Weird animal spotted near Lake Shawnee in Topeka, what is it?
TOPEKA (KSNT) - A local Topeka couple spotted a bizarre-looking animal on their property near Lake Shawnee last weekend.
Jenny Brown told 27 News her husband, Jason Brown, spotted something strange on their property on the morning of Saturday, Aug. 2 in the area of Southeast West Edge Road and Southeast 45th Street just south of Lake Shawnee. She said her husband snapped a photo of the animal which, at first glance and after consulting with sources online, appeared to be a small black bear.
"This was in the morning in broad daylight vs at night or shaded areas like a nocturnal animal would be out in," Jenny Brown said.
The Browns took to social media in a search for answers as to what the animal could be. Jason Brown reported the animal appeared to be about 25 pounds with no visible tail and did not run away when it spotted him.
Black bears, while rare in Kansas, are becoming a more common sight in the southern and eastern parts of the state. Data from the Kansas Department of Wildlife and Parks (KDWP) obtained by 27 News in August 2024 shows no recent reported sightings of black bears in or around Shawnee County. A black bear was spotted in May 2025 in the Kansas City area, prompting some locals to share photos and videos of their sightings online.
27 News reached out to experts at the KDWP for their opinions on the strange sighting. Wildlife Research Biologist Matt Peek said the animal wasn't a black bear but actually appeared to be a not-so-normal raccoon.
Peek said the raccoon captured by the Browns does not appear to be very healthy and may be suffering from some type of illness that has caused it to lose its normal hair coloration. Some underlying issues, not immediately apparent from the photo, may be at play that have caused the raccoon to adopt its odd appearance.
"Black color phases of raccoon do exist, but this one appears to have some type of skin/hair ailment - and does not appear to be healthy," Peek said. "Depending on what exactly it has, it could be caused by a variety of things including fungus or parasites, though the exact issue isn't apparent based on this photo."
Shane Hesting, wildlife disease program coordinator at the KDWP, said the animal looks like a melanistic raccoon that may be suffering from canine distemper virus (CDV). KDWP commissioners voted last year to allow for open season hunting on raccoons in Kansas partially due to the spread of illnesses like CDV and a need to bring their growing population back down.
"It is common for Kansas raccoons to be sick and dying from CDV," Hesting said. "The fur doesn't appear to have any bare patches or scabby/leather-like skin showing, so it likely doesn't have sarcoptic mange or a skin disorder."
Hesting said the photo is the first documented sighting he has seen of a melanistic raccoon in Kansas. He said albino animals are occasionally seen in the wild, such as a pure white Kansas fawn spotted in June, and are very rare in nature. Hesting said albino animals are about one in 30,000 in wildlife but he isn't sure how rare a melanistic animal is.
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