Author Topic: prarie dogs or rock chucks (Read 22197 times)

calib · « **on:** January 18, 2011, 09:36:19 PM »

i am looking to do some shooting after my coyote season is over usually around the end of febuary or early march i quit chasing the dogs. i was wondering if there are prarie dogs any where near spokane, or where to go to see a lot of chucks around eastern wa

CAMPMEAT · « **Reply #1 on:** January 18, 2011, 09:48:35 PM »

Normally up here the prarie dogs show up about April to August and then just disappear. We have a ton of them up here. They're all over in the woods, slash piles, roads and wherever. We just drive around and find 'em.

Cylvertip · « **Reply #2 on:** January 19, 2011, 12:13:24 AM »

Tom Reichner · « **Reply #3 on:** January 19, 2011, 06:11:54 AM »

Quote from: CAMPMEAT on January 18, 2011, 09:48:35 PM

Normally up here the prarie dogs show up about April to August and then just disappear. We have a ton of them up here. They're all over in the woods, slash piles, roads and wherever. We just drive around and find 'em.

April to August, then nothing? Hmmmmm. Sounds more like Ground Squirrels than Prairie Dogs. Ground Squirrels spend most of the year hibernating.

I wonder . . . when folks on this site say "prairie dogs", are they in fact referring to ground squirrels? If so, and it is really ground squirrels that you are after, send me a PM (or better yet, and email). I know of a couple very good areas, and would be glad to share them with you.

CAMPMEAT · « **Reply #4 on:** January 19, 2011, 10:55:53 AM »

Whistle pigs is better I guess. Not prairie dogs as I answered too.

CAMPMEAT · « **Reply #5 on:** January 19, 2011, 11:00:17 AM »

Tom,

Were you up near Curlew last year trying to get pictures of the sheep near the Midway bridge ? You had a rancher you were talking too and another guy pulled up in his pickup ?

Campmeat

MtnMuley · « **Reply #6 on:** January 19, 2011, 11:40:47 AM »

Ground squirrels are illegal to shoot as far as I know?

Rock chucks (goundhogs) are fine to kill, but not the smaller version found in the mountains.

calib · « **Reply #7 on:** January 19, 2011, 12:28:18 PM »

when i say praire dogs i mean what they shoot in colorado, or dakotas. the varmints that are about 12" or so tall maybe 3 lbs. live in dog towns.

MuleySniper · « **Reply #8 on:** January 19, 2011, 12:39:38 PM »

Quote from: Tom Reichner on January 19, 2011, 06:11:54 AM

Quote from: CAMPMEAT on January 18, 2011, 09:48:35 PM
Normally up here the prarie dogs show up about April to August and then just disappear. We have a ton of them up here. They're all over in the woods, slash piles, roads and wherever. We just drive around and find 'em.
April to August, then nothing? Hmmmmm. Sounds more like Ground Squirrels than Prairie Dogs. Ground Squirrels spend most of the year hibernating.

I wonder . . . when folks on this site say "prairie dogs", are they in fact referring to ground squirrels? If so, and it is really ground squirrels that you are after, send me a PM (or better yet, and email). I know of a couple very good areas, and would be glad to share them with you.

99% sure those are ground squirrels which are illegal to shoot here in WA.
I found a good article on them, I'll do a search to see if I can find it.
MS

MuleySniper · « **Reply #9 on:** January 19, 2011, 12:43:18 PM »

Here is one link... Not the one I originally found, I'll keep looking but I'm betting there are a lot of guys shooting these critters thinking they are a "prairie dog"
http://wdfw.wa.gov/conservation/research/projects/shrubsteppe/occupancy_modeling_ground_squirrel/

Bofire · « **Reply #10 on:** January 19, 2011, 12:44:32 PM »

I have never seen a prarie dog town in Washington. aint saying there are none but they are hiding. What you are seeing near Curlew sounds like rock chucks to me.
Carl

MuleySniper · « **Reply #11 on:** January 19, 2011, 12:47:33 PM »

I was gonna say the same as bofire. I don't think I have ever seen a prairie dog here either. Lots of the guys that are really into bench shooting those things head down to OR or MT.
MS

calib · « **Reply #12 on:** January 19, 2011, 02:10:42 PM »

ok so i will skip the prarie dogs then and i can go after the chucks correct?

fishermanjoe · « **Reply #13 on:** January 19, 2011, 02:31:50 PM »

how about graydiggers?

Tom Reichner · « **Reply #14 on:** January 19, 2011, 04:07:18 PM »

Quote from: CAMPMEAT on January 19, 2011, 11:00:17 AM

Tom,

Were you up near Curlew last year trying to get pictures of the sheep near the Midway bridge ? You had a rancher you were talking too and another guy pulled up in his pickup ?

Campmeat

No, that wasn't me. Where's Midway Bridge?

MtnMuley · « **Reply #15 on:** January 19, 2011, 04:26:12 PM »

Quote from: Bofire on January 19, 2011, 12:44:32 PM

I have never seen a prarie dog town in Washington. aint saying there are none but they are hiding. What you are seeing near Curlew sounds like rock chucks to me.
Carl

There is a place I know over there near Republic that there are several hundred of these mini-rock chuck look a like squirrels. Deep in the mountains. These are NOT legal to shoot, and are NOT rock chucks.

Heredoggydoggy · « **Reply #16 on:** January 19, 2011, 06:29:42 PM »

Rockchucks, or more accuratly, Yellow Bellied Marmots are legal to shoot. The little round-eared marmots found at higher altitudes are Pikas, and are protected. Ground Squirrels, the little pop-can sized critters are mostly found in Oregon, Idaho and Montana. They are protected in WA, and are not very plentiful, although I've heard that some are gaining a foothold around Yakima. Prairie Dogs are bigger than Ground Squirrels, and are found in the Eastern Plains of Montana, Wyoming, N & S Dakota, etc. Never saw any here in WA.

Hilltop123 · « **Reply #17 on:** January 19, 2011, 06:34:57 PM »

Townsend ground squirrels

calib · « **Reply #18 on:** January 19, 2011, 06:42:04 PM »

where are all thhe yellow bellied marmots

Heredoggydoggy · « **Reply #19 on:** January 19, 2011, 06:58:16 PM »

Quote from: calib on January 19, 2011, 06:42:04 PM

where are all thhe yellow bellied marmots

They're everywhere. Look for rockslides, rock outcrops on hill sides, anywhere they can set up housekeeping and see predators coming a good way off. I've seen them come out of hibernation on warm January days and climb into trees and bushes to nibble on new buds.

CAMPMEAT · « **Reply #20 on:** January 19, 2011, 07:01:58 PM »

Quote from: Tom Reichner on January 19, 2011, 04:07:18 PM

Quote from: CAMPMEAT on January 19, 2011, 11:00:17 AM
Tom,

Were you up near Curlew last year trying to get pictures of the sheep near the Midway bridge ? You had a rancher you were talking too and another guy pulled up in his pickup ?

Campmeat
No, that wasn't me. Where's Midway Bridge?

It's about 11 miles west of Curlew on Toroda Creek Rd. The Big Horns are there.

pjb3 · « **Reply #21 on:** January 19, 2011, 07:50:06 PM »

There are no prairie dogs in WAshington. U loved hunting them in Colorado, lots of fun

sooperfly · « **Reply #22 on:** January 19, 2011, 08:52:26 PM »

There are many places in the Pasayten that have very good populations of Columbia Ground Squirrels. I have also seen them in several places outside the wilderness, but at a still fairly high elevation. I frequently visit a ridgetop in the Pasayten that has colonies of these guys every few hundred yards.

Here is a picture I took in the Pasayten a few years ago, about the 6500ft level or so.

And while we're at it, a pika and hoary marmot.

MtnMuley · « **Reply #23 on:** January 20, 2011, 08:16:46 AM »

Great pics sooperfly!

GUscottie · « **Reply #24 on:** January 20, 2011, 08:59:15 AM »

Quote from: calib on January 19, 2011, 06:42:04 PM

where are all thhe yellow bellied marmots

Go to about any rock slide, or rocky hillside...I've seen them up near Leavenworth. I've also seen some in Spokane along the Spokane River...

Heredoggydoggy · « **Reply #25 on:** January 20, 2011, 09:58:12 AM »

Quote from: MtnMuley on January 20, 2011, 08:16:46 AM

Grat pics sooperfly!

But all the critters in the pics are protected in WA

MtnMuley · « **Reply #26 on:** January 20, 2011, 04:01:51 PM »

Quote from: Heredoggydoggy on January 20, 2011, 09:58:12 AM

Quote from: MtnMuley on January 20, 2011, 08:16:46 AM
Grat pics sooperfly!
But all the critters in the pics are protected in WA

That's even better. Now people know which animals they can NOT shoot.

sooperfly · « **Reply #27 on:** January 20, 2011, 04:34:07 PM »

Here's a post I did back in 2009. It's a huge file, so ya gotta wait until it loads.

Besides family property, I have access to a bunch of different sites with a (seemingly) endless supply of 'hogs.
In my experience, the best groundhog shooting is on private property. We'll hit each spot two or three times then leave them alone until the next year. Not uncommon to have a couple hundred targets a day present themselves.

http://www.rivercolor.com/images/groundhogs12008.gif

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Author Topic: prarie dogs or rock chucks (Read 22197 times)

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