Good morning Washington. This photo by FurCafe, posted in DCist Photos via Flickr, was taken in Court House across the street from Summer’s (we think, correct us if we’re wrong). The weather today, according to Capital Weather, will see showers maybe moving in by evening. (And be sure to check out all the buzz about two certain meteorologists: AccuWeather’s Joe Bastardi is “not as smart as he thinks” and Joe Witte of WJLA is apparently dumb, according to Radar magazine. Scandal!)

Another Invasive Species: As the region learns to deal with newcomers to the local ecosystem (i.e. the northern snakehead) the Post reminds us that we’ve been living with a particular invasive rodent, the black squirrel, since the Theodore Roosevelt administration, when 18 were released at the National Zoo.

The zoo’s best guess, according to spokeswoman Peper Long, is that they were trying to restore the local population of gray squirrels, which had been decimated through hunting.

In Other Animal News: The AP, via WTOP, reports that the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration is considering designating the Eastern Oyster an endangered or a threatened species. How that all might shake out is somewhat unclear, but such a move could “halt or limit harvesting of the bivalves.” No more Oyster Riot?

Authorities Looking Closer at Islamic School in Alexandria: The Islamic Saudi Academy in Alexandria, the alma mater of two people connected to terror cases and a graduate who apparently plotted to assassinate President Bush, says the outside scrutiny is unwarranted, the AP, via WJLA, reports. Since the school teaches “a variety of religious and cultural traditions” it could not push Wahhabism on its students.

Briefly Noted: A Virginia gubernatorial campaign theme: Traffic … Flags at half staff for Georgetown traffic officer …