These Colleges Are Nuts for Squirrels

For most people squirrels are just another rodent that they see all the time out in the open running around trees, squirreling away acorns, and often acting as a bit of a menace in their yards. However, for a good number of college students squirrels are precious animals that they have adopted as their own to protect and champion. Now, why college students, who must have to deal with squirrels on a daily basis while they are walking all over their tree covered campuses, are obsessed with squirrel is a mystery to me and many others. But, for some reason college students all over the country are nutty for squirrels. While I couldn’t possibly name all of the colleges that are fond of squirrels, here are the ones that are most obsessed with these little creatures.

Oberlin Colleges takes one of the top spots, with the squirrels on the campus being given “rock star status.” One of their resident squirrels names Albus even has a pretty popular blog on the Internet. Oberlin is especially known for their albino squirrels that are treated like royalty.  Princeton University is another school well-known for its love of squirrels. For some reason the campus is covered with black squirrels, which are not common on the East Coast. The community is absolutely crazy about their resident black squirrels too. One myth of how Princeton got all these black squirrels is that it was a biology experiment that has been kept secret. Another legend claims that a devoted town resident, Moses Taylor Pyne, brought black and orange squirrels to Princeton because they match the University’s colors.

There are a number of colleges in Texas that also love their squirrels. The University of Texas at Austin has an abundance of large albino squirrels, which are completely white and have red eyes. Called by the students “The Albino Squirrel,” despite the fact that there are many albino squirrels all over the campus, these rodents are so beloved by the students that a superstition was created in relation to them. If a student is lucky enough to see an albino squirrel on the day they have an exam, as long as it is before the exam is taken, then they are certain to do well. The campus even has a chapter of the Albino Squirrel Preservation Society. Rice University is another school in Texas that glorifies their squirrel population. Photos of students feeding them waffles have been posted to social media, which explains why some of these squirrels are reportedly quite fat.

Vassar College has its own Vassar Squirrel Association, that sometimes publishes op-eds on human behavior oddly enough. There is also a legend at the college that states that the squirrels on campus are the “returned souls of English majors who couldn’t find jobs after graduation.” Now that’s one I’ve certainly not heard before.

Do you know of other colleges that are obsessed with their squirrels?