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Man, I don't know where the yr. went, but 2 wks. from tomorrow is the opening day of our Indiana squirrel season. I washed and treated my camos yesterday. Sharpening knives, got all my .22s sighted in, the usual stuff. Got 3 guys left to call, and I'll have over 20 woods to hunt this fall! grin

Posting pics this fall may be fun. PB has notified me 5 times in the last 6 wks. about my acct., but I haven't opend the emails, and so far I can still post pics, plus they haven't erased any past photos. Time will tell. The small game forum has been awful slow, so I decided to get an early start.... grin


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Maddog
About that time.. We have some salmon trips planned, when we return, bird season will be up on us.. Tree squirrel hunting isn't worth the time in my area, very few.. May try up north if I get a chance... Great sport.. Hunted them often in W. Va. after I retired.. Loved it.. Shot my last ones with my little Browning .22Hornet.. Best of luck to you!!

It's that time of year when I stay away from this thread. We've got six weeks to go. frown

If I started sharpening knives now, I'd have a sliver by the time season opened.
Just over two more months here. Forecast don't look good.
I get to do one fun thing, a week from tomorrow. My son bought tickets, and we're going to a Ted Nugent concert in Anderson, IN. on Sat. the 12th! 15 rows back, center stage. Been a few yrs. since I've seen him. Guaranteed I won't be able to hear for a month! grin





One of my favorites! grin


maddog
The season is open here. The temperature dipped into the upper 50's one day last week as we enjoy an unusual cold front for this time of year. Of course I was out of town at a conference. The word is that the squirrels are sample testing hickory nuts right now. My hickory trees behind the house aren't bearing much mast this year. It might be a year where mast production is slim or spotty. The last several years we had so many hickory nuts and acorns it was like walking on marbles in the woods. Squirrel numbers were crazy high. A little early yet, we'll see how it shakes out pretty soon.
I ought to kill a few one morning and move a bow stand or two while I am at it. Maybe I won't have so many running around while I am bowhunting.

Pretty good mess of them on our place in Benton county.

I did see a black one here in town the other day, have seen quite a few but never killed one.
Originally Posted by MOGC
My hickory trees behind the house aren't bearing much mast this year. It might be a year where mast production is slim or spotty.


Same here. I've got four of them within 100 feet of my cabin (along with more than a few oaks) that I use to gauge the mast each year. The Hickory crop isn't looking too good. I can't really tell with the oaks.
Like WP47 said, it still about 2 months before our opening, but I'm seeing lots of squirrels on the roads. Haven't been in the woods, yet.
Two months to wait for our season to open. My grandson/hunting partner is anxious to go hunting. We are currently stocking the freezer with walleye, it's been a banner year for walleye fishing on Lake Erie. A few more fishing trips to get a winters supply. It will be Friday nite fish fries twice a month. Going to start taking our Cur to woods and get him treeing few squirrels. Looking forward to following grandkids and a cur chasing squirrels.
Well, less than a week to go. Two more phone calls and I'll have all my woods lined up for the season.
Originally Posted by maddog
Well, less than a week to go. Two more phone calls and I'll have all my woods lined up for the season.


We have a month and a half to go...I hate you. grin

(Hope you have a great season and be sure to post pics)
Well, my son is coming up tonite, and tomorrow is opening day. Gonna pack the truck today. Survived going to the Ted Nugent concert with him Sat. night. Had a great time and ole uncle Ted was as politically incorrect as ever! grin Now, on to the limb chickens!!
Well, today is opening day for the 2017 squirrel season, here in Indiana. My son made it up for a hunt with the ole man. We hunted til 11 am., before it just got too warm and muggy. Dan ended up with 2, and so did I, for a total of 4 for the day. I shoulda had another, but he made it to a hole too quick. Couple pics.


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If the weather cooperates, I'm going again, tomorrow.
Congrat's it's a good time with family. Your son knows how to pick a squirrel rifle! Spoke with a guy I know who is a squirrel hunting fanatic. This guy on a good year kills over 400 squirrels. He tells me the mast crop is really low this year and so are the squirrel numbers. Said he will have to hunt his butt off to top 100 this year. Going to be tough and spotty hunting in the Ozark's this year.
Originally Posted by MOGC
Congrat's it's a good time with family. Your son knows how to pick a squirrel rifle! Spoke with a guy I know who is a squirrel hunting fanatic. This guy on a good year kills over 400 squirrels. He tells me the mast crop is really low this year and so are the squirrel numbers. Said he will have to hunt his butt off to top 100 this year. Going to be tough and spotty hunting in the Ozark's this year.


Dont know what part of the Ozark's you live in, but with all the rain yall been getting, I figured there would be a good mast crop. Did you have a late freeze?
Decided to hit it again this am., by myself. Went back to the same woods, cause the farmer is gonna put cattle in there by the weekend. Got there right after sunup. Hadn't been in the woods 5 mins., and saw one coming down a tree. 1 shot, red head, first of the day. grin Went on, and didn't see any more for almost 2 hrs. Saw one way off in a hickory, and eased over there. Stopped and saw one to the side going up another hickory. Popped him in the head and straight down he came. Looked over at another hickory, and saw one gnawing on a nut. Shot and missed, reloaded shot again. Straight down he came. Then I saw a third one. He eased out on a bare limb, and one shot, straight down he came! grin I'm thinkin' 4 shots, three straight down with my single shot H&R Sportster, not bad.....grin. Then I went looking for them. Found the first and third one I shot, no problem. The second one was a different matter. I looked for over a half hr., and couldn't find the lil booger. frown Any way, it was getting hot, and I had three to clean, so I called it a day. Couple pics.


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Originally Posted by Oldman03
Originally Posted by MOGC
Congrat's it's a good time with family. Your son knows how to pick a squirrel rifle! Spoke with a guy I know who is a squirrel hunting fanatic. This guy on a good year kills over 400 squirrels. He tells me the mast crop is really low this year and so are the squirrel numbers. Said he will have to hunt his butt off to top 100 this year. Going to be tough and spotty hunting in the Ozark's this year.


Dont know what part of the Ozark's you live in, but with all the rain yall been getting, I figured there would be a good mast crop. Did you have a late freeze?


Best I remember we did have a couple late frost. We have had bumper crops of mast (and squirrels) the last three years so I guess it's about time we have a lean year.
Great hunt and photos! I!
Went again this am. Pretty slow morning, although the weather was decent. Finally saw a couple running around in the top of a tree. I eased in, and took a shot. I hit one, but I missed the head. I got in close, and found his head in the scope. I shot, and he flipped back into a crotch in the tree. Upside down, deader than a hammer.... Shot once more to try and dislodge him, no dice. So I got one, but he's still 35' up in a tree......frown. Here's a pic. If you look REAL close you can see his front legs sticking up in the air.



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You didn't climb the tree to get him? grin

Thanks for the post and pics. We still got 7 weeks to go. cry

Louisiana always starts squirrel season the 1st Sat. on Oct., this year it's the 7th of Oct. The good news is that bow season will open Oct. 1, .... it's usually too hot to hunt. frown
Only distance, at my age, that I get off the ground is the distance between my heels and my azz........grin
My son and I went this am. We hit a new place, that we hadn't been to this yr. Didn't see or hear very many, but my son did shoot 2 old males. I didn't see any to shoot at, other than winging a shot at one my son had hit. Sorry, no pics today. It started getting hot, so we quickly cleaned the squirrels, and called it a day.
Went hunting this am. Probably the most beautiful day since the season opened. It was about 57 degrees when I hit the woods. Saw 6, shot at 5, and nailed 4...all head shots! grin All that in an hr.! One more would have been a limit, but I needed to get home.


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Man that's some fine shooting and fine eating right there. Been gone for awhile but wanted to drop by and tell you that we are gonna work on the squirrels this year. Got several new properties that I'll hunt this year. Oct can't get here too soon..
Get after em schoolmarm! I went this am again. Musta heard 8-10 barking around the woods. The woods had grown so much, that it was hard to sneak on them. Still, I managed to shoot at 3 and get 2, both head shots!


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season starts here on Sept. 15th, been seeing alot of greys and Blacks crossing the roads, just a few Fox tho! hope to get a few with a New, to me old win. 410 I picked up this summer!
My son got up for a hunt with the ole man this am. we had a really good time. He shot a gray, but it lodged in the fork of a tree, and he couldn't get it. Later, he shot at what he thought was a small gray, but it turned out to be a piney! grin


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I managed to nail a couple of old ones. They'll be going in the limb chicken shredded BBQ recipe that I found.


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MD, thanks for the updates and the pics. Looks like you got plenty for a gumbo or a sauce piquante.

What's a piney? Looks like a small grey squirrel.
They are a small red squirrel [as opposed to a fox squirrel]. They get in to a lot of stuff, and are a PITA. Indiana doesn't have a season on them, they are free to shoot the yr. round. They can be a major pest.
Piney, first time I ever heard of them and glad we dont have them. It seems you have a lot of fox squirrels. We have a few (I kill 4-5 a year), but mostly ours are cat squirrels. It seems that the higher elevation you go, the more fox squirrels you have. That's not a scientific study. Years ago, I hunted in the Ozark Nat. Forrest and all we killed were fox squirrels, and there were plenty of them. Might have just been coincidence.

Our dove season opens tomorrow. I'll go see if they cut the corn. If it's cut, I might get a few birds (no guarantee), if it's still standing, I'll stay home.

Keep us posted and thanks for the pics.
Made it out again this am, on a beautiful, but very chilly morning. Ended up seeing four, shooting at 3, and head shooting 2.


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The first one was a nice young female.


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The second one was an older female. Nailed her way in the top of an old oak tree.
Very nice!! Hope the cooler weather comes back...
Made it out this morning, but didn't get started until after 8:30 am. Saw 7-8, but they were running all over the place. Managed to get shots at 2, but missed the 1st. lil booger. The 2nd one wasn't so lucky grin



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Maddog, we haven't got a report in quite a few days... hope all is well in your world.

Our season wont open for another 2 weeks. I went into the bottom yesterday, actually I was fishing a wide place in the creek, and saw several squirrels and had more barking at me. We are seeing lots of them crossing the roads, so I believe we will have another good crop. Hope so anyway.
No problems, it's just been too hot and humid. Straightens up, and I'll get after em next wk.
Well, it cooled off, and I got caught up with work, so I went hunting this am. It was absolutely beautiful. The woods was pretty thick, but no skeeters! grin shoulda had two, but the one I got was a 1 shot read head.


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Get a chance, I'm gonna go again tomorrow.
Went again this am. It was pretty cloudy and breezy. Got a couple of shots right after I got to the woods, but shot too quick and missed them both. About an hr. later, I finally got a shot at this young female, and nailed her with one shot.


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Back at it, again this am. Perfect morning in the woods. Saw several, but only got shots at two. Got both with a single shot each. So far this season, all the squirrels I've shot , has been with my little H&R Sportster single shot .22.


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Season opened this morn here. Got 6 before the wind picked up to gale force..
schoolmarm, Good for you. I'm going in the morning, before the heat comes back. Got a wedding I gotta go to this next weekend. Be awhile, after tomorrow, before I go again.
Wish I'd have bought half a dozen of those H&Rs when I could get them for $114 retail.
Got out this morning. Sunny, but chilly[43 degrees]. The wind picked up some. Heard several barking. Saw three, but only managed to get a shot at one, but it was a red head.grin


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Great Shooting my friend. I've got to make me one of those skwill hangers like you use..
Originally Posted by websterparish47
Wish I'd have bought half a dozen of those H&Rs when I could get them for $114 retail.



Just for the hellofit, I went over on another forum that has a squirrel hunting contest every year. I've been in the contest for 6 yrs. To date, I've shot 177 limb chickens for that contest. 124 of them have been shot with that little Sportster. So far, this season, I've nailed 22 of the lil boogers, and all of them have been shot with the H&R. Love to find another one, I'd put a peep sight on it and hunt some when the leaves are down! grin
I've only managed to get 5 of them so far. They appear to be scattered randomly, not several in the same area. Plenty of acorns on the ground.
Originally Posted by Phillip_Nesmith
I've only managed to get 5 of them so far. They appear to be scattered randomly, not several in the same area. Plenty of acorns on the ground.


Your doing better than me.... I got 2 so far this year. Both of them with my truck. I tried to dodge both of them, but it didn't happen. Our season opens this coming Sat., but it's awfully dry. Gonna be tough slipping thru the woods.
Flintlocks are challenging and fun.

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Ron, great pics! Keep posting them. Years ago I hunted them a couple of seasons with a .32 cal Dixie Tenn. Mtn. rifle, in a flint lock. That was cool! grin
As I walked out to the pick up yesterday morning for the season opener, I wondered if that full moon was gonna have the squirrels sleeping in 'til mid morning. Wasn't the case as I heard the first shot of the season at exactly 30 min. before sunrise. Counted 21 shots to the east and south of me.( a mile or more away) Heard not a singe shot fired after 8:30AM.

My own hunt wasn't much. Saw two , got one. Left the woods at 9:30 as the 'skeeters were starting to get bad.
Sat. morning was our opening day for squirrels. My BIL invited one of our good friends and myself over for breakfast. Said we would have 'home cooked sausage and biscuits'. Sounded great! Got there and it was Jimmy Dean mini-biscuit w/sausage, cooked in microwave. I complained but got the 'eat it or leave it' speech.... I ate it.

We took to the woods and had good luck. All three of us were shooting .22's and we came out with 23, 1 shy of the limit for 3 people. All cat squirrels.

(I haven't got this new pic posting thing figured out... sorry.)
A couple of pics of the last squirrels killed; Kimber Hunter 22, Weaver RV9
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Nice going Phillip. My son came up yesterday for a hunt. Probably our last one til Nov., because of his work commitments. Even though it was extremely cloudy, we saw/heard several. He nailed two. I saw three and nailed two with the Sportster.


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Foggy this am, but a buddy and I are gonna hit a lick this morning.
Went this morning and managed to nail one. Heard several barking, but only saw two, but managed to nail one. It was an old male. I think he was drawing social security. grin


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Nice mess there Randy.
2nd Sat of our squirrel season and it is hot and dry. 65 this morning before daylight. By the time I walked in to where I wanted to hunt, I was soaking wet. Had to sit down and cool off before I started hunting.

Anyway, my BIL, same friend as last week, and myself, all had a good morning. Each of us got the limit, so a total of 24. All shooting .22 and all cat squirrels.
Dang, MD. You've had a pretty good season already.

And it looks like most of the usual suspects have been doing their parts.

I'm finally on the board this morning. Three little fryers were gallivanting around until they had the courtesy to notice me and hold still. I promptly missed the first one at about 8 feet, but after some more scampering around, they concluded I was no danger to them and I managed to shoot two of them.


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Leaves are still up and while there were a bunch running around, it was tricky getting eyes on them. By noon, I had another old stew squirrel gathered by the tried and true sneak-up-on-the-loud-ones method. Finished 3 for 5 shots.

Giterdun Ella! Stay after um. Gonna hit it a couple days, next week, when it cools off.
The rain has stopped long enough such that I was finally able to take my new favorite tree squirrel rifle afield. It is an Anschutz 1502 with a Weaver V16 installed. Since I suddenly find myself with 5K rounds of Hornady 17HM2, I zeroed it with that ammo, rather than with the old Eley and Remington that I still have on the shelf. As you'd expect with an Anschutz, it has a great trigger and is only limited my the ammo its being fed and the guy who is squeezing the trigger.
Beautiful morning, so I decided to go hunting. It was a little breezy, but still very nice. You had to see them, cause you couldn't hear em. First one, turned out to be an old female. It was a long shot. 1 shot and she dropped. I stepped it off, and it was 55 yds. That's a long shot for this ole geezer! grin when she hit the ground, she had an acorn in her mouth. The last supper, so to speak...whistle grin


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Head shot another one, when I stopped for a breakfast bar break 1 shot, DRT.


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See how the weather[wind] is, may go a couple more times this week.
Took a buddy with me this am. He saw a couple, but couldn't get a shot. I saw 5-6, but could only get a shot at one. It was a 1 shot redhead. grin


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Been out several times and done pretty well to this point. Took a day off yesterday and wound up going morning and afternoon. Got a limit for the day. They were probably more abundant last year but I shot some small ones from this year's litters yesterday so they are starting to show up. Love those young ones to fry and put with fried potatoes, biscuits, and gravy.


Got out twice. Between the leaves and a little breeze, I went 0-3 the first time out.
This morning, I saw one backlit on a branch behind a leaf, classic silhouette outline, got him in the head.

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Was trying to get eyes on one barking in a huge oak and a second one came out of hiding on a branch just overhead to bark at the first one. Got him in the neck. Got one more on long headshot. Then got sidetracked by a veal opportunity. The squirrel-hunting-deer-pistol has been my top freezer filler the last couple years.

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Since the season opened, I’m ditching work like I used to skip school.
Ella, now that's COOL!

I'm having a ball.

Now I need a big batch of little fryer squirrels to do up like I just learned in the What's for Supper thread.
Double fired.
Nice work..
A couple of squirrels on a Thursday afternoon with the Kimber Hunter 22

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Every season, I want that rifle, PN.

I went out but keep getting sidetracked. Photos to follow.


Got out this morning before sunup but straight way ran into a problem. This guy was sitting by the side of the gravel road looking scared and hungry. Big chunk of public land. Spent the morning hiking and driving around looking for an owner. No collar or chip. He ain’t a squirrel dog either—followed me around and drove everything away with his racket. Got an ad up on FB and CL looking for his owner. Maybe closer to 1 than 2 years old and other than needing to get his ribs covered, he looks in pretty good shape.
I’ll try to get back to hunting on Monday.

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Ella, he's cute. Ya done good! The older I get, the more I love my pooches!
Ella, Good work.. You will be rewarded!!

I haven't had a dog of my own since Ella the dog died about ten years ago. I borrow the neighbor's and let them pay the bills. But if no one claims this guy, I might have to keep him. Had a lab way back. This guy is going to be huge.

Got out this morning (left the pup in the yard) and proceeded to go 1-5! Missed at 6 yards, missed at 30 yards, missed and missed. Finally, got one in midbark a little too far back in the neck. It was a pretty morning though.

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I guess getting squirrels was not your reward today, but we all have days like that.. Sunday shot trap for the first time in years.. 18 out of 25.. Did better my first time 30 years ago.. Later improved.

Hopefully he will be the pal you can enjoy.. Our dogs are a huge part of everything!!! Better luck on the squirrels next trip...
Lucky guys that can hunt squirrels! All I got is the "invasive Species" red fox squirrels in town here. Cant really 'hunt' them...but I set out the Squirrel Motel ( Havahart) in Open House mode ( wired open to get them used to it)...and soon I'll be accepting reservations whereupon I can 'relocate' the invasive species to a more suitable environment. ( pan of hot butter...) grin
Got another recipe for this year, besides the "limb chicken chowder". I call it "pulled limb chicken BBQ". [think pulled pork BBQ]. Boil or pressure cook the squirrels. Pull the meat off the bones. Add to the squirrel BBQ sauce[I use sweet baby ray's], diced onion, sliced mushrooms, and a little bit of crushed red pepper. Put it in a crock pot, and slow cook for 6-8 hrs. Put it over buttered bread, or corn bread. DELICIOUS!!!!

You can modify the ingredients to suit yourself.

Putting some meat on his ribs. I’m starting to hope no one claims him though he’s too big for my Tacoma cab.
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Went 2-8. I dunno what to say. Near 50F temp swing from my last time out—low 80s!
Ended up with two two-bite fryers on two pretty long headshots. I gotta admit I love the baby meat.

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Ella, great pics! Hope the weather straightens up before firearm deer season. I'd like to get out and nail a few more limb chickens. grin
Nailed this one with the Kimber Hunter

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That's a cool pic, PN. Like the looks of that little knife too.
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. grin


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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.

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Late morning was calmer, and I got these two.
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I keep eating them as they come in. Need to save them up for a big meal.
Too funny Ella......grin
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! grin Did it with the peep sighted 10/22.


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Originally Posted by Oldman03
Piney, first time I ever heard of them and glad we dont have them. It seems you have a lot of fox squirrels. We have a few (I kill 4-5 a year), but mostly ours are cat squirrels. It seems that the higher elevation you go, the more fox squirrels you have. That's not a scientific study. Years ago, I hunted in the Ozark Nat. Forrest and all we killed were fox squirrels, and there were plenty of them. Might have just been coincidence.

Our dove season opens tomorrow. I'll go see if they cut the corn. If it's cut, I might get a few birds (no guarantee), if it's still standing, I'll stay home.

Keep us posted and thanks for the pics.


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.
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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.?

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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? laugh 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.

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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?


Rib roast and gravy sandwich for breakfast then hit the woods. Ended up going 2-3 on two nice long clean headshots.

Worried about the absence of acorns but saw some good numbers just couldn’t get shots.

Hope you all are having as pleasant a thanksgiving as me.

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Thanksgiving Day squirrel hunt. Got 5 with the Kimber Hunter and first use of a Case 3 Finn Hunter that I got last year and had never used until now.
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It was a great afternoon to be out squirrel hunting on Thanksgiving day. I put a Leupold VX1 2-7x33mm corrected parallax free to 50 yards on the Kimber Hunter, which was like the first scope I had on it when I got the rifle back in 2007; was happiest with that scope-rifle combo out of all tried so I put her back that way. The knife is a Case 3 Finn 4" stainless stacked leather hunter that has been discontinued for several years; with it's 4" blade it's halfway in size between the 3" blade M3 Finn and the 5" blade 316-5 . I had originally planned on keeping it pristine to collect but the temptation to use it was too much, and it happened to be a great choice for a small game knife, worked very well. Shots ranged from ten yards at the least to about sixty on the last shot of the afternoon. CCI Subsonic performed as expected from the Kimber. I should have had 2 more in the bag but I wobbled on offhand shots and missed a couple. I ain't as steady as I used to be, shakey from nerve damage.
Was able to get the CZ452 a little work today, 5 grays and 5 fox. They are really working the walnuts. Have enough young for breakfast and old for chowder.

You all are getting it done. I think my best day ever was 8. Usually have a day or two a season when I get 6. So far my best day is 3.
Hung up the deer rifle, and finally got out to hunt limb chickens, yesterday. Beautiful day in the woods. Not a cloud in the sky. Decided to take my 10/22 with the fiber optic/peep sight. Only saw two squirrels, but got them both.


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This one was a one shot kill at 40 yds. Not bad fore an ole geezer wearing bi focals. grin


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This one was on the ground moving. Took 3 shots, but I got the lil booger!

Nice shooting. Thems some chunky squirrels.

You've got me wondering. Somewhere I've got a Williams peep I used to use for squirrel and rabbits. But I miss enough with the scope on.
decided to go again today, cause it's the last warm day were gonna have for a while.. Saw a few, all on the ground. Missed the firat one I shot at, but nailed this ole boy sitting on a downed log.


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Went back to the scoped 10-22? smile
Just playing around with all my .22s. Hard to say what I'll hunt with next time out. grin

So far this yr., I've taken 28 with my H&R Sportster.
4 with the peep sighted 10/22.
1 with scope sighted 10/22.
Sad to say, but our squirrel hunting is over. We did ok, early in the season, but now we hardly see any squirrels. No acorns this year and the squirrels have left. I was on a deer stand the other day and where I would usually see 1/2 dozen squirrels, I saw 1. On another stand and I didn't see any. I feed some old does on a logging road and usually there is 10-12 squirrels. Went to that stand 3 times week before last and saw 2 squirrels each time. I wont shoot any more this year.... save what we got for seed.
Sorry to hear that Randy but it matches what I been seeing here. Of course the oaks in town have plenty of acorns.
I saw a squirrel migration once up in north Arkansas. Thousands of squirrels, all moving in the same direction. Had my limit in just a couple of minutes. Went back up there a week later, hunted all day and didn't see a single squirrel. Maybe that's happened there Oldman.
went to deer camp a few days early to check trail cams and do some assorted work; got done a day early and took a quick stroll the next morning.

Rifle is a Anschutz .22 that came from the classifieds...scope is a Leupold 2x7, also from here in the classifieds...Shoots Eley Subsonic HP's very well........

breakfast of champions. wink

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Sweet pics....especially the before and after.......just sayin'....grin

I like the knife
Got one this week, cold wind blowing about froze my butt off!
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Finally got out this weekend after not hunting squirrels since before our deer season opened. There's still a lot of them and I wound up with 10 Sunday. The topper was 9 grays and 1 black phase fox squirrel. Squirrel hunting is still some of the best therapy made as far as I'm concerned.
Our season goes til Jan. 31, but if it don't warm up it's prolly over for me.....
I haven't been able to get after the bushytails much this season. It's been very cold here for the last week but it finally warmed up today so a buddy and I walked the creekbanks and managed to kick up a few. They are primarily on the ground now so it's almost like rabbit hunting. I got five and he got three.

My 870 16ga "turkey gun"

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Another one bites the dust! It was a longer shot, around sixty yards, but I had a solid tree rest and dropped a CCI Subsonic right behind the front legs in the "boiler room".
Well, it's the 14th of Jan. I haven't been hunting in over a month. Too dam*ed cold. Hope the weather moderates at least for a couple days, would like to get out 1-2 times, before the season goes out Jan. 31.
I’ve been out a few times. We e had a cold snap (15* average) so the squirrels haven’t been showing themselves. Hoping to get a few this week
Same here, if it is less than 40 degrees or so you won't see much anything out. I used to try hunting when it was colder but it gets boring when there's nothing to see.
Temperature got above way too cold to hunt and took my Cur dogs to the woods for some action, shot six fox squirrels Friday and one grey, one black and two fox squirrels yesterday. I used my CZ 452 to harvest all the squirrels, usually can get an opportunity for one good head shot when the dogs get one treed. I’ll cook all the meat in a pressure cooker for 15 minutes, then will deep fry some and use rest it in biscuits and gravey over mashed potatoes.
After frigid temps of recent, today was nearly 70 but with quite a bit of wind. Hadn't been out due to the cold so braved the wind. I looked for small pockets out of the wind and saw several, wound up bringing home five and letting one get in a hollow tree before I could finish the job (not happy about that). It was good to get out again. Still have until the end of February so will try and make a few more trips time and weather permitting. Good hunting to all.
Killed one more on the way back to the truck after taking this picture, so this afternoon turned out pretty well.



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Originally Posted by BLR284
Temperature got above way too cold to hunt and took my Cur dogs to the woods for some action, shot six fox squirrels Friday and one grey, one black and two fox squirrels yesterday. I used my CZ 452 to harvest all the squirrels, usually can get an opportunity for one good head shot when the dogs get one treed. I’ll cook all the meat in a pressure cooker for 15 minutes, then will deep fry some and use rest it in biscuits and gravey over mashed potatoes.


Hey BLR,

Let's see the dogs!
My grandson, who turns 9 in a couple of weeks, nailed his first acorn snatcher yesterday with his dad's 77/22 target. He's pretty pumped.

Only the second one he's ever shot at. Missed one last year with a .410.
I always thought that 17 mach2 would be the shizz for squirrels....Perfect!
Got a chance to get out again this a.m. Pretty cold and didn't see much at all early (one that I scored on). Visited with my friend a while and as it warmed up they started stirring. Made another little jaunt and shot five more and saw several more. They're kind of spotty right now and just coveyed up where there are acorns left it seems. Took my parents three young fryers and giving the rest to another buddy who didn't get out with me this morning. Still a little time left and hope to make a couple more trips before season closes. Good hunting to all.

Still leaning on the 541T wearing a B&L Balvar1.5-6X20 for most of my trips.
Went for my last hunt of the season, yesterday. Beautiful day, sunny, little wind, 45-50*s. Unfortunately, the lil boogers weren't moving. Saw 2 at 75-100 yds. The leaves were a little noisy walking on, couldn't get a shot. Sooo, I'll just be happy with the 33 fox squirrels I shot, this year. In honor of the end of the season [for me], I made Pulled BBQ limb chicken, dumped over fresh cornbread, smothered in butter. grin. Hope the rest of you get some more this year. Come on Aug. 15th.......! grin
Originally Posted by ingwe
I always thought that 17 mach2 would be the shizz for squirrels....Perfect!

It is or shall I say was.

Surprisingly not as rough on them as one might expect. I can think of 1 squirrel I shot while he was running, hit behind the shoulder with not exit and minimal damage, little V-Max came apart. You know how those Hornady bullets are and don't penetrate!!

Had a little heavy barreled Marlin with a Rifle Basix trigger that broke at something less than 2#, bughole groups at 50 and made 50-75 yard squirrels a breeze.

Killed 3 coyotes with it as well. 1 was a luck shot at around 100 yards right between the eyes, wasn't aiming right there but I'll take luck any day. Other 2 were lung shot and DRT. Both about 50 yards.
Got these two Sunday over at the inlaws place; squirrels were around but my shooting was absolutely terrible, I had a bad "off" day; gut shot one, and missed 8 shots. If I had been connecting instead of shooting air I'd have had a bag limit for the first time in years. I flubbed it badly. Oh well! It was a gorgeous day out in the woods; leaves were wet from morning rain and walking was nice and quiet. Stayed out too long for me to be going and paid the price Monday and Tuesday. shocked

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Nice pic, Phillip. When is your season over? I'm already looking into getting permission on some new places for next yr.! grin
Today is the last day for squirrel in Missouri until the end of May when it reopens.
Alabama season now runs until the middle of March; used to end with February. So approximately a month to go. Need to shoot a few more before it runs out.
Getting close to time to get out and kill some bushytails here in Missouri!! Wanting to try the HMR out this spring.
I'm soooo jealous, ours doesn't roll back around until October.


May 15 for us. Need some more for the stew pot...
schoolmarm, yer limb chicken season opens next tues.[I'm jealous]. Good luck. Our Indiana season opens 3 mos. from next tues. At my age, I don't want to wish my life away, but I can't wait!! grin
It happens tomorrow. I am thinking I may get out Monday bright and early.
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