EPA backs off toxic squirrel advisory

RINGWOOD, N.J., Oct. 31 (UPI) -- U.S. environmental officials have withdrawn a warning that squirrels in an area of New Jersey were toxic, an announcement that had thrown hunters for a loop.

Never mind what we said earlier, the Environmental Protection Agency said this week, it's OK to shoot and eat squirrels from the Ringwood area, The New York Post reported Thursday. At fist it appeared the critters were toxic because of a nearby Superfund site, but samples from the tested squirrels were botched, the agency said.

However, state Department of Health officials were reviewing the latest EPA advisory and will decide whether they'll lift the wild-animal consumption warning issued in January, said spokesman Tom Slater.

Roger DeGroat, a New Jersey squirrel hunter, says he may be a little more hesitant about eating squirrel because of the mixed messages. But he likes squirrel -- and says it doesn't taste like chicken.

"I can't say it tastes like chicken. I can't say it tastes like turkey," DeGroat said. "It tastes a lot like squirrel."