Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunter's Campfire Eastern Gray Squirrel vs Western Gray Squirrel

I recently discovered that here in western Washington we have a fairly good population of Eastern Gray squirrels. As I was researching some protected species of tree, Garry Oak and Oregon White Oak, it was made evident that the protection is for the Western Gray Squirrel habitat. That leaves the eastern variety fair game. So how do I determine which is which and are the eastern variety good table fare?<p>Bullwnkl.

You're on your own with how to tell 'em apart. We have some kind of transplanted gray squirrels here in western Montana (the Bitterroot Valley), and to me they look like the grays that I used to shoot in Alabama, Pennsylvania, etc, so many, many years ago. I shot a few grays in Nebraska, also many years ago, and assumed they were eastern grays. They sure looked like easterns to me.<p>A biologist with your local game department should be able to tell you how to tell 'em apart -- hopefully, so you can tell BEFORE you shoot, so you won't have to kill some to compare 'em side by side.<p>You bet they're good eating! My father was a dedicated squirrel-hunter -- head shots only, with an early Winchester outside-hammer .22 pump -- as was his father before him. We ate a lot of gray squirrels. Later, I shot gobs of 'em -- head shots only, with a scoped Marlin 39-A lever .22 -- during my high-school and early college years, before I came west and left those familiar grays on the other side of The Big Muddy.<p>There's not much meat there -- almost none except for the hind quarters -- but it's GOOD eatin'.

Bullwnkl
I have shot lots of the Western grays in CA, back in my college days, and remember how impressed I was with the size of them, compared to the Eastern grays. The tails were especially big and bushy, it seemed. They are a lot bigger than the Easterns.<p>The books say that the Eastern has a lot of brown or red in the fur, compared to the much grayer Westerns, but this past Sept I was in NY, just in time to shoot a pile of them. They were just about every color imaginable in the gray to red range.<p>Looks like time for a little geographic taxonomy. Find out where the fur and feather guys think they are and act accordingly. The Westerns would be easier to tell from the Easterns just because of size, but that is a hard way to judge the smaller Easterns.
art

The sure give away as to the difference between eastern and western is to listen to them bark. The eastern has a higher pitched voice and barks much more quickly than the western. The western bark is lower pitched and much more drawn out. Sort of a squirrel version of the drawl. [img]images/icons/wink.gif" border="0[/img]
BCR

BCR, that's what I was thinking. Listen to the accent! [img]images/icons/laugh.gif" border="0[/img] <p>Winkle, these aren't "Fox Squirrel" are they? we've got both around here. Foxes are usualy somewhat bigger than Grays and have reddish brown fur around the ears and underneath. Both are very good table fare, though usualy somewhat tough.<p>If you've got a decent scope you can usualy tell them apart before shooting. I try not to kill fox squirrel unless they're good sized. Once in a while I kill a smaller one thinking it's a gray, but not very often.<p>Wifey baste them in B-BQ sause and roast them in the oven. That cures the tough eating.
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In the "country" down South, the word "mess" means (inter alia) "enough to make a good meal." I have a very fine pressure-cooker recipe for what I call "Stew Too Good for Kings," which should make the best squirrel stew that you can poke down your old gullet. Just collect a mess of squirrel meat -- enough to equal the beef in the recipe below -- and go from there. The bones'll still be there, but the meat WON'T be tough -- I garn-dam-T-U.<p>1 1/2 lb round steak (e g)
6 oz red wine (I use a lot more!)
2 Tbs olive oil
1/4 lb lean salt pork
1 lg carrot
1 celery rib
1 lg onion
12 pitted green olives
2 cups tomatoes
1 bay leaf
1/2 clove garlic
2 or 3 sprigs parsley
1/8 tsp black pepper
1 1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp thyme
1/2 cup canned button mushrooms or mushroom pieces<p>Cut the steak into about 1-1/2-inch cubes. Marinate it in the wine and olive oil, covered, in the refrigerator, for 24 hours. I use a large bowl and hold the meat baptized in the marinade by pushing a foil pie plate down on it.<p>The next day, grate the onion, the carrot, and the celery very fine. Halve the olives. Mince the garlic.<p>Cut the salt pork into 1/2-inch cubes and saut� it in olive oil.<p>Drain the steak (save the marinade) and brown it well in the same oil.<p>Hold the mushrooms back for now -- in the pressure cooker, stir everything else (including the saut� oil, but not the parsley and bay leaf) into the marinade. Mix well. Lay the parsley and bay leaf on top.<p>Seal the pressure cooker and heat it up to cooking pressure. Cook the stew for 20 minutes. Remove the cooker from the heat and run cold tap water over it to reduce the pressure immediately. Open the cooker and remove the parsley and the bay leaf.<p>Drain the mushroom pieces and add them to the stew.<p>Seal the cooker and bring it to cooking pressure again, then remove it from the heat immediately and run cold water over it to reduce the pressure.<p>Serve over rice (my preference), pasta, noodles, or small boiled potatoes.<p>There's never any left-overs. You'll be glad ol' Ken ain't there to eat a lot of it, but set a place for me anyway!

Just got home from Virgineee, saw a real Eastern Grey squirrel up close and personal on Constitution Blvd, in Washington, in front of the Washington Monument, sitting on a wooden pallet, eye level. He was very Grey and with a blairing white belly all the way up under his chin. Have killed a truck load of Fox Squirrels in Illinois, they are larger and very redish and very goodish to eat. Illinois also has some solid Black squirrels with tufted ears and Olney,IL, claims to be capitol of the solid White squirrel. Here in Texas a squirrel is a squirrel and they are all good to eat, especially the ones around my house eating my pecans. The Rocky Mountain variety eat pine nuts, are small, and taste like fresh 120 proof from Boggys swamp,(a little goes a long, long, way)!!
That reminds me, I still have a pint fruit jar of clear nectar from South Texas that was destined for the first Slam in Oregon. Someone better get something going soon or old "no" and "Boggy" will drink it on a hunt. No telling what we might kill down there on Boggy Creek.
I might add before boiling the squirrels cut around the legs and back about 1/2" apart, to the bone, to keep from having long stringy pieces of meat in the stew. Young squirrels are for frying in quarters, rolled in flour, use the grease to make the gravy, goes great with eggs in the morning.
Seal in foil with butter,(little water), on the grill or coals, edge of campfire. Grilled, hope you like shoe leather. -- no

Well, somebody forgot to shut the gate and old NO got back in the pasture.
There is three, count them, three kinds of squirrel in east Texas.
There is the fox squirrel. That is the red squirrel.
There is the cat squirrel. That is the grey squirrel.
And the flying squirrel. You are not hardly going to see one of them unless it is night.
Squirrel and dumplings is pretty good groceries too.
BCR
BCR

Boggy, -- I keep telling you that's not squirrels flying around the camp fire at night, that's bats, see what that swamp water does to a feller. [img]images/icons/laugh.gif" border="0[/img] Just kidding, never ate a flying squirrel, from what I've seen it would take a number two wash tub full to have a mess. I will cook, someone else clean, kinda like eating Pinon Nuts sitting on a stand overlooking a canyon in New Mexico. [img]images/icons/crazy.gif" border="0[/img] -- no

there is nothing more funny than watching someone trying to bag a cat squirrel with a 22 and a scope. you can tell what someone is shooting at by listening. when it is a fox squirrel there is one shot. when it is a cat squirrel it sounds like full auto, they never sit still. tom

That's why I started Big Hunter to go for squirrel with a .22. Those nervouse grays do more to teach patience than anything. Also a good way to practice rifle shooting prior to deer season.<p>Our pastor goes with us alot, but he uses a shotgun on them. I told him that was about the same as hunting deer with a spotlight! [img]images/icons/laugh.gif" border="0[/img]
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Thanks folks for all the info. I see a lot of these busshy tailed critters in the Olympia area and south. The problem I am having in squirrel ID is they all look the same;body about 10-12" with a equal length busshy tail fringed in white. They would be easy targets and our local parks abound with them. The city could get a mite upset if one were to take up shooting squirrels in their parks. I have seen several running round out side of my office but they look the same. I think they are easterns due to the abundance, westerns are supposidly up to 24" in length, is that body length? Time to go to the local college and find some books on squirrels.
Thanks again,<p>Bullwnkl.

Bullwnkl, -- for the most part a squirrel laying streched out, from the hole in front to the hole in back is about 12", for eating squirrels. [img]images/icons/laugh.gif" border="0[/img] -- no

I have hunted both Red and Gray squirrels in both Minnesota and Nebraska.<p>While I can't help the identification issue, I can say that squirrel is my favorite game meat. <p>For my money there is nothing that can top slow cooked squirrel hind quarters.
I have a recipe that uses scotch whiskey for the first simmering period and adds whipping cream to make the final gravy. It is out of this world!!<p>I should also add that I use a small capeing knife to bone out the pieces before cooking. Makes for a much nicer eating piece of meat.<p>Bill

We gots a ton of red squirrels here in NE Oklahoma. Every so often a grey wonders into area. Rarely every hunted squirrel with a 22. Dad being from prehistoric Ozark County Missouri just after the turn of the last century developed a desire for food. Hunting was not a sport for Dad, it was meant to supplement the food stores at home.<p>I learned the #4 shot out of a 12 guage will work on anything edible with wing or paw. And it is extremely rare to use more then one shot per critter.<p>What of the shot in the critter you ask?? Dad had a simple answer for that. The reason for a plate having upturned edges so when ya spit out the shot, it won't roll off the plate onto the table.<p>Also Dad taught me how to take squirrel without a gun. Interesting concept. And youse better be quick! [img]images/icons/laugh.gif" border="0[/img] <p>Leon

OK Leon, Everbody's gonna hate me for this, but here goes.<p>
One day Fred was out hunting squirrel. He came across this old man sitting on the ground, with his back up against a tree. He had a large straw hat pulled down hiding his face. On the ground next to him were 3 squirrel, all dead, all bleeding from around the head. Fred didn't see a gun, or even a club in the old man's possesion, and was very curious as to how the squirrel had been killed, so he asked.<p>"I uglied them to death." the old man said, without moving. "Uglied them to death??" says Fred. "Yup!" At this the old man stood up and removed the hat, revealing a face that would make a freight train run down a dirt road!<p>"I sits aginst a tree like that until a squirrel gets real close, then I raises the hat.""It skeers them so bad they runs right into a tree and kills themself." the old man said.<p>"i never heard of anything like that" says Fred. "Yeah, ' been doinn' it for years" the old man said. "I used to take my wife along, but she tears them up too bad". [img]images/icons/laugh.gif" border="0[/img] [img]images/icons/laugh.gif" border="0[/img] <p>Remember guys, he brought it up!
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Long time gone I saw one almost took sort of similar to what 7m/m saw. Happened this way. Some may not know what all day preaching and dinner on the grounds is but long ago that was a high point of the social scene. Have several visiting preachers and the good ladies of the church would contribute their specialties as to food and the good times would roll.
Now in those days indoor plumbing in country churches was sort of scarce. Most unknown you might say. The one where the all day event was taking place had a uni-sex out house situated across the road in a small grove of hickory trees. Squirrels love hickory nuts and also salt which they got from gnawing on the seat edge of the outhouse where sweaty bottoms and misdirected streams deposited salt.
Miss Minnie was a stalwart of the ladies society and a fine hand with a skillet. She was also about five feet tall and weighed almost as much as a bale of cotton. When dinner was called (that is lunch for you city folks) Miss Minnie decided that she better refresh herself before basking in the compliments on her baked squash, fried green tomatoes, fired chicken and pineapple up side down cake. There were a lot of other dishes but Miss Minne was almost a one woman commisary.
Unknown to Miss Minnie one of the local squirrels was in residence in the facility when she decided to occupy the premisis.
Now all this was observed from across the road but we think this is what happened. When Miss Minnie went in and shut the door the squirrel hid by diving in the fall hole and being still. Miss Minnie hiked her dress, shucked her corset and plopped down. Squirrel thought he was trapped by a third of a ton of cellulite and exited the way he came in.
We saw the outhouse start to rock from side to side and we heard something go WWEEEEEEEEOHOOOWWW sort of like a fire siren but higher pitched.
Then the door exploded and Miss Minnie came rolling out squalling and hollering and beating at herself with her corset around her ankles and her beaded black dress over her head.
Several of the good sisters high tailed it over there to see what the matter was, the squirrel high tailed it to the top of a tree and sat there cussing church people and Miss Minnie in particular.
After a time the ladies got Miss Minnie comforted and dressed and escorted her back to the pic nic and sat her down in a lawn chair. They fanned her and mopped her brow and commiserated with her. One of the visiting preachers brought her a glass of ice tea. Miss Minnie drank down the tea, looked the preacher square in the eye and said " God Da-n a squirrel,".
So I guess you could say I saw a squirrel almost took by a bottom as big as a #2 wash tub.
BCR

Well here in Michigan there are several kind of squirrels and I havent come close to identifying them yet.. but I do find the black ones a bit funny looking especially the one that is running around with the red collar on... geesh.. city squirrels.<p> Back home in southern Illinois the ones that I know of are the fox squirrels and the grey ones. In Olney there are the Albino ones but they are off limits. <p> btw Pump... how many of those cat squirrels have you tried to bag with a .22 w/scope?