T he gray squirrel is an important symbol in the Appalachians. North Carolinians designated the gray squirrel their state mammal on July 1, 1969. School children were polled to find out what their favorite animal was, and the squirrel was the winner.
Squirrels are very popular with children and hunters alike.
As many as two million squirrels may be shot in Kentucky each year. Before eastern forests were heavily logged and settled, population explosions sometimes sent fantastic hordes of squirrels scrambling in search of food and living space. . . . North Carolina . . .