Rare piebald squirrel spotted in Colorado tree

May 26 (UPI) -- Wildlife officials in Colorado shared photos of a rare piebald squirrel spotted in a tree near Denver.

Colorado Parks and Wildlife Northeast Region said in a Twitter post that Jerry Baines spotted the unusually-colored squirrel west of Denver and snapped photos.

The piebald squirrel has normal brown and gray fur on its tail and underside, but white fur on its head and back.

"That is a genetic mutation causing varying amounts of white hair. Some can be almost pure white while others carry just patches of white," the department tweeted.