The results are in: The favorite fat squirrel in the Lone Star State is Chunkosaurus Rex, a portly fluff-tailed furball who makes his home in Dinosaur Valley State Park.
The contest was dreamed up by the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, which modeled it after the Fat Bear Week competition at Alaska’s Katmai National Park.
“The quirky contest featured 16 squirrels from state parks across Texas, all battling it out in a bracket-style showdown for the title of Texas’ heftiest rodent,” KLAQ-FM reported.
“The 16-contender bracket came down to each squirrel’s heftiness and overall charm,” People proclaimed.
Evidently, the participants had some fun coming up with names for their respective champions.
“Chunkosaurus Rex faced off in the finals against Chunk Norris from Fort Richardson State Park, after fellow final-four squirrels Nutella from Lake Mineral Wells State Park and Stanley ‘The Texas Tank’ from Cleburne State Park were eliminated,” according to United Press International.
Fans cast votes by liking and commenting on their favorite contestants’ picture on each state park’s Facebook page.
In Texas, a winner has been crowned in the state’s fattest squirrel competition. Residents cheered on their favorite fluffy and chunkiest contenders. pic.twitter.com/QkEGWJV0lw
— CBS Evening News (@CBSEveningNews) October 24, 2025
People portrayed the final stage of the competition as “a hard-fought, acorn-to-acorn showdown.”
Texas Parks and Wildlife announced the winner last week in a social media post.
“Your Fat Squirrel Week winner of 2025 is Chunkosaurus Rex!!!” the agency announced.
“Chunkosaurus Rex hopes to see all of his competitors again next year when he works to keep the title of FAT SQUIRREL WEEK CHAMPION.
“Remember competitors, now is the time to start working on your winter physique! Get to snackin!”
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