Just about every environment in America has some sort of squirrel living in it and that means just about all of us have access to meat if we desperately need it.

Here is an easy and quiet way to catch them.

The first step is to get a two to three foot length of PVC pipe that is capped on one end. The diameter could be as narrow as two inches, but you may experience more success with a pipe that is about three inches across. You can place the trap anywhere where squirrels travel.

The easiest form of bait to use is peanut butter. Place a small amount peanut butter near the end of the pipe and then continue to put more further inside. Keep in mind that you want the squirrel to enter the pipe and not feast on what’s on the edge, so concentrate the bulk of the peanut butter further inside the pipe.

The inside of the PVC pipe will be slippery and squirrels will have a difficult time getting traction to escape once they enter. However, you may want to consider applying some cooking spray or vegetable oil along the inner walls of the pipe to make it extra slippery and minimize chances for escape.

You can take a long piece of pipe and rest it against the part of a tree where the branch meets the trunk or rest it against some logs or brush. The key is to make sure that the pipe is resting at about a 45-60 degree angle. If you place the trap completely horizontal, the squirrels will be able to back out and escape. If the trap is too vertical, then they will not even enter.

You can kill your trapped squirrel(s) in a variety of ways, just make sure it is quick so the animal does not suffer.

In a survival situation, though, where any meat source is “fair game,” squirrels are relatively easy prey, especially with a trap like this.

To learn more about capturing squirrels and making them part of your survival staple, check out Survival Kit.