104 Ground squirrels

Bluebird

Member
Rancher that leases my property invited me to come out to another place that he leases, said there were tons of ground squirrels. He wasn't kidding, I got 48 with a 10-22, then switched to my 17AI Hornet and got 54 more. It is a single shot, I was having to pause to let the barrel cool down. I still had 14 rounds of 17 left when a pin worked loose on the trigger. About that time it had clouded up and the wind was picking up anyway. So many ground squirrels, that there would be 2 or 3 in the scope at any one time. Best shooting I've had in years, and I only shot around 1 pivot.
 
It is a full hour drive up there, so I flew up today and landed on the road next to the ranch, way more fun than driving and saves about 40 minutes each way. Unfriendly weather for flying is forecast for the afternoon so I just shot for and hour or so. Killed 40 more with the 17AI, I was at 30 shot for 31 kills, and then blew it and missed 3 in a row. Not sure what happened there, they weren't hard shots. Furthest shot was about 180 yards closest about 65.
 

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Rancher that leases my property invited me to come out to another place that he leases, said there were tons of ground squirrels. He wasn't kidding, I got 48 with a 10-22, then switched to my 17AI Hornet and got 54 more. It is a single shot, I was having to pause to let the barrel cool down. I still had 14 rounds of 17 left when a pin worked loose on the trigger. About that time it had clouded up and the wind was picking up anyway. So many ground squirrels, that there would be 2 or 3 in the scope at any one time. Best shooting I've had in years, and I only shot around 1
Rancher that leases my property invited me to come out to another place that he leases, said there were tons of ground squirrels. He wasn't kidding, I got 48 with a 10-22, then switched to my 17AI Hornet and got 54 more. It is a single shot, I was having to pause to let the barrel cool down. I still had 14 rounds of 17 left when a pin worked loose on the trigger. About that time it had clouded up and the wind was picking up anyway. So many ground squirrels, that there would be 2 or 3 in the scope at any one time. Best shooting I've had in years, and I only shot around 1 pivot.
Rancher that leases my property invited me to come out to another place that he leases, said there were tons of ground squirrels. He wasn't kidding, I got 48 with a 10-22, then switched to my 17AI Hornet and got 54 more. It is a single shot, I was having to pause to let the barrel cool down. I still had 14 rounds of 17 left when a pin worked loose on the trigger. About that time it had clouded up and the wind was picking up anyway. So many ground squirrels, that there would be 2 or 3 in the scope at any one time. Best shooting I've had in years, and I only shot around 1 pivot.
The squirrels are either Richardson or Columbian. We have the 13 stripped here in the Midwest. They are much smaller.
 
I have heard of 13 LINED ground squirrels, I have never seen them in the west. I did see them as a kid in Wisconsin.

That is not what we have here, we have Wyoming Ground Squirrels. They are all brown, short tails, they tear up a field like small prairie dogs.
 
Ok…I now have seen first hand a ground squirrel and their destruction. As we were sitting there waiting on turkeys I was thinking a 10/22 would’ve been really been fun to have right now!!
 
I have heard of 13 LINED ground squirrels, I have never seen them in the west. I did see them as a kid in Wisconsin.

That is not what we have here, we have Wyoming Ground Squirrels. They are all brown, short tails, they tear up a field like small prairie dogs.
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It's funny we have the same (I think) up here in Canada though everyone just calls them gophers. The technical term is Richardson's ground squirrel. In a good patch it's no problem to burn 300 rounds in a few hours
 
congrats on the ground squirrels, lots of fun!. Went to WY. last year for prairie dogs and Lord willing heading to ND for prairie dogs and maybe a few coyotes soon.
 
Not sure which species of ground squirrel (we call them whistle pigs) this is, but its what we have around here. On private property theyre target practice. On public lands i leave the little suckers alone. These 2 were hanging around mytruck where i was camping and glassing for bears in northern idaho. They were all about licking the salt off my pistachio shells, and that was just fine with me. But i dont tolerate them tearing up my lawn at home for a minute.
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Apparently elsewhere in the country whistlepig is a name for groundhogs rather than ground squirrels. "Meats in the cupboard and the hides in the churn, if that aint whistlepig ill be durned, groundhog"

 
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It's funny we have the same (I think) up here in Canada though everyone just calls them gophers. The technical term is Richardson's ground squirrel. In a good patch it's no problem to burn 300 rounds in a few hours
Gophers are a totally different critter, not much bigger than a mouse around here. Im running a damn gopher farm here. Been trying to eradicate them unsuccessfully for years. Killed them with .22s, shovels, my boots, etc. Finnally gave up on eradicating them. Still infesting my backyard. My new game these last few years is just to make their lives as miserable as possible. I go out back and pee in their holes until they backfill them and make a new hole, then i start peeing in that one. Wash rinse repeat. May not solve the problem but i find it quite satisfying.
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Whistle pig is a marmot, in the west people call them rock chucks, in the east wood chucks. I believe that "gopher" is actually vole. About 50% bigger than a mouse, same color, live in the dirt and make little dirt mounds and tunnels?

Richardson ground squirrels and Wyoming ground squirrels used to be considered the same species, but they are now know as different. The Richardson, from what I have read, are smaller than Wyoming ground squirrels.
 


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