Jaguarundi?

We had a local pet shop that had one for sale when I was a kid... I think it was about $50. Looked like an elongated dark grey cat with small ears.

While we're on the subject of mt. lions, this sign went up today in a park I enjoy walking in around here:

QHRCP by J. Maughn, on Flickr

Later, on a nearby trail, I found a quite fresh set of tracks. Each print was about the size of my palm, maybe a little smaller. Any thoughts? Is my mind jumping to conclusions?

Mt. Lion track by J. Maughn, on Flickr

Sure looks like a Mountain Lion track to me.

That's what I thought. If so, I probably missed this cat by less than an hour. The tracks appeared after I started back down. It's weird to feel frustrated and relieved simultaneously.

I never see the big cats... I just find stuff like this:

I was tracking a young male cougar once, back in 87, through the Orange groves in the E Yucaipa foothills, and I had bent down on one knee to examine a print, at the edge of a ravine, when the cougar came up out of the ravine. We were face to face, about 4 ft away, and we both just froze and stared at each other for like 4-5 sec. he then turned and vanished back into the ravine. The soil in thr groves had a high clay content, and I took a flattened coke can and scooped the PERFECT track up, and later set it on a outside windowsill at a friend's house, where it dried as hard as though it had been kiln dried. Had that memento for many, many years. I remember the experiance very well, for coincidentially... that was the last day I either drank or did drugs.... went to my 1st AA meeting later that night... wow...just realized I'm coming up on 25 years in like 6 weeks... jim

That's an impressive milestone, Jim. Congratulations.

JimM

Followed tracks and looked up. I guess i was too late.
Nick

Esp. if you were trying to rescue that deer!

That's quite a photo, by the way.

It's easy to forget not everyone's used to armadillos. I guess the same way some of you californians see cal kings and zonatas every time you turn around (that's what my calif friends claim)

We went to a park in st petersburg, looking for rattlesnakes. Didn't get past the parking lot before we came upon this little guy and had some fun and then quickly knocked out a video. I apologize for the poor quality. I've already apologized to the armadillo.



They're common roadkill because unlike some other mammals, when a car passes over them they jump up and get killed on the undercarriage. We found this one on a dirt road thru the green swamp area. Handling them might not be the smartest thing to do, as there are some reports they can carry leprosy.

I am not aware of any substantiated cases of humans contracting leprosy (aka Hansen's disease) from casual contact with armadillos. I think the leprosy-to-human transmission occurs mainly in the third world, and eating undercooked armadillo meat is the culprit.
I could be wrong. This occurs rather frequently. If I am mistaken, maybe somebody could let me know before I cuddle the next armadillo.

I wanted to catch me an armadillo so bad when I was in Arkansas, hahaha. I've never seen a live one, even though I've been to Louisiana dozens of times.

But the next time I see a possum, I'm going after it... They're technically not even native to California anyway.

Possums are cute, when small... raised and kept a few over the years, they tame down pretty good. Not legal, so I'm not reccommending it... Adults can be pretty intimidating/fiesty... when flipped...

I was really hoping to see a live armadillo on my X-country trip... but all we saw were DOR's... jim

I've never seem a live amadillo either. I want to see one bad too - the ones I've seen running around in zoos are just hilarious.

Watch out for the sharp end with the possums - they're pretty nasty. They're easy to catch when they turn away from you though - just grab for the tail and you'll have a possum in hand. So a Google Images search for "opossum" and you'll see me right on the 2nd page of results with a good-sized one in hand that I found at the end of a run.

I've seen a few armadillos in southern MO. I got pretty close to one this summer, I thought it was going to let me get close enough to grab it, but when I got within about 3 feet it shot through the underbrush like a cannon!!! No exaggeration, it was LOUD when that thing took off.

I imagined something kinda like this, except instead of clouds it would have been the underbrush, and instead of Wile E. Coyote it would have been an armadillo silhouette.

Love all the photos. The track photos both look like cats.



Even in a track like this one that is not very clear, you can tell its a cat by the overall shape of the pad (trapezoidal versus triangular), the negative space looks more C - versus H - shaped, and with it being about palm sized that sounds like a cougar. Adult cougar's generally have tracks of between 3 & 4 inches long. Smaller than many would suspect for such a large creature. A cat with 3.5" long track still have a paw big enough to fill the space of my entire hand with fingers spread out.



Lovely track. The strong asymmetry of the toes (1 leading the way our middle finger does) and the trilobed rear of pad, and especially the 2 lobes on the front of the main pad are visible in this photo.




Jim,

Your story is beautiful! You clearly have a powerful connection with the animal, or certainly did at that time. It goes to show you that cougars are not as scary as some make them out to be. Way to go on 25 years !

Have really enjoyed this post, and can finally start reply to all those that I have missed since I was away. I was on a school trip in the OR Dunes.

And... no... I have not seen a ringtail yet. I really, REALLY, want to though!

Not seen one

If you guys ever happen to see a Mountain Lion (Puma Concolor), let me know, I'm doing a study on them and mule deer in SoCal right now.

Tracking is like the herping for mammals.. Well, actually, that would be hunting, but you shoot the animals.

Anyone up for a mammal sub-forum

RLewisH,

Tracking does not necessarily involve hunting. I use tracking for learning and teaching. Yes, tracking can be used for hunting but that is just one use for that skill. I have no problem with hunting, especially for subsistence. But, when I talk of tracking I don't usually think about it in the context of hunting. It is more as a method of observing the natural world, and when there is need for it you can use if to find animals as well.

When I track herps, I don't eat them when I find them. Nor do I harm them in anyway. Same is true for all other critters I track.

You can track mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians, insects, molluscs, bivalves and other invertebrates. You can also track plants, and wind, and many other things. Anything that moves on a landscape leaves some evidence of itself behind, and so can be tracked. In a manner of speaking, the study of geology is a form of tracking.

I think a mammal forum would be neet, but dunno if folks 'round here would be down with it... given this is a herp focused locale.

I track for the same reason you do

I don't get to hunt all that often. I hunt with a conservationist mindset; it's not the kill that brings me closer to nature, it's the time spent and the privilege of being a part of nature that makes it what it is. While getting a nice animal is always fun, nothing beats passing an animal up.

I read a story in an issue of F&S about an elk hunter that had just watched a young bull get shot at, and the bullet missed. The bull ran away, and came over a ridge right onto the author. It had just escaped death, and just when it thought it was safe, could have gotten itsself killed. The author said he chose to pass it up, and talked about how when you pull that trigger, that animal is never going to graze in the morning ever again. It will never open its eye. It's so true though... really makes you think.

Anyways, I wanted to say I agree with you wholeheartedly. I'll try and find the article.

Sounds like an interesting article. If you haven't already read it, here is another article on tracking:

http://www.fieldherpforum.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=12&t=8399

I've seen Mountain Lion on a handful of occasions while herping. I cannot tell you the number of deer and bear I've seen while herping let alone weasel, marten, skunk, fox and raccoon. I saw five deer this weekend while hunting for them. All doe's though.

We have fish and bird so why not mammal?

I wouldn't like a mammal forum, just because I love seeing the mammals in the context of the herping posts. I don't care much for fish and birds, so I don't mind those forums.

I like all animals while partaking in recreational activities in the wilds no matter the context. Expand the forum and expand the member base, and the knowledge and wisdom one can learn from it.

I agree

I mean you never know; one might encounter a mammal while herping and not know what it is.

Yep, it might have been easier to learn about weasel's, marten's and ringtail's in SoCal if there was a dedicated forum here. Open up some discussions and not be in violation of the forum rules on the NAFHA forum in a mammal type herping context.

Mike,
I saw one October 1st on the bottom third of the grade, at about 10 pm. I watched it for about two seconds, and then it was gone!

If you are talking about a mountain lion that's been my experience too. Only on one occasion while in the gabes road cruising with Socalherper did a lion perch up on a rock after crossing the road for a good look. Amazing sight.

Anyone hear about the mountain lion sighted in Poway?

http://www.nctimes.com/news/local/poway ... 9ab49.html

I saw a ringtail on Hwy. 1 in Monterey County. That's the only one I've seen in CA.

In Texas at places like Langtry and Hwy. 277 they can be very common to see. Some nights it seems like you see half a dozen or more but some of them have to be repeats when you're driving up and down the same stretch of road. Porcupines and Armadillos are also abundant. Two kinds of skunk, one-striped and two-striped, are also present in fair numbers. I've seen a couple Badgers as well.

I've also seen one spotted skunk in CA, I get the impression they're rare. It was in Monterey County.

I do think that I'm now getting closer. Just missed by a few hours I reckon:

That's because they're usually behind you

Wow, Owen, that's quite a find. I'm sure I don't need to tell you this, but I've heard mt. lions are very protective over their kills. I'm glad it WASN'T right behind you.

JimM

Owen-
Amazing find with the lion kill! To be honest, I'd probably be backing out of there ASAP if I was to stumble upon that scene! I am very wary of mt. lions, even though I have never seen a live one.

The only evidence of one I have seen was actually on Highway 35 (Skyline). I stopped thinking there was something on the road and it turned out to be a deer's leg...creepy when you are the only car out there in a blanket of fog!

Quite the bloodfest and about 20 feet off the trail. You can see the drag marks in the grass and of course, the lovely fall colors. As far as I go, my motto is "Semper Vigilans", plus I never hike alone... I gots my my number two girl with me. She's old, but she can do a great impersonation of the bunny in Monty Python and the Holy Grail:

Owen,

That kill is pretty fresh, judging by the blood on the grass and the state of the carcass. Probably the second day for this carcass. I say that mainly by the amount eaten from the inside, but it could be fresher than that.

Looks like much of the organ meat has been eaten out of the body. The entrance from behind the ribs is classic cougar, as is the grass scraped up and deposited on the carcass.

One last thing... with a carcass this fresh, the cat was likely within 100 yards of the kill, bedded down. We see this with our tracking classes pretty regularly, the bed being fairly close to the fresh carcass. It would only really leave a carcass this fresh to go and drink water at the nearest creek or pond. Or if it saw you coming, and took evasive maneuvers... which is pretty common too.

Unlike grizzly bears, cougars rarely hang around to defend their kills from approaching humans.

Good find! To bad you did not see the cat... but then again, you rarely do when they don't want you too. They are ninjas...

Let me get this correct Zach: you found a limb? That's too funny

Haha, walked into that one!

They certainly don't shy away from people. I observed one in Yosemite in the little towncenter area they've got going now(with a theatre, restaurant, and in walking distance from one of the hotels). Their were goodly numbers of people milling about that night, but I don't think anyone else noticed the distinctive banded tail arcing around in the unpaved area in the middle, faintly lit by one of the walkway lights. According to one of the rangers at least one ringtail was observed to regularly snooze on the ceiling of these buildings.

We need a mammal sub-forum. I could have posted this poor old coot on the birding forum but....

NAAAAAH!

Man, that's a fantastic shot, Owen!

JimM

Yes indeed!

sitting here going through this post again, it occurred to me that I had a pretty neat mammal find this spring, up in Santa Cruz... a Mole.

I set this guy on the hood of my car, where he would run in place (no traction)... all 4 legs going full speed... just run run run run run...30-40 seconds at a time... SO FUNNY to see... I SO regret not taking a vid of it... it WOULD HAVE gone viral...
Whenever I set him on the ground... he would HAUL ASS, so fast I could barely keep up with him, stopping every 10 ft or so to see if the ground was soft enough for him to dig in... if not... off he went again.
I finally settled for a video of him digging into soft soil...didn't last very long... he was GONE... in under 10 sec he was to deep to relocate... Oh well... fun while it lasted... and the sofest, most luxuriant fur I've EVER felt.... Mink, Chinchilla, you name it...nothing comes close.
CLICK ON PIC 4 VIDEO...


jim

Owen,

AWESOME capture!

Love everything about that bobcat photo. The look in its eyes is pretty amazing.

Jim,

Nice capture of the mole. Would have loved to see the video of it skittering on your car hood. Moles are impressively fast, considering how they are built. They leave really cool tracks too. Their big front feet are always turned sideways, so only the claws register as little dots, while the hinds show the whole foot.

I love having moles around, they are really good for the garden being natural soil turners and aerators. They are often blamed for doing damage to plants, but they are actually insectivores.

Where I live we have a huge species of mole called the Townsend's mole. They leave behind very large molehills, and are impressive diggers!

I've seen several dead moles, shrew moles and mole parts on trails, but I don't see live ones. Seems like stuff may find them not so tasty . I flipped a shrew a couple weeks back, but they're too fast to get my camea up in time for a shot.

Anyway, more wet kitty and coot.

Yeah, I mentioned on another thread last year that I saw two dead shrew moles only a few yards apart on a non-vehicle road, fairly intact. I've also seen a few dead shrews and moles here and there.

I find more dead shrews and moles than any other dead animal in this area. Cats, foxes and coyotes will all pounce on them, but generally do not eat them. I do think they taste bad to them. So you end up seeking a rather intact looking shrew or mole laying in the middle of a trail, where it was dropped and abandoned.

On the flip side, I found shrew and moles skulls in owl pellets all the time. I imagine hawks and kestrels also take them too. Though their pellets tend to have only small bone fragments, as their digestive system dissolves more of the bones...

Weasels kill and eat plenty of shrews and moles as well. I heard a story from someone I know who exposed a long-tailed weasel's nest under the hood of an old, abandoned car and there were something like 2 dozen shrew-mole carcasses brought back for the weasel kits. Many of them were still soft and relatively fresh!

Owen,

That is a lovely bobcat! Despite being soaked, it looks very satisfied.

PNR... these footprints were on my car hood several mornings ago, in Shasta Co. I'm thinking Raccoon, but they were very small...3/4 in from top to bottom.

jim

Jim, those prints look more like the housecat ones I find on my car windshield in my driveway!

DOH! they did have cats... but there were so many dor raccoons in that area... Plus...I've yet to go to nor cal (SC) and not find coon prints on my car...
Damn... hate it when I fall prey to my own conformational biases... should know better than that... forgot to pack my Occam's Razor, I guess... jim