Rare Fauna.

Grab your bear can or camp chair, kick your feet up and chew the fat about anything Sierra Nevada related that doesn't quite fit in any of the other forums. Within reason, (and the HST rules and guidelines) this is also an anything goes forum. Tell stories, discuss wilderness issues, music, or whatever else the High Sierra stirs up in your mind.
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JM21760
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Post by JM21760 »

We have wild horses just to the east of Carson City. Just how wild are they when they're eating grass in a landscaped island in front of Smiths? (Smiths is a large grocery store in Dayton.)
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markskor
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Post by markskor »

George,
(I tried to mail to you directly, but it would not go - too long an address or something. )

You asked for any data on the sightings.

To preface this brief synopsis of sightings/what occurred, I should mention that I do possess Bachelors in Zoology from UCLA (1976), followed by obtaining my Masters in Parasitology (1979) from the same school.

Regarding the Opossum:

We were on another backpacking trip, starting from Tuolumne. The plan was to follow the river trail, past Waterwheel Falls, down to Hetch Hetchy, intending to come out via the trail and switchbacks leading up below Harding Lake/White Wolf. I believe this was in June 1993 or 94. Anyway, the Tuolumne River was still swollen and in some places, you had to leave the river drainage and go off x-country - just as you entered Pate Valley - down in the flats. We were on the North side of the river - approximately 4000 ft elevation. I remember the high river, almost falling in, and trying to keep from getting wet. I proceeded to reach up into some growth - I remember it was some sort of 2-inch yellow wood branches - (Alder branches?). Anyway, when I reached up, trying to regain my balance, I happened to touch this furry thing. Surprised, looking up, there it was. It was frozen - scared - but had a white pointed snout and a hairless tail - and it was an ugly thing. It was definitely an opossum. (Cool huh?)



Regarding the Wolverine:

Back in 89 or 90, a group of us from Mammoth Lakes, decided to go on a 7-day adventure, a X-country ski trip up Tioga Road; it was in the springtime. One other guy, on a snowmobile with sled, hauled up most of our food and equipment - dropping it off -then returning, while the other four of us skied up the road - Highway 120. All I can remember was that it was sometime in spring - April I think, lots of snow - corn!

Anyway, we had an uneventful trip up and found our equipment stash just around the bend by the first lake (Ellery or Tioga?). We stayed there the first night, and made it to the Tuolumne Hut the second night - intending to carve up the bowls for a few days - then go down via Yosemite Creek drainage.

The morning after we hit the Tuolumne Hut, I slept in a bit, while one of my friends went off and skied/explored. This fellow, also a UCLA Zoology graduate, came back with the information on the sighting of the Wolverine. I also skied over - later - to where he saw it, and indeed the tracks matched perfectly those found in the Peterson Guide we carried. He saw the Wolverine; I just confirmed the tracks. It was near the backside of Lembert Dome.



Mark Papanek aka markskor
Mountainman who swims with trout
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yosemitechris
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Post by yosemitechris »

This is an excerpt from our JMT website: an observation made by my son, Will, at http://www.jmt2k.com/Pages/Day_23.htm


"A thump came from somewhere in the trees. My first thought was that a pine cone had fallen. Or a stone. No wait, I knew that noise. It was a hoof. Horses were coming. Big deal. But there have been times when what I thought was a horse turned out to be a deer, so I stood up to look.

Some kind of activity through the trees. I couldn't make it out. A flash of brown hide. Tan, actually. It was a deer. And then I saw something else. A dog! I immediately understood what was going on. Or thought I did. Someone's dog had gotten excited and was chasing a deer through the brush and trees. A flash of indignation sparked through me and then died. It wasn't a dog. It was a coyote. The two of them disappeared out of sight behind the fat rock I was leaning against. As carefully as I could, so as not to spill even more coconut milk powder, I got up for a better view. The two participants were headed my way. I knew now what was going on. A coyote was chasing a deer. This was a hunt, and it was about to come barreling through my little, overused campsite.

I saw the coyote first. It was a ragged thing, though good-sized. Hair coming in irregular tufts. Black at the roots, then mottled elsewhere. It was limping, I saw now, which suggested--no, not limping. It's left front paw was entirely missing! This was a three-legged coyote. How could it have this deer on the run? At that moment, on the other side of the rock, the deer showed up. Instead of being terrified, you know, rolling its eyes and frothing at the lips and stuff, it gave me a look that was closer to, "Excuse me, have you seen--? Oh there he is!" and he took off. AFTER the coyote. This deer was chasing the coyote.

I couldn't believe it at first, but the deer, who was trailing the coyote by a good fifteen meters, put on an incredible burst of speed and disappeared after his quarry. The two of them vanished down the JMT in a cloud of dust. I stood there stupidly for a beat. Would they reappear? I stood there some more. Was I going to hear a coyote scream? Of course not, reasoned, and sat back down."
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hikerduane
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Post by hikerduane »

I think I saw a wolverine on one bp trip. I only caught a quick glimpse and discribed it to one of our local Game Wardens and he thought it sounded like one. In the Caribou Wilderness I saw a Fisher or something along that line in the trees, I was surprised how close I was to it. While I was fishing in a lake close to the TH in the John Muir Wilderness, a king fisher was helping himself. Cool watching it.
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JM21760
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Post by JM21760 »

Just recalled this. Along the Big Wood River in Idaho, above Sun Valley, a family of Mink. Mom and 4 or 5 kits, all jet black. About 1976. You remember, when dinosaurs still roamed the hills.

And, while I'm thinking about it, has anyone got the Poop scared out of them by a Grouse? You know, the ones that explode into flight from under your feet? The perfectly camoflauged ones? I'll never get used to that. :eek:

And, Dave54, have you ever heard the Night Hawks at Butte Lake, LVNP? Man, what a racket, all night. About 1990, on a trip there.

When I was living at Tahoe we had a certain bird that would blast before sunrise. I believe it was a Warbling Vireo. Only one I had ever seen. And never want to hear again!
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gdurkee
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Post by gdurkee »

Campers:

These are all great. Markskor: I did get your note and forwarded it to Les Chow, wildlife biologist in Yosemite. That's definitely a confirmed sighitng for both Wolverine and Opposum. The former has only 30 sightings in 100 years; the latter 6 (which, since they're not native, is a good thing).

Yosemite Chris, if you're OK with it, I'll post yours on Nature Notes. Good action sequence. About 10 years ago at Whitney Meadow, I was watching a doe and fawn down a bank near the stream. A coyote appeared at the top and contoured down but staying away from both and apparently just heading in another direction. The fawn took off in the opposite direction and the doe charged the coyote, who took off even faster. Healthy coyote too.

I'll add my own: I was hiking at dusk in the Greater Rae Lakes area heading for a stream that might have Mt. Lyell Salamanders. As I was heading up the slope in the semi-dark, I hear a clattering in the rocks above me. There's nine Bighorn Rams who were just bedding down for the night. As I'm sitting watching them, I hear a chirp and a pika pops up just as a weasel is maneuvering through the rocks to get to him (he misses). The sheep and I watch each other for 30 minutes. I try to edge around them (they're bedded maybe 100 feet from where the salamanders are), but they scurry off in the dark. Sorry 'bout that. Then I find 3 salamanders clinging to the mossy wall below a waterfall. Oh, and as if I wasn't having enough fun, the full moon is coming up over the Crest... .

Pretty cool. Someday I'll see the elusive Wolverine (I've spent hours scanning open alpine country for them. Very, very rare).

George
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Buck Forester
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Post by Buck Forester »

The rarest fauna I've experienced is Sasquatch, many years ago, late at night while sleeping in a remote area in the Tahoe National Forest a few miles from White Rock Lake. It was by far the freakiest moment of my life. I kid you not.
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hikerduane
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Post by hikerduane »

Buck, I see you have been to White Rock also. I go by it on my way to Paradise sometimes. Amazing how many find that lake so far back in there, on unmarked roads.

The wolverine I saw was in the Yosemite area also, so I may not have been seeing things.
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Post by copeg »

Buck Forester wrote:The rarest fauna I've experienced is Sasquatch, many years ago, late at night while sleeping in a remote area in the Tahoe National Forest a few miles from White Rock Lake. It was by far the freakiest moment of my life. I kid you not.
Buck...I gotta ask...care to elaborate on this?
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sierra cyd
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Post by sierra cyd »

This is great. I'm glad to hear that someone has seen the elusive Sasquatch.

I dont' know much about them, but a Pine Marten hanging out at 14,000 feet, far above treeline, that is news to me! WOW. Maybe he stowed away in someone's pack by accident!!

(Snow Nymphs photo)- http://community.webshots.com/photo/986 ... 0637CvMNWL

;)

Pikas are my favorite. I love it when one suddenly appears in front of you in a barron talus field and he's got a bouquet of small, bright flowers in his mouth. He stops and looks, then is on his way. I've never had a chance to catch a photo though, they're too quick.
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