Two-toned Squirrel

The quality of this photo is really bad, but I did want to post it, as I don't remember ever seeing a Two-toned Eastern Grey Squirrel before. There were lots of black Eastern Greys together, running around a wooded park area in the residential area of High River, but this one stood out because of its mixed colours. A few of us were standing there, hoping for the appearance of a wonderful, rare visitor to Alberta - a Red-bellied Woodpecker. Though quite a few people have been lucky enough to be there at the right time, some of us were out of luck that day, when we were doing the High River Christmas Bird Count. I have marked the town of High River on my map, but not the exact location of the park.

I read that some people call them “Copper Tails” and others call them “Brown Backs.” Haven't yet been able to find out for sure what causes this colouration.