My favorite canyon is only 90 acres in size; it’s surrounded by buildings, roads and all the trappings of urbanization. Despite its tiny size and suburban location, it is rich with many species of wild animals and native plants—it is a complex, working eco-system where all the players are interconnected. Three trail cameras faithfully document […]
I owe all of you an explanation. For understandable reasons I lost my writing mojo for about six months. Covid-19 didn’t help the situation and neither did the recent devastating fires that caused me, along with thousands of other people to evacuate out of our homes in the mountains. I’m thankful that the gorgeous redwoods […]
There seems to be less wildlife in the canyon this month. It could be a natural cycle or it might be caused by destruction that is occurring in part of the habitat. Mountain lion This large male puma is a regular visitor to the canyon–he shows up about every two to three months. This time […]
Today’s a sad day. Another mountain lion died, hit by a vehicle not too far from the canyon. I’m worried that the victim may be the big male we’ve been monitoring on the canyon trail since early this year. The one who died tried to cross the freeway at 10:00 Friday night. Perhaps the lion […]
San Mateo, California is an affluent, suburban community where residents enjoy mild weather and amenities such as up-scale restaurants and specialty shops. In addition to people, common rats also enjoy living the good life here. They’ve adapted well to the near-perfect climate all year round and the gourmet food that is just a short scurry […]
I’ve never been particularly partial to rodents who resemble rats. In fact, I try to avoid them. That changed after one of my wildlife cameras filmed a number of surprisingly adorable, industrious little rodents gathering sticks and leaves late at night. This was my first introduction to the fascinating dusky-footed woodrat. (Neotoma fuscipes). These little […]
Finally it’s the beginning of summer and the trails are alive with activity—human and animal. Our wildlife cameras are capturing it all, including those changes that are caused by natural seasonal cycles as well as adaptations in animal behavior that are likely influenced by people out on the trails day and night. Summer changes The […]
Camera #4 films the most activity of the 6 cameras I’m monitoring. It’s located in an ideal spot for sighting animals—on a trail that follows a creek at the bottom of a lush canyon. A wide diversity of wildlife and humans use this trail 24 hours a day. I understand—it meanders through a cool forest […]
Our trail cameras have spied on a rich array of wildlife, including bobcats, foxes, mountain lions, coyotes and deer. Many of them are regulars—repeatedly visiting the cameras for the last 6 months. I’ve gradually learned to recognize individuals. Through recognition comes attachment—I confess that I’ve named some of them. These 4-legged visitors have great reasons […]
Spying on Mountain Lions, Bobcats and Other Animals I’m maintaining between 4-7 wildlife cameras for the Bay Area Puma Project (BAPP) and for me. They feed my addiction for secretly spying on wildlife doing their natural thing. In addition to collecting general data about our local apex predators, some of the cameras are positioned strategically […]