Not to hijack this thread or anything, but I've never hunted chucks because until this year, I never lived where they were. Now that I have the opportunity to hunt some, I'd like a bit of info on them. I understand they are related to squirrels, so my number one question is, do they taste like squirrel?
They don't taste anything like a squirrel, and they're actually in the marmot family. They breed in very late winter during the first few warmer days, and have pups in the early spring. The pups are usually weened, and feeding on greenery within a few weeks. They usually will have 3-5 young in a liter, but I've seen as few as 1, and as many as 8-9. Adults weigh around 10-15 lbs, but I've killed a few in the 20+ lb range.
Most people think they only come out during the day, but actually they're very active at night time too. At night is when they dig the majority of there new dens, and escape holes. They are very good climbers, and often will climb tree's, posts, and such for a better veiw of there suroundings. They are very fond of any structure like old buildings, abandoned equipment, over grown fence lines or hedgerows, and rocky outcroppings.
They can be out at any time during the day, but once the weather gets warm, they're most active in the first 3 hours of daylight, and again for the last few hours before sun set. They don't require a lot of water, but if a small stream cuts through their feilds, they love to den in the banks of it. After a summer rain(or heavy morning dew), they'll be out in droves licking the water drops off the grass, or plants, and this can be your most productive times to hunt them.
They never have just one hole. They'll have 1 or more main entrances, with 1 or more smaller less obvious escape holes that connect to the main den. They also will have at least 1 seperate chamber that is used for a toilet, and in most cases one that they pack full of grass for the winter months. This stuff you'll hardly ever find in books, but I've excavated enough dens just out of curiosity to learn a lot about them myself.
Hope this helps?
