Squirrel season opens soon

Frankfort, Ky. – With temperatures in the 80s, it’s hard to believe that fall’s first hunting season begins in a little more than a week. Squirrel hunters can hit the woods Saturday, Aug. 16 for opening day of Kentucky’s fall squirrel season.

“It’s a great time to take kids,” said Karen Alexy, Wildlife Division director for the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources and avid squirrel hunter. “Kids haven’t hunted all summer, and parents really want to get out there, too.”

Early season hunters can find squirrels by finding their food. Hunters should scout for nut-producing trees, where they can hear squirrels cutting or barking and watch for moving branches as the bushytails move.
“I’m mostly looking for cuttings on the ground and movement in the trees. I’ll stalk for a while, then sit and wait,” Alexy said. “I won’t stay in one place for very long. It’s a good time to stalk hunt because there’s still a lot of green on the trees, and no dead leaves on the ground.”

Small game biologist Ben Robinson said his field observations indicate this will be a good year for several tree species.

“It’s going to be a great crop of hickories, beech and white oak,” he said. “Red oak probably won’t be very abundant, because they were so good last year. It’s pretty common for them to skip a year.”

While it’s easier to spot moving branches at this time of year, the amount of leaves on the trees can make it difficult to spot the squirrels themselves. This makes using a rifle more difficult than later in the season, when branches are bare. Still, many hunters like the challenge. Both Alexy and Robinson prefer a .22-caliber rifle.

“If you’re looking for a challenge, you might try a rifle,” said Robinson. “If you’re looking to stock up on meat, a shotgun would probably be the sure fire bet.”

Shotguns are also a safer choice for kids, who may not have enough experience to safely shoot a rifle up into trees. Twenty-gauge shotguns are a popular choice, but hunters with more experience may want to use a .410.

Kentucky’s 2008-09 fall squirrel season runs Aug. 16 – Nov. 7 and Nov. 10 – February 28. Hunters are allowed six squirrels per day, with a possession limit of 12 squirrels. Pick up a copy of the 2008-09 Kentucky Hunting and Trapping Guide, available wherever licenses are sold, for complete squirrel hunting regulations.

Hunter education is required for all hunters born on or after Jan. 1, 1975, except kids under 12 and hunters who are license exempt. However, a one-time temporary hunter education exemption permit is available for $5 online, which allows hunting for one year from the date of purchase without a hunter education card while accompanied by a legal adult hunter. Log on to fw.ky.gov on the Internet to find a hunter education course near you, or to purchase an exemption permit.