CHARLESTON, W.Va. — One of West Virginia’s longest running fall traditions will return this Saturday. No, I’m not talking about the Backyard Brawl, the day of the game also happens to be the opening day of the West Virginia squirrel hunting season. Mountaineers have been putting squirrels on dinner plates for generations. While participation in the hunt may not be at the level it once was, for those who step into the woods on Saturday, the enthusiasm is the same.
“It’s a great opportunity to get out into the woods and use your hunting skills. You can do some scouting for deer season and just get back out into nature after a long summer,” said Holly Morris, the small game biologist for the West Virginia Division of Natural Resources.
The season is often a time for children to learn how to hunt. Most adults who enjoy any kind of hunting likely started their steps toward woodsmanship on a squirrel hunt with a dad, grandpa, or another significant mentor in their life.
The key to squirrel hunting, like most hunting pursuits, is finding mast.
“Food is an important factor no matter what kind of critter you’re talking about,” said Morris. “You want to look for things like hickory nuts or walnuts so pay attention to what’s available in areas where you hunt.”
As a general rule, the larger reddish fox squirrel likes the smaller timber lots bordering on open fields. However, the gray squirrel will most often be located deep into the woods with tall and thick timber. Regardless of where you hunt them in West Virginia for 2025, chances are good there will be plenty. The squirrel population ebbs and flows each year depending on mast conditions. Morris indicated last year’s mast was strong which has created a healthy population for the fall hunting season.
“We’ve been fortunate and we’ve not had any large-scale mast failures in a while now,” said Morris.” When you’ve got that good food source, it gets the squirrels started off early in having young, so they could have two litters in a year.”
The Division of Natural Resources hasn’t yet published the 2025 mast survey, but Morris said the most attractive nuts for squirrels appear to be available in abundance.
“From my observations and a few other folks I’ve spoken with, things are looking pretty good. I always encourage everybody to get out and take advantage of the season to check out what’s happening in your back forty. But it looks to be pretty good this year,” she added.
The squirrel hunting season runs through the end of February, although participation drops off considerably as the archery hunting season opens up.