In over 60 years, I've seen this three times and I know it happens,but each time I'm amazed and asked myself, "What the hell are they thinking?'

Yesterday, while taking in the last day of deer season here, I heard a commotion behind me coming from the biar thickets that cover my land. It almost sounded like a flock of blackbirds approaching.

As it got closer and much louder, I saw it was squirrels. Dozens of the fuzzy little suckers were charging though the woods and trees towards my stand at the fields edge. Within minutes, they were everywhere in what must have been a hundred of them.

Then, just as quickly, as if on some sudden signal, they were herded up and heading back towards the briar patchs as if they'd never been there.

It's called a "migration" and I'm told it's not "uncommon" but I'd figure if it wasn't I'd have witnessed more than 3 of them in 60 years as much time as I spend in the woods. Anyone else ever seen this?

Never seen that myself; sounds very interesting. Did they seem to be feeding, or horsing around, of did they just charge down and then run off? I have no idea what they might have been doing, but I'd be interested in an explanation, if someone can shed some light on the subject.

This is just a migration as a solution to overpopulation. It doesn't happen too often and I've never seen it . The stories of lemmings in the arctic walking off the cliff into the sea are the same thing except they aren't committing suicide but trying to find new territory.Makes you want to get 30 round mags for your squirrel gun !

This is the first time I've ever heard of such happing with squirrels.

Since they supposely belong to the rodent family, wouldn't that be a pack of squirrels rather then a herd? Just kidding, herd sounds a lot more interesting and interesting that is indeed.

Joe

I'll help you, Joe....."Stampede"

Plinker

I had an oldtimer tell me he saw or was in the middle of a squirrel migration in the 1960's here in Northcentral PA, Lycoming Co. He use to shoot small game for the neighbors and they would give him ammo in trade.

The first time I heard of it I thought it was nuts (sorry pun).

However, it's recorded in the opening days of Lewis and Clarks journals where migrating herds crossed the Ohio River for maybe 3 days. There are other accounts as well.

Your's is the first I've heard of in modern times and the smallest in scope. Were these DelMarva fox squirrels? Regular fox squirrels? Or grey squirrels?

Brent

Regular tree rats. The Delmarva fox squirrel has a very limited range now and there are no other fox squirrels on the Delmarva that I'm familiar with.

Being a biologist myself - I'm unable to indentify regular tree rats. Round here it would be fox squirrels - Sciurus niger. Up north regular tree rats are -red squirrels - Tamiasciurus hudsonicus. But other places it is Sciurus pennsylvanicus which must be what you are talking about.

My geography being even worse, I don't know where Magnolia Deleware is relative to the Delmarva squirrels and penninsula either. Gotta lead us by the hand I guess.

Brent

Brent, you spelling isn't too good either. LOL It's DelAware. The Delmarva fox squirrel habitat runs from southern Sussex County (the southermost of the 3 counties in Delaware) and the edges of Maryland and northeastern Virginia. Blackwater Wildlife Refuge seems to be the center point of their habitat. Here, we have the common gray squirrel, Sciurus carolinensis (aka tree rats). There are a few red squirrels, Tamiasciurus hudonicus, in our northern county, New Castle where the conifers are the more dominant tree. Most of central Delaware is maple, oak, and beech hardwoods.

Delaware was once called Penn's Woods and is south of Pennsylvania and outlined by the infamous Mason-Dixon Line. The Delmarva Peninsula is formed by the Chesapeake and Delaware Bays and contains Delaware, the fabled Eastern Shore of Maryland and the tendril of north eastern Virginia, thus the old abbreviations of Delaware, Maryland, and Virgina - DEL MAR VA

Thanks guy. You are right. I can't spell Delaware and I seem to have invented a new species of squirrel S. pennsylvanicus. I have done that before too..

I would love to see this once, esp. during the season - which ends today as a matter of fact.

Brent

I haven't seen a 3 day migration. They probably don't happen anymore.

I have been in the woods and seen several hundred move through a small area over half an houf or so. It didn't seem to affect the local population.

I've also seen 50 or more in an area that didn't seem to be feeding, mating or any other normal squirrel behavior. Just hanging around and chasing each other from time to time. This was the last day of deer season and they didn't seem to care if I was there or not. If I got within a 15' of one it might squall at me but that was about it.

Went back a couple of days later with the .22 and couldn't find a squirrel anywhere.

That's interesting. I remember reading an historical account of such a migration in the PA Game News as a boy. As I remember it was in the mid-1800's somewhere on the Allegheny River. Locals harvested them by waiting on the bank and whacking them with clubs as they reached shore. Always thought it was just some old tall tale but I guess it really does happen! Thanks for sharing.

I saw this 1 time many years ago it was amazing they were everywhere. looked like a bunch of ants moving through the woods. There were probably 150 or more. This was probably 30 years ago and I havent seen another one.

I think they migrated to my back yard and are eating the seed out of my bird feeders right now.

When I was stationed in DC in the mid-80s I recall one fall when it seemed you couldn't go 100 yds on any street or highway without seeing several dead squirrels. They were moving everywhere I looked when I was hunting at Quantico Marine Corps Base as well. Never observed that in the Missouri Ozarks where I grew up though, but as a teen I wasn't very observant about anything but cars and girls.

Growing up in the Deep South and squirrel hunting with my own gun since age of 5, I heard many old timers talk about a "squirrel migration." I never believed it, but did read a couple of hypothesese on the matter. THeir proposition was that one squirrel would be in heat and a couple of males started chasing her, and then "group think" took over. All of the other male squirrels in the area would fall in line and try to "get a piece of the action," so to speak.

I have seen this happen only one time. It was when I was squirrel hunting as a senior in high school. One squirrel was definitely out in front a little and a gang of squirrels was hot on her tail. The decible level of it all really suprised me. I was hunting with a rifle that morning and did not even take a shot, preferring instead to just watch it all. One straggler came along a good bit behind the squirrel version of Hell's Angels. I did shoot him.

I believe that the two folks who wrote they thought it began with a couple or three males chasing a female was the correct idea based on what I saw. Man, I would LOVE to know how many squirrels were in that bunch. They did not come in front of me again, but a few minutes later I could hear the din approach at an angle and go out of hearing still at full tilt.

I've seen this (Migration) happen twice in my life. The last time was about 5 years ago at my house. I was outside and all of a sudden there must have been at least 50 squirrels moving through a narrow strip of woods in front of the house. What did I do? I ran in the house and grabbed my shotgun and a pocket full of shells.

george roof---heard commotion coming from a "biar" thicket---and you give spelling lessons????