LONDON - People strolling through New York City's parks may be stopped in their tracks this summer by a squirrel sprawled out, face down, limbs outstretched and lying still. Don't be alarmed, says the city's Department of Parks and Recreation. They're just "splooting."
A tweet by the parks agency earlier this week went viral online, confusing and delighting people in equal measure, after it advised: "If you see a squirrel lying down like this, don't worry; it's just fine." It added that "on hot days, squirrels keep cool by splooting (stretching out) on cool surfaces to reduce body heat. It is sometimes referred to as heat dumping."