The Elon Musk Effect Strikes Again: Peanut the Squirrel Meme Coin Rallies 92% After a Musk Tweet

The Elon Musk effect is all too real when it comes to meme coins. A nod from the world's richest man can send prices soaring.

A nod from Elon Musk can send meme coin prices soaring, and that rings true today after he tweeted about Peanut the Squirrel, which rallied 92% in the aftermath.

This echoes the market’s growing appetite for animal meme coins outside of dogs and cats – but which can explode next?

PNUT Nears $1 Billion Market Cap

Peanut the Squirrel is about to break the $1 billion market cap ceiling.

It’s currently at $946 million and peaked at $0.96 earlier on Wednesday.

Yet, the PNUT community is not content – they’re eyeing the $10 billion mark.

$PNUT 1B NEW ATHI told you..$PNUT will be the fastest memecoin to 1 billion.

Now I’m telling you it’s gonna be the fastest memecoin to 10 Billion.

Never fade $PNUT https://t.co/Cq26QAVcGx pic.twitter.com/lv8TryRAv5

Aside from fueling Donald Trump’s win in DC, Elon Musk has played an instrumental role in PNUT’s success so far.

The token was born out of backlash against a controversial action by the New York State, in which they confiscated and euthanized an internet-famous pet squirrel.

This became a political talking point in the election, with Republican supporters slating it as an overreach of government power. This strengthened the case for the more hands-off, small-government approach, which Trump and Republicans propose.

Musk illuminated the situation on X and even spoke about it on the Joe Rogan Experience podcast, causing the PNUT meme coin price to rally. The token was then listed on Binance, furthering its success.

However, today’s uptick stems from another Musk interaction. The business mogul tweeted that “America was saved by a squirrel and a meme coin,” referring to how Peanut the Squirrel likely provided Trump with an extra tailwind in the election.

America was saved by a squirrel and a meme coin!

Peanut the Squirrel Joins Meme Coin Top 10 List

With the help of Elon Musk and a Binance listing, PNUT is now the tenth most valuable meme coin on the market.

It is currently trading at $0.946, up 2.4% in the past hour, 98% today, 909% this week, and 1,692% since CoinMarketCap started tracking its price data on 4 November.

WTF pic.twitter.com/Hp5RsA3YAT

PNUT was already soaring yesterday, but people who followed the trend and invested would have already doubled their money.

The project both makes a political statement and encapsulates the quirkiness that animal-themed meme coins are popular for.

But it’s not the only animal meme coin showing strength today.

Other “Zoo-Themed” Meme Coins Ready to Explode

The animal-themed meme coin meta is more than dogs and cats – CoinGecko has just launched a new category called “Zoo-themed” tokens.

And while the crypto market is red today, it’s green across the board for these exotic wildlife coins.

Flockerz is making significant progress in its presale, recently crossing the $1.6 million raised mark.

It draws attention with wacky bird-themed artwork and branding, but the core concept behind the project is a lot more serious. They’re setting the pace in the realm of governance, creating the world’s first Vote-to-Earn decentralized autonomous organization (DAO).

$FLOCK holders can participate in the FlockTopia DAO, voting on matters relating to the project’s future – and they’ll get paid for it.

It’s drawing much attention online, with analyst ClayBro recently saying it will “see massive gains.”

Another low-cap zoo-themed token with momentum is Harambe on Solana. This is a gorilla-themed meme coin, and while it doesn’t boast the technological prowess of Flockerz, it is attracting a lot of attention.

The project has shot up a whopping 53% today, but with a $55 million market cap, it has much room for growth compared to PNUT.

Moving to a larger cap, Moo Deng is another internet sensation-inspired zoo-themed token. Moo Deng is a viral baby hippo from a zoo in Thailand, so the corresponding token has memeability unlike anything else on the market right now.

Thousands of visitors continue flocking to the Khao Kheow Open Zoo in Thailand to see the hippo in person, and they often post about it online.

Moo Deng has a marketing source that organically spreads its awareness. It has exploded this week, pumping by 97%. But with a $314 million market cap, it has room for almost a 3x to catch Peanut the Squirrel’s price.