Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Small Game Maddog's 2017 Limb Chicken thread.

Well, it was cold and cloudy, but I decided to hit it a lick this am. Went to a woods right outside of town that I got permission to hunt. Most of the squirrels I see now, are on the ground, and moving, so I switched to my peep sighted 10/22. Only saw this one, and he hopped up on the side of a tree. One shot, And I nailed his butt. Kinda made this ole geezer proud.

Nice going, MD. I don't think I'd do much good with a peep anymore. Went 3-6 with the scope mostly on 7x.

Cold wet morning here too. Lots of little ones running around the limbs not offering a shot. Finally pegged this two-bite fryer almost lying on my back as he zipped along a branch overhead. He about fell on my face.



Late morning was calmer, and I got these two.


I keep eating them as they come in. Need to save them up for a big meal.

Too funny Ella......

Went out, with a buddy, for what's probably the last squirrel hunt, til after Thanksgiving. Beautiful, sunny day. We each got one. Not bad for two ole geezers! Did it with the peep sighted 10/22.

Oldman03,
Could you please explain 'cat squirrels' to me? I'm from Florida, hunting this year in Louisiana and seeing a lot of different looking squirrels than our grays at home.

Gray squirrel and cat squirrel are the same thing, as far as I know. It's just what we call them, kinda like saying white perch instead of crappie or sac a lait. There will be different color variations, such as some reddish hairs on the tail or black tipped hairs on the tail or body, but they are the same squirrel.

There are 2 different fox squirrels in La. You have the regular one all over the state, but in south Louisiana they have a fox squirrel that will make 3 of the biggest regular ones I ever saw. They are both colored up the same, but one is waaay bigger than the other. I've read that these big squirrels are slowly spreading northward, but I've never seen any up here. I lived in south Louisiana and south Mississippi for 20 years and I saw a few when I lived down there. I never did kill one because the squirrels in the southern part of the state have wolves and you have to wait until after a freeze before hunting them. By the time it freezes down there (if it freezes), deer season is open and it's hard to find a place to squirrel hunt that isnt being deer hunted.

Anyway, hope that answers your question.... at least it's all I know.

The grays are definitely much bigger and more red than at home. We've seen a few all black squirrels that kinda stumped me also. Only fox squirrels we have in Florida to my knowledge are blonde or red and black, very big fellas too. Thanks for your reply!

Randy, are you referring to the chucklehead fox squirrel? I remember my Dad talking about them. Big as a house cat. I've never seen one. Saw a picture of a man holding one on the 'net.

This is what we call a Fox Squirrel at home ( Florida). I have yet to see any here in the Vidalia area though.

Larry, I never heard of squirrel being called a 'chucklehead', but it sounds like we're talking about the same thing. Big as a house cat or small coon.

ZK, this is what a fox squirrel around here normally looks like, but they can be colored up differently. I have a friend that has a mounted one that is splashed with white. Another fellow has a mounted fox squirrel and cat squirrel, both are almost completely black. Color variations are common. In the spring/summer, it's not unusual to see cat squirrels with blonde tails and even a few that are blond all over. Come fall, the blond coloring has disappeared.

That is one weird colored squirrel in the pic you posted. Looks mighty big also. Are they all like that in Fl.?

Randy, I dug around on the 'net last night and found an article by the LDWF about fox squirrels. Seems there are three subspecies in the south part of the state. If I remember correctly, the one with the white spots is called the Delta variety.There was also mention of the chucklehead, but not as a subspecies.

ZK, how long are your arms? That white around the nose and ears is sometimes seen on cat squirrels around here,

That's a picture from Google images lol. That is the only kind of fox squirrel we have in FL and they're protected. Suckers are massive though.

Per a little Google research ours are called Sherman's Fox Squirrel and are native only to Florida and Georgia. Some are easily three times bigger than our little grays.

Guess my memory is wrong. Couldn't find the article I mentioned earlier. Found one out of The Louisiana Sportsman. Says the chucklehead is a subspecies, more common in southwest Louisiana. Says the ones with the white spots are Bachman's variety.

Based on my couple trips to a nearby WMA, squirrel hunting is a lot tougher here than back home!

ZK, I dont know what WMA your hunting on, but Vidalia is in the river bottom. I've found more squirrels in the hills or small bottoms in the hills, than in the big river bottoms. If there are any ridges in the river bottoms that have oak hardwoods, that's where you are more likely to find your squirrels.

That's just my experience.

I took my boy to Yancey a weekend before last, lots of good mast trees but only saw one squirrel and it was breaking camp!! Work is going to be bringing us here regularly, I imagine we'll put in some more time looking around.

Someone has a mounted black/white color variation foxsquirrel they've posted on here before. Maybe Maddog himself. Around here, Aiken, SC, they've got a species I've not seen elsewhere though they mostly can't be hunted. Looks like Zk's. The picture at this link shows one of their color variants https://www.aikenstandard.com/news/...aab9296-59be-5861-9f6d-d0b218faa84a.html . They're almost marked like racoons--yellow and orange, white and gray, black and gray.

Up in Ohio, Ky, what they call a fox squirrel looks like a cat-sized gray squirrel with a lot of orange in it.

Buddy insisted he needed a hand dragging out a GIANT buck, which turns out didn't exist. Sitting in a stand is boring.




I'm hoping to get out with the rifle tomorrow.

I saw a fox squirrel that color while driving thru the Florida panhandle a few years ago. We have plenty of fox squirrels here in TN but I did nt even know about this color phase.

Went 0-2 today. Saw a half dozen but they're sticking to cover. I checked a couple of reliable oak slopes and noticed there's hardly any acorns on the ground. Did that brush with Irma shake down the trees?