A mum was shocked after spotting a rare white squirrel.

At around 2pm on Monday, Katie Harrington was walking home from Hempstead Valley Shopping Centre in Gillingham with her son Lake when she noticed it.

The 28-year-old said: “Me and my two-year-old little boy were watching the squirrels then my mum pointed out that there was a white one.

“I took a picture then Googled it and it said they were really rare.”

White squirrels are a genetic mutation of the more common grey park dwellers. This is caused by a partial loss of pigmentation affecting the skin and hair.

There are also albino squirrels, which is a congenital condition caused by an absence of melanin, so the fur is white but the eyes are bright red or pink.

There are thought to be just in one in 100,000 white squirrels in the UK.

Katie, who works at a special needs school, said: “It’s the first one I’ve ever seen, it was a really bright white colour.

“I thought there must be another somewhere but I couldn’t see one. I didn’t realise how rare they were.”

It’s not the first time a white squirrel has been spotted in Kent.

In 2017, an all-white squirrel was spotted scurrying about in West Malling.

One was also seen in Chatham in 2019, and another was found wandering around Margate Cemetery in 2021.

Have you seen a white squirrel? Email: messengernews@thekmgroup.co.uk