyes looked at them warily, and its furry tail flicked in the shadow of the trees.
"Little guy, are you hungry?" Mr. Yi tentatively took out the rock candy orange he brought with him, peeled off a few petals and placed them gently under the tree. Unexpectedly, the white squirrel actually jumped down from the tree, picked up a piece of orange, quickly jumped back to the tree, squatted on the branch and ate it with relish. After eating, it ran down again, again and again, until it had "packed" all the orange segments on the ground, and then reluctantly disappeared among the trees.
"The closest thing to us was only about two meters away!" Mr. Yi excitedly took out his mobile phone and recorded this rare "adventure". He posted the video to his family group, and it went viral instantly. Relatives and friends liked it one after another, and even his grandchildren clamored to go to Guishan to "see squirrels."
This is not the first time white squirrels have appeared in Turtle Mountain. As early as January 2025, some citizens had encountered this white "elf". It is understood that a large number of sycamore, Chinese tallow tree, ginkgo and other tree species are planted on Guishan, which are rich in fruits and provide sufficient food sources for squirrels.
On February 24, the person in charge of Guishan Scenic Area said that this snow-white squirrel may be an albino individual caused by a genetic mutation. Relevant data shows that the probability of albino squirrels in the wild is only one in a million, which is very rare.
“The rarer it is, the more we should cherish it.” Park management reminds citizens that if you encounter this “white elf” in the wild, please keep a distance, watch it quietly, and do not disturb or feed it, let alone harm it. For wild animals, not disturbing them is the best way to get along with them.
Comprehensive: Wuhan City Message Board, Changjiang Daily
