National Geographic couldn't resist, either

Star Tribune

Last update: September 4, 2009 - 8:28 PM

The world's most famous squirrel is National Geographic's choice for a prominent photo position in an upcoming issue of the famed magazine, according to the Minnesota couple who stumbled into global Internet fame with their self-portrait vacation snapshot.

Melissa Brandts, along with her husband, Jackson, snapped a spontaneous photo of a squirrel ambling in front of their lens during their visit in May to Banff National Park in Canada. The photo of the camera-curious creature, which peers into the lens as Melissa and Jackson sit behind and smile, amused people from around the world when it was featured among the magazine's "Your Shot" online submissions. Online visitors who rated the photos made the Watertown couple's picture a favorite.

The snapshot also was for a time the No. 1 search response on Google for "squirrel" and can be given viral cut-and-paste treatment into various other scenes thanks to the website www.lutralutra.co.uk/squirrelizer.

The photo was chosen to lead a "special extra section of 'Your Shot' featuring animals" in National Geographic's November issue, said magazine spokeswoman Stephanie Montgomery. Copies arrive in mailboxes Oct. 15 and on newsstands Oct. 27, Montgomery said.

PAUL WALSH

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