While glassing spotted this guy @ 65 yds. Noted big growth and bald spots over body. 
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(Graffic) Weird groth on this little guy
- Thread starter shambozzie
- Start date
Is there a little black grub worm in that lump? If so there's a hole in it and you can see it in there.
Very common down here. We call them "wolves" and the Yankees up north call em "warbles". But the official name is a botfly larvae.
If that's what it is, I can't see much in the picture. But a lot of critters have them in the warm months.
Very common down here. We call them "wolves" and the Yankees up north call em "warbles". But the official name is a botfly larvae.
If that's what it is, I can't see much in the picture. But a lot of critters have them in the warm months.
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We called them “wolf worms” when I was growing up. The lumps and bald spots are a spot where a bot fly larvae has emerged (or will soon emerge) from the squirrel. Most usually seen in the neck of the animal in my experiences.
This is very common to find in squirrels killed early in the fall. My dad always told me not to squirrel hunt until after the first frost of the year, and you would never see this. By the time the first frost would come, late October to early November the larvae had all emerged and the squirrels had healed up.
This is not to say that this advice lines up with squirrel season dates in any particular area, but rather it’s how the old timers did things when I was growing up.
This is very common to find in squirrels killed early in the fall. My dad always told me not to squirrel hunt until after the first frost of the year, and you would never see this. By the time the first frost would come, late October to early November the larvae had all emerged and the squirrels had healed up.
This is not to say that this advice lines up with squirrel season dates in any particular area, but rather it’s how the old timers did things when I was growing up.
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You can see the larvae on this one. I would guess 25% of the grays I have taken are infected. This was the largest. Season in GA. starts Aug. 15., this was from 
Sept. 8th.
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Well I guess that could explain the big bald patches / war wounds that I've seen on squirrels here and there. I've taken multiple hundreds of them, but never actually saw them actively infected!
So can they become diseased after this? The thing that I've noticed with the squirrels that had those scars / bald spots is they've been more aggressive. Some of them have acted out as if they had mental problems, and I've always thought they might have some kind of brain disease as a result. I cooked up a big one like that many years ago, but the liver and kidneys looked fine (and I'm still here to talk about it lol).
So can they become diseased after this? The thing that I've noticed with the squirrels that had those scars / bald spots is they've been more aggressive. Some of them have acted out as if they had mental problems, and I've always thought they might have some kind of brain disease as a result. I cooked up a big one like that many years ago, but the liver and kidneys looked fine (and I'm still here to talk about it lol).
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Yes here in Pennsylvania they call them warbles. And hunters up here won’t hunt until after the first frost also. But our season doesn’t normally start until after that anyway. There’s even these little worms that get in the smallmouth bass in the later part of the summer in some of the streams up here. I don’t know exactly what They are but people also called them warbles.And you could not even know the Bass were infected until you clean them. It used to make me mad because I had to throw half of the fish away.It would look like little maggots all through the meat.So after that when It got into the hot months I would just throw them back Into the water after I caught them. I know I’m talking about fish now but just saying that it isn’t only fur critters That get worms.
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Are the worms in the fish in a BB sized cyst? Are they red and thread-like? If so, they are Eustrongylides Tubifex, a larval nematode. They are spread by water fowl for the most part. I see them in crappie all the time. The only danger is if you eat one that has not been cooked long enough, in other words still alive. For me, I always fillet my fish skinless and boneless and cut them out before cooking.
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No, they are a light yellow color and look just like maggots.I forgot to say that once in a great while you will know if one is infected because it’ll have a bigger worm that is oval shaped stuck To the tail of the fish.And the worm is like a kind of clearish brown color. I throw those fish back in the water immediately.These little yellow worms that are in the meat are real tiny and are all through the meat.
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OK, not familiar with those and I guess I better stop here and let this thread get back to airguns. (grin)
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"Wolves" in squirrels don't affect them in any way other than the horrible looking pockets they make in the skin. Once the squirrel is dead and cools off, the grubs will usually crawl out. They have very tough skin (the worms) and feel like a dogs paw.
The meat isn't affected or even bruised underneath.
If you will notice, the wolves are almost always in a place the squirrel can't reach. Such as the neck, center of the back, etc. If they can reach them they will pull them out before they get too big.
I've eaten a bunch of them with wolves and can't tell any difference.
The grubs are great for adding a little crunch to a salad if you lightly toast them first.................
The meat isn't affected or even bruised underneath.
If you will notice, the wolves are almost always in a place the squirrel can't reach. Such as the neck, center of the back, etc. If they can reach them they will pull them out before they get too big.
I've eaten a bunch of them with wolves and can't tell any difference.
The grubs are great for adding a little crunch to a salad if you lightly toast them first.................
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Thanks for the info! I missed the part about them being botfly larvae, I've seen plenty of deer with those little buggers. I guess they could be a little edible bonus - love me some grubs over a breakfast campfire!
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I have shot a dozen coyotes here with mange here in CT , but geeze this is not mange I believe they rite with botfly as the bald area is like one local spot where as coyotes with it here are like bald with leakage from open sores , I always hunted squirrels like hundreds of them during each year , I never ever saw nothing like this where I live , I have seen rabbite shot early in seasons with like worms under skin and was told its harmless and if you shoot them later in year you wouldnt see it either , must be like a salt water cod fish or pollock which gets parasites
LOU
LOU
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WOW. I lived in Louisiana for 40 years and hunted squirrels for about 28 years. Never have I ever seen that before. Our hunting season always began the first Saturday in October. In South West Louisiana, if you wait until the first frost, a lot of the times the season was closed before it ever reached that point! But, I have never seen that before.
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Ok, this is my last larvae showing. 30 ft. fall, never flinched when he hit the ground. .22 pellet entered under the right eye. Small larvae on the right hip. Larger one on the left shoulder.
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