Other Tree Squirrel Species – Red, Western Gray, Abert’s, and Regional Varieties

*The first time a red squirrel drops a spruce cone on your hat from forty feet up, you understand immediately that this animal has no fear of you. It has been running these branches since before you arrived, and it will be running them long after you leave. Regional tree squirrels carry that same quality – a life shaped by a specific landscape, a specific tree, a specific set of conditions that most hunters never stop long enough to notice. For the hunter willing to look past the familiar fox squirrel and eastern gray, North America holds a handful of other species that deserve more attention than they receive.*

Most squirrel hunting content in this country circles back to the same two animals. The fox squirrel in the hardwood river bottoms of the Midwest, the eastern gray in the oak ridges of the Southeast and Appalachians. Those are real hunts, and they deserve the coverage they get. But regional tree squirrel species – the red squirrel of the boreal north, the western gray along the Pacific slope, the tassel-eared Abert’s in the Arizona pines – represent a different kind of opportunity, one that rewards hunters who take the time to learn the animal, the habitat, and, critically, the regulations that govern each one. The legal landscape here is more complicated than most hunters expect.

Red Squirrels – Small, Loud, and Often Overlooked

The red squirrel, Tamiasciurus hudsonicus, runs small – five to nine ounces on a mature animal – but what it lacks in size it compensates for in noise and attitude. Every hunter who has spent time in northern coniferous country knows the sound: a rapid, rattling chatter that drops out of the spruce canopy the moment something enters the woods that does not belong there. Deer hunters curse it. The red squirrel is the alarm system of the northern forest, and it does not distinguish between a predator and a hunter walking a ridge.

That territorial behavior is also what makes the red squirrel a legitimate quarry in its own right. It is legal to hunt in a number of northern and midwestern states, though it rarely appears on anyone’s target list. The meat is edible – leaner and stronger in flavor than a gray squirrel, suited to slow cooking or stew. Hunters in Minnesota, Wisconsin, and parts of New England can pursue them under small game regulations, but the rules vary by state, and the red squirrel often sits in a gray zone between regulated game and unprotected nuisance species. Check your state’s current small game listing before you go.

Hunting the Red Squirrel in Northern Forests

Hunting red squirrels requires a shift in mindset from the deliberate, sit-and-wait approach that works in hardwood squirrel country. These animals move constantly, cache food aggressively, and defend territories with a persistence that borders on the absurd. Still-hunting through spruce and fir, moving slowly and stopping often, tends to produce more opportunities than sitting a single tree. The red squirrel will come to you if you are quiet enough and patient enough – it wants to know what you are.

A .22 rimfire is the right tool here, and shot placement matters more than usual given the animal’s small body. A head or spine shot keeps the meat clean and ends things quickly. Some hunters use a pellet rifle where regulations allow, particularly in areas where the discharge of firearms is restricted near structures. The real challenge is not the shooting – it is slowing down enough to hunt the habitat properly, reading the middens where the squirrel has stacked its cone caches, and understanding that this animal lives in a vertical world that most hunters never fully look up to see.

Western Gray Squirrels Along the Pacific Coast

The western gray squirrel, Sciurus griseus, is the largest tree squirrel native to the Pacific Coast – a big, silver-coated animal that ranges from the oak woodlands of southern California north through Oregon and into Washington. It is a handsome squirrel, noticeably larger than the eastern gray, and it occupies a specific niche in the mixed oak and conifer forests of the Pacific slope. Hunters in California and Oregon can pursue it under regulated seasons, but the situation in Washington is different.

In Washington State, the western gray squirrel is listed as a threatened species and is fully protected. The population there has declined significantly over the past several decades, pressured by habitat loss, disease, and competition. This is not a regulatory technicality – it reflects a genuine conservation situation that hunters in the Pacific Northwest need to understand. Know your state’s regulations before pursuing them. A hunter who crosses from Oregon into Washington and continues hunting western grays has made a serious legal error, and ignorance of the species’ protected status in that state is not a defense.

Abert’s Squirrel – The Tassel-Eared Southwest Native

Abert’s squirrel, Sciurus aberti, is one of the most visually striking game animals in North America. The tasseled ears are unmistakable – long tufts that stand up from the ear tips and give the animal a look unlike any other tree squirrel on the continent. The body is large, with a gray back and a distinctly white underside, and the tail is broad and well-furred. In the right light, in the right stand of Ponderosa pine, this squirrel looks almost exotic.

The Ponderosa pine connection is not incidental – it is the defining ecological relationship of this species. Abert’s squirrels feed on the inner bark, seeds, and fungi associated almost exclusively with Ponderosa pine, and you will not find them where that tree does not grow. In Arizona and New Mexico, that means the higher elevation pine forests of the Mogollon Rim country, the San Francisco Peaks, and the mountain ranges that hold significant Ponderosa stands. Hunting Abert’s squirrels means hunting those forests specifically, reading the trees for cone crops, and understanding that the squirrel’s distribution within its range tracks the Ponderosa as faithfully as the Ponderosa tracks elevation and rainfall.

Arizona Gray and Other Limited-Range Species

The Arizona gray squirrel, Sciurus arizonensis, occupies a narrow band of canyon and riparian forest in southern Arizona and extends into adjacent Mexico. It is smaller than the western gray, quieter than the red squirrel, and considerably less studied than either. Hunters in southern Arizona may encounter it in the oak and walnut canyons of the Sky Island mountain ranges – the Chiricahuas, the Huachucas, the Santa Ritas – where it lives in the transition zone between desert and montane forest.

Other regional varieties exist at the margins of the tree squirrel’s North American range. The Kaibab squirrel, found only on the North Rim of the Grand Canyon, is a subspecies of the Abert’s that has evolved in isolation and is fully protected. The Mexican fox squirrel reaches into a small corner of southern Arizona. These are not common hunting targets, but a hunter working the Southwest needs to know they exist and understand which ones carry legal protections. The rule is simple: if you cannot positively identify the animal and confirm its legal status in that specific location, you do not shoot.

The Regulatory Patchwork for Regional Tree Squirrels

The table above is a starting point, not a legal reference. Regulations change, and the status of regional tree squirrel species is more fluid than most hunters assume. The western gray’s protected status in Washington has been in place long enough that most local hunters know it, but a hunter traveling from out of state may not. The Abert’s squirrel in Arizona is a legitimate game animal with a regulated season, but bag limits and season dates shift, and the Arizona Game and Fish Department is the only source worth trusting for current rules.

Key reminders

• Verify species identification before shooting – several regional species share habitat and overlap visually
• Confirm legal status at the state level, not from general hunting guides or online forums
• Protected status in one state does not mean protected everywhere – the western gray is the clearest example
• Bag limits for regional species are often lower than for fox or eastern gray squirrels
• Subspecies like the Kaibab squirrel carry their own protections independent of the parent species
• Season dates for Abert’s and Arizona gray squirrels may not align with general small game seasons

Pursuing Protected Species – Mistakes That Cost Hunters

Assuming the same species has the same status across state lines – the western gray squirrel is legal to hunt in parts of California and Oregon, and fully protected in Washington, and hunters who do not know the difference before crossing the border face serious consequences.

Misidentifying a regional species as a more common one – a hunter who mistakes a Kaibab squirrel for an Abert’s squirrel and shoots it has taken a protected animal, regardless of intent, in a location where that error is not difficult to make.

Relying on last season’s regulations – the legal status of declining species can change between seasons, and regional tree squirrels are precisely the animals whose regulations are most likely to be updated as population data comes in.

Hunting Abert’s squirrels outside Ponderosa pine habitat – not a legal mistake in itself, but a practical one, because this animal does not live outside that specific forest type and time spent elsewhere is time wasted.

Treating the red squirrel as a non-game nuisance everywhere – in some states it is regulated game, in others it is unregulated, and in some jurisdictions shooting it without checking the rules first is a violation.

Underestimating the seriousness of protected species violations – taking a threatened western gray squirrel in Washington is not a minor infraction; it carries penalties that reflect the animal’s legal status under state endangered species protections.

Field checklist – before pursuing regional tree squirrels

• Confirm the species present in your target area before the season opens
• Pull current regulations from the state agency directly – not a third-party app or last year’s pamphlet
• Identify the specific forest type and elevation you will be hunting and match it to the species that live there
• Know the physical differences between huntable and protected species in your region
• Carry the regulation booklet in the field, not just in the truck
• Note bag limits and legal shooting hours, which may differ from general small game rules
• If hunting near a state line, carry regulations for both states

FAQ

Are red squirrels worth hunting for the table?
They are edible, but they require honest preparation. The meat is lean, darker than a gray squirrel, and benefits from braising or slow cooking in liquid. Hunters who pursue them purely for the table should adjust their expectations. Those who pursue them for the challenge of hunting a fast, vocal, territorial animal in difficult coniferous terrain tend to find the experience rewarding on its own terms.

Can I hunt western gray squirrels in California?
California does have a regulated season for western gray squirrels, but the rules vary by zone and the season dates and bag limits are set annually. Check with the California Department of Fish and Wildlife for the current season structure before hunting. Do not assume that what was legal last year applies this year.

What is the best way to find Abert’s squirrels in Arizona?
Start with the Ponderosa pine. If you are not in that forest type, you will not find the animal. Within Ponderosa habitat, look for cone middens at the base of trees, fresh cuttings on the ground, and the squirrel’s distinctive foraging sign on pine branches. The Mogollon Rim country and the forests around Flagstaff hold good populations. Hunt the trees, not the ground.

Is the Kaibab squirrel really a separate species from the Abert’s?
Most current taxonomy treats it as a subspecies of the Abert’s squirrel, Sciurus aberti kaibabensis, rather than a distinct species. The distinction matters less than the fact that it is fully protected and lives in a place where Abert’s squirrels also exist. Hunters on the North Rim need to know what they are looking at.

Why do so few hunters pursue these regional species?
Partly because the information is harder to find than it is for fox and eastern gray squirrels, and partly because the legal complexity discourages people who are not willing to do the research. That is not entirely a bad thing. The hunters who do pursue Abert’s squirrels in the Arizona pines or red squirrels in the northern spruce tend to be hunters who have thought carefully about what they are doing and why.

Final thoughts

• The single most important thing: know what you are shooting before you shoot it – regional tree squirrel hunting is one of the few contexts in small game hunting where a misidentification can result in taking a protected animal.
• The regulatory patchwork for these species is real and changes – build the habit of checking current state regulations every season, not just when you think something might have changed.
• Habitat knowledge is identification knowledge – the species tied to Ponderosa pine, to Pacific slope oak woodland, to northern spruce forest will tell you where you are and what to expect if you learn to read the trees.
• The red squirrel’s value to deer hunters as a forest alarm system is well understood; its value as a quarry in its own right is almost entirely overlooked, and that is a gap worth closing for hunters in the northern states.
• Conservation status for declining species like the western gray reflects real population pressure, and hunters who understand that tend to be better advocates for the habitat that makes all of this possible.
• These are not replacement hunts for fox squirrels or eastern grays – they are different hunts, shaped by different forests and different animals, and they reward the hunter who approaches them on their own terms.