Sixteen hunts over three weeks to take her. She was so wiley. Grey squirrel, eyes are dark red with white around edges. She stayed in heavy briars and would run out of trees without lingering. Taken freehand at 35 yards with scope at 7x, .22lr, through a hole in Trifoliate Orange briars. Public land.

Scared to death a hawk would get her.

I’ve never hunted harder.

Edit: Dang. Albino squirrels have short lives, hawks take them out and they don’t live past the first year. This squirrel lived in an island of trees in a field and is likely albino due to inbreeding. The genes are in no way advantageous and are only rare due to the extreme predation they cause.

I regularly eat fish and game that I kill myself. This is the only trophy I’ve ever taken. Unless you’re a vegetarian, I doubt you have the same respect for animals that I do. I’ve worked in factory farms and understand, at a shit on boots and pants level, the horror involved with most meat that is eaten. Do you?