Cascadia Wildlife Blog
News from the Wolverine Tracking Project and more
This week we've seen some old favorites and made some new friends. Camera teams went to Government Camp East, Little Zig Zag, and Yellowjacket East. Our tracking trip explored near Salmon River Meadows. Tracking Trip UpdatesThe tracking trip to Salmon River Meadows found some incredible examples of snowshoe hare tracks. Check out this perfect bound! We are still EXCITED about finding snowshoe hare tracks. Are you? Although they are undeniably some of the most common tracks to find in the snow, NOT finding them would be devastating. Snowshoe hares are a keystone species, and without them our forests would be drastically different. Whenever you see a coyote, fox, marten, or other carnivore track, thank a snowshoe hare. While the keystone-species relationship between snowshoe hares and Canada Lynx has been discussed at length, their relationship to other species is equally interesting. When hare populations rise, their effect on willow and alder begins to take a toll. Incredibly, new willow and alder shoots will begin to produce a distasteful and slightly toxic substance to discourage the hares from decimating the young trees. As a result, hare populations begin to decline. Within a few seasons, willow and alder shoots lose the toxic substance and hare populations begin to rise again. Wildlife Camera FindingsIt's March which means it's that time of year for foxes! Breeding season is finishing up around now and come April, anywhere from 2 to 10 pups will come into the world in a cozy den, loyally tended to by both of their parents. Every family has their share of drama, and Family Canidae is no exception. There is some history of hostility between the different members of the canine family, whether it be wolves and coyotes or coyotes and foxes. Wolves and foxes seem able to tolerate one another, as their substantial size difference probably does not threaten competition between them. Now that wolves, coyotes, and foxes are all sharing Mount Hood National Forest again, we imagine the first fox-wolf meeting went something like this! Marten are going to be expecting their kits in the next month or two as well! Marten, like the rest of the family mustelidae, exhibit delayed implantation; if you can believe it, their breeding season was way back in July or August! This is not the first time this dusky grouse has appeared on camera. For a few months, she has made regular appearances perusing the snow around the camera looking for her favorite wintertime snack: pine and fir needles. Interestingly, this might be one of the last times we see her until next year, check out this article to find out why! If you do get a chance to see this grouse before she heads back down in the spring, be ready because she is FEARLESS! She was NOT fed or approached. Incredibly, she approached while the team was talking and assembling the camera, sticking around for the entire time! She would snack on pine needles, watch the camera team, approach, retreat to a nearby branch, and then do it all over again!
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We had camera checks at Clear Lake, McCubbins Gulch #1 and #2, and Yellowjacket East. A tracking trip visited Teacup Lake. Tracking Trip UpdatesOur tracking trip this week enjoyed an overcast day in the trees at Teacup Lake and observed some interesting weasel tracks, and some fun squirrel tracks, too! weasel bounding (left) and squirrel going UP! (right) In the following photo you can see the path the weasel took underneath the snow, quickly reemerging to the surface after just a short distance. Weasels are thin enough to squeeze into the tunnels left by mice and other small creatures, and will follow those tunnels in pursuit of prey. They definitely don't forget about the surface though! We love the idea mentioned by one of our trackers of a weasel poking its head above the surface of the snow like a little periscope! Wildlife Camera FindingsThe team at Clear Lake encountered some pretty amazing conditions that might have you drooling or cringing- depending on your preferences of snow sports! Either way, it looks BEAUTIFUL! McCubbins #2 was visited by a coyote, a few deer, and a Douglas squirrel apparently competing for space with a (much larger) western gray squirrel that regularly appears on camera. This yearling buck at McCubbins #2 will be losing his antlers any time now. An annual drop in testosterone (occurring after the rut in fall) leaves the connective area of the antlers weakened, eventually resulting in their loss in late winter or early spring. In summer, surges of testosterone trigger the regrowth of larger antlers. Have you come across any shed antler yet this season? McCubbins #1 was exclusively visited in groups, whether it was a herd of deer or a flock of turkeys! This herd contained more than 6 individuals grazing together. Have you ever heard of a "rafter of turkeys" before? Groups of turkeys are commonly called "flocks", "gobbles", or "gaggles", but "rafter" is a rather unusual one that seems reserved for domesticated birds. This site discusses the same "rafter" in detail for those of us who are curious!
We had camera checks at Government Camp East, Meadows, Yellowjacket West, and Alpine. We've also had two tracking trips since our last update, including a trip leader day. Tracking Trip UpdatesTrip leaders spend a beautiful day together looking at snowshoe hare and squirrel tracks, then on their way back when the day was almost over - they saw fresh bobcat tracks! Over the next few photos, notice the trapezoid-shaped heel pad and lack of claw marks in the bobcat tracks and its neat, consistent direct register walk. Are you intersted in becoming a trip leader? Participating in Cascadia Wild trainings and tracking trips is a great place to start learning the skills. As a leader, not only do you build experience participating with nature in a more intimate way, you get to share that experience with others! (Not to mention the trip leader tracking trips!) The tracking trip to Snowbunny found hare, mouse, and multiple bobcat trails and brought back some wonderful photos. Wildlife Camera FindingsWe had lots of naughty visitors in our photos this week! Okay... maybe "opportunistic" is a better word. The bait at Alpine made it about two days into the set. before... ...and after! The bait at Government Camp East made it a bit longer than Alpine, lasting for two weeks. This coyote posed for so many beautiful photos, we suppose we can forgive her. With two hours of work, perhaps she earned it... Meadows was not spared... Another thief! And so casual about it, too! Let's not forget that we had plenty of well behaved visitors, too. This bobcat at Governmetn Camp East is barely visible and was only around long enough for this single photo. Another marten leaving perfect tracks at Meadows. It visited multiple times. A coyote at Government Camp East. (Alright, this is probably the same one from earlier. But she's on good behavior this time!)
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