Crasher Squirrel
Encyclopedia
Crasher Squirrel is the name given to a squirrel
seen in a photograph originally intended to be a self-portrait
of a Minnesota
couple; it can also refer to the resulting internet meme
.
at Banff National Park
in Alberta
, Canada
in May 2009. While the couple were posing on some rocks next to the lake using a camera with a wireless remote shutter release to take photos of themselves, a Golden-mantled Ground Squirrel
began exploring the area. The squirrel stood up right in front of the lens, and the Brandts were able to capture the image of the squirrel, clearly in focus, in front of the camera.
across worldwide newspapers and the Internet, popularized by such sites such as Cute Overload
.
The appeal of the picture is related to both the fact that the squirrel is perfectly in-focus, and that its pose is reminiscent of the gopher
from Caddyshack
, with "paws held at chest level, eyes staring dead at the camera", according to Mike Celizic of The Today Show. While some questions of the photo's authenticity were raised by Matt Lauer
, the Brandts were able to demonstrate that the single photo was legitimate and part of a whole set of photos that they had taken during that time period.
The photo of the squirrel has since been used by the Banff
tourism board to attract visitors to the area. The Park saw a brief surge in visitors shortly following the viral spread of the image, and the board set up "Banff National Park Squirrel" Twitter
and Facebook
pages, using the Columbian ground squirrel as an "ambassador" to Banff. The tourism board also contacted independent developers that created social media applications around the squirrel photo to include web links back to their web site. These actions led to an estimated 82 million impressions through various forms of media within a few weeks, according to the board. The squirrel was made an honorary citizen of Banff in October 2009 by Banff Mayor John Stutz. Melissa Brandts has also set up her own Facebook page for the squirrel. In response to the popularity of the photo, National Geographics November 2009 issue featured a "Your Shot" section devoted to readers' photos with animals, including Brandts' photo.
The insertion of squirrel images in other photos has furthered the meme, and has been used for photographs of official diplomatic gatherings, family portraits, and famous works of art so that the squirrel appears to be crashing
these gatherings. A website, "The Squirrelizer", was created by Graeme Hawker of Scotland to allow anyone to add the image of the squirrel to a photo; the site saw more than 130,000 hits within a week of its creation. The meme was considered one of the top memes in 2009 by MSNBC
. The Squirrelizer, formerly hosted at lutralutra.co.uk, has been taken down as of 2010, there is, however, a Squirrelizer iPhone app.
Squirrel
Squirrels belong to a large family of small or medium-sized rodents called the Sciuridae. The family includes tree squirrels, ground squirrels, chipmunks, marmots , flying squirrels, and prairie dogs. Squirrels are indigenous to the Americas, Eurasia, and Africa and have been introduced to Australia...
seen in a photograph originally intended to be a self-portrait
Self-portrait
A self-portrait is a representation of an artist, drawn, painted, photographed, or sculpted by the artist. Although self-portraits have been made by artists since the earliest times, it is not until the Early Renaissance in the mid 15th century that artists can be frequently identified depicting...
of a Minnesota
Minnesota
Minnesota is a U.S. state located in the Midwestern United States. The twelfth largest state of the U.S., it is the twenty-first most populous, with 5.3 million residents. Minnesota was carved out of the eastern half of the Minnesota Territory and admitted to the Union as the thirty-second state...
couple; it can also refer to the resulting internet meme
Internet meme
The term Internet meme is used to describe a concept that spreads via the Internet. The term is a reference to the concept of memes, although the latter concept refers to a much broader category of cultural information.-Description:...
.
Photograph
The photograph was taken by Melissa Brandts and her husband Jackson while visiting Lake MinnewankaLake Minnewanka
Lake Minnewanka is a glacial lake located in the eastern area of Banff National Park in Canada, about five kilometres northeast of the Banff townsite...
at Banff National Park
Banff National Park
Banff National Park is Canada's oldest national park, established in 1885 in the Rocky Mountains. The park, located 110–180 kilometres west of Calgary in the province of Alberta, encompasses of mountainous terrain, with numerous glaciers and ice fields, dense coniferous forest, and alpine...
in Alberta
Alberta
Alberta is a province of Canada. It had an estimated population of 3.7 million in 2010 making it the most populous of Canada's three prairie provinces...
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
in May 2009. While the couple were posing on some rocks next to the lake using a camera with a wireless remote shutter release to take photos of themselves, a Golden-mantled Ground Squirrel
Golden-mantled Ground Squirrel
The golden-mantled ground squirrel, Callospermophilus lateralis, is a type of ground squirrel found in mountainous areas of western North America. It eats seeds, nuts, berries, insects, and underground fungi. It is preyed upon by hawks, jays, weasels, foxes, bobcats, and coyotes. A typical adult...
began exploring the area. The squirrel stood up right in front of the lens, and the Brandts were able to capture the image of the squirrel, clearly in focus, in front of the camera.
Popularity
In August 2009, the Brandts submitted the photo to the National Geographic weekly "Your Shot" contest in a bid to have the image included in an upcoming issue. Through this appearance, the photograph spread virallyViral phenomenon
Viral phenomena are objects or patterns able to replicate themselves or convert other objects into copies of themselves when these objects are exposed to them....
across worldwide newspapers and the Internet, popularized by such sites such as Cute Overload
Cute Overload
Cute Overload is a weblog featuring commentary, photos and videos related to various aspects of cuteness in animals. The site was created by Megan Frost...
.
The appeal of the picture is related to both the fact that the squirrel is perfectly in-focus, and that its pose is reminiscent of the gopher
Gopher (animal)
The term gopher as it is commonly used does not relate to any one species, but is a generic term used to describe any of several small burrowing rodents endemic to North America, including the pocket gopher , also called true gophers, and the ground squirrel , including Richardson's ground squirrel...
from Caddyshack
Caddyshack
Caddyshack is a 1980 American comedy film directed by Harold Ramis and written by Brian Doyle-Murray, Ramis, and Douglas Kenney. It stars Chevy Chase, Rodney Dangerfield, Ted Knight, Michael O'Keefe, Cindy Morgan, and Bill Murray...
, with "paws held at chest level, eyes staring dead at the camera", according to Mike Celizic of The Today Show. While some questions of the photo's authenticity were raised by Matt Lauer
Matt Lauer
Matthew Todd "Matt" Lauer . is an American television journalist best known as the host of NBC's The Today Show since 1997. He was previously a news anchor in New York and a local talk-show host in Boston, Philadelphia, Providence and Richmond...
, the Brandts were able to demonstrate that the single photo was legitimate and part of a whole set of photos that they had taken during that time period.
The photo of the squirrel has since been used by the Banff
Banff, Alberta
Banff is a town within Banff National Park in Alberta, Canada. It is located in Alberta's Rockies along the Trans-Canada Highway, approximately west of Calgary and east of Lake Louise....
tourism board to attract visitors to the area. The Park saw a brief surge in visitors shortly following the viral spread of the image, and the board set up "Banff National Park Squirrel" Twitter
Twitter
Twitter is an online social networking and microblogging service that enables its users to send and read text-based posts of up to 140 characters, informally known as "tweets".Twitter was created in March 2006 by Jack Dorsey and launched that July...
and Facebook
Facebook
Facebook is a social networking service and website launched in February 2004, operated and privately owned by Facebook, Inc. , Facebook has more than 800 million active users. Users must register before using the site, after which they may create a personal profile, add other users as...
pages, using the Columbian ground squirrel as an "ambassador" to Banff. The tourism board also contacted independent developers that created social media applications around the squirrel photo to include web links back to their web site. These actions led to an estimated 82 million impressions through various forms of media within a few weeks, according to the board. The squirrel was made an honorary citizen of Banff in October 2009 by Banff Mayor John Stutz. Melissa Brandts has also set up her own Facebook page for the squirrel. In response to the popularity of the photo, National Geographics November 2009 issue featured a "Your Shot" section devoted to readers' photos with animals, including Brandts' photo.
The insertion of squirrel images in other photos has furthered the meme, and has been used for photographs of official diplomatic gatherings, family portraits, and famous works of art so that the squirrel appears to be crashing
Gate-crashing
Gate-crashing, gatecrashing or party crashing is the act of attending an invite-only event without invitationThe person doing the gate-crashing is known as a gate-crasher...
these gatherings. A website, "The Squirrelizer", was created by Graeme Hawker of Scotland to allow anyone to add the image of the squirrel to a photo; the site saw more than 130,000 hits within a week of its creation. The meme was considered one of the top memes in 2009 by MSNBC
MSNBC
MSNBC is a cable news channel based in the United States available in the US, Germany , South Africa, the Middle East and Canada...
. The Squirrelizer, formerly hosted at lutralutra.co.uk, has been taken down as of 2010, there is, however, a Squirrelizer iPhone app.