Squirrel Crazy

We typically don’t think of squirrels as needing publicists, but a camera-hogging Alberta ground squirrel might need one after all the publicity he’s received this past week.

The furry little creature has made worldwide headlines for inserting himself into a couple’s vacation photo at a lake in Canada's Banff National Park. The couple submitted the shot to National Geographic, which selected it as their photo of the day and quickly ignited a worldwide frenzy.

“We had our camera set up on some rocks and were getting ready to take the picture when this curious little ground squirrel appeared, became intrigued with the sound of the focusing camera and popped right into our shot,” Minnesota resident Melissa Brandts told National Geographic, adding that she and her husband were “laughing about this little guy for days."

The world has been laughing about it for days, too. The photo has been splashed in newspapers, on televisions and on websites across the globe and copycat (or should be say copysquirrel?) pictures are cropping up everywhere. The squirrel has been inserted into glamour shots with Queen Elizabeth II (he’s perched in her hat), former President Bill Clinton, even North Korean leader Kim Jong II. He’s even made it to the moon ... with the aid of Photoshop, anyway.

Speaking of Photoshop, the original picture is so, well, picture-perfect, that many have questioned its authenticity. However, most professionals are convinced it’s the real deal. "Hair, in general, when it sticks out like that, to clip the hair out and then put it on something is basically the Holy Grail of Photoshop work,” Calgary graphic designer Teak Sato told the Ottawa Citizen. “Zooming in on it, it looks authentic. If it is fake, it’s totally professional."

Brandts says the photo is totally real — and everyone else thinks it’s totally awesome. It’s just the thing to put a smile on our face on a lazy August day.

Photo courtesy of Hernán De Angelis Campephilus via Wikimedia Commons