This site is dedicated to wildlife and landscape photography.
This site is dedicated to wildlife and landscape photography.
In my last post I mentioned that I saw a coyote on the H Ranch. It was hunting for rodents. It didn’t catch any rodents while I was there, but it did eat something that looked like it came from a cow dropping.
Coyotes cover a lot of territory each day. You never know where you’ll see one at Point Reyes, but when you drive by the H Ranch (before Abbott’s Lagoon) look carefully. You have a good chance of seeing one there.
The snow that fell yesterday was sticking when it landed on vegetation, but not on the roads or animals. This coyote was probably hoping it would either get colder or warmer. It looks soaked. The temperature ranged between 30 and 35 degrees. It’s about the same today. There was about four inches of snow on my car this morning and it was still snowing. Fortunately, it’s let up, at least for now.
There was a very good article in the San Francisco Chronicle last Friday about Marin County, California, and its approach to dealing with coyotes and sheep ranching. (Marin County is the county you enter when you drive north across the Golden Gate Bridge.) The article, written by Peter Fimrite, and entitled “Dogs Keeping Coyotes at Bay,” can be found here.
Most counties in the United States that have any sheep ranching in them have agreements with the Department of Agriculture’s Animal Plant Health Inspection Service for “Wildlife Services.” APHIS’ Wildlife Services (“WS”) unit has, as one of its purposes, the trapping, poisoning and shooting of wild animals that are considered to be a problem for someone.
In the late ’90s Marin County terminated its relationship with APHIS. I remember reading an article in the Marin Independent Journal in the early to mid ’90s which summarized WS’ activities in Marin for the previous year. It listed the number of coyotes killed. There were a few things about the article that struck me. First, I knew of WS, but was surprised that it even operated in Marin, a bedroom community of San Francisco. Second, I was surprised at the number of coyotes killed. Third, I was shocked that a large number of bobcats and badgers were also killed due to the non-selective nature of baited steel traps and poisoned meat. (I was also surprised that there were even any badgers in Marin. Fast forward. Last year I photographed several in Point Reyes National Seashore.) Thinking about it now, I assume the numbers were conservative because animals that die from poisoning aren’t always found and the same is even more true for animals that feed on the carcasses of poisoned animals and die even farther from the bait site.
As the article points out, things came to a head in 1996. WS was killing a lot of coyotes, but sheep losses seemed to be unaffected. WS proposed stepping up killing methods by adding collars for sheep which would be filled with the poison Compound 1080. Some residents decided it was time to do something. They were led by Camila Fox, now head of Project Coyote. The State Legislature was convinced to ban steel traps and poison collars. By the end of the ’90s the wildlife advocates convinced the County to end its relationship with WS. The County decided to spend the money it used to pay to WS to instead pay for guard dogs, llamas, specialized fences, night corrals and lambing sheds and to pay the ranchers for any sheep losses. The program has been an overwhelming success. The county spends less than it paid WS and the sheep losses are much lower than in the WS days. Not only do these measures greatly reduce sheep losses, but coyotes reproduce at lower levels when the Alpha males and females live normal-length lives as pack leaders, unlike when they are killed and packs break up and many more coyotes begin reproducing. This is basic wildlife ecology, but it is ignored by WS.
In 2005 APHIS/WS completed a study of its activities in California entitled “Wildlife Services in California: Economic Assessments of Benefits and Costs.” A copy of the report can be found here. I’m not sure why the report was written, but it seems to me to have been written to justify its mission and methods, especially in light of Marin County’s success using non-lethal methods and at lower cost.
A word about the coyote photo. I photographed it in Point Reyes National Seashore a couple of days before the San Francisco Chronicle article was published. The coyote was smaller than usual. It may have been a yearling, but I would assume a yearling would be about the size as its parents by now. It also seemed totally unfazed by me in my car. When I see and attempt to photograph coyotes in the open ranching areas of the Seashore they always get out of sight fast. The same is true for bobcats and badgers (and wildlife in general). I don’t know why it stayed fairly close while I photographed it. Perhaps it had spent time in areas with lots of hikers before moving into the ranching area.
I learned about Jim Goldstein’s blog project some time in 2011. To learn more about it click here. Basically, you do a blog about your best 10 or so photos of the year and Jim will link your blog to his list of blogs that participate. I recently looked at some of the 2010 participants’ “Best 10” blogs. It’s a great way to find good nature photographers you weren’t aware of.
I photographed a lot at Point Reyes National Seashore in 2011 so I decided to use Point Reyes wildlife photos that were in my blog in 2011. I want to say at the outset that I never really photographed much at Point Reyes before 2011 and I was very surprised at how good wildlife photo opportunities are there. I’m a big fan of Yellowstone, but Point Reyes is almost the equal of it and in some ways it’s better. For example, I’ve never seen a single bobcat in Yellowstone and hardly ever fail to see one at Point Reyes.
So, without further ado, here are some of my favorite Point Reyes wildlife photos that were in my blog in 2011.
Long-tailed weasels are one of my favorite animal subjects at Point Reyes. Unfortunately, they are hard to find. I saw four last year in Point Reyes, but this guy is the only one I was fortunate enough to get close photos of.
Bobcats are a lot easier to find, especially in the winter. This male lived on one of the ranches along Pierce Point Road. I saw him a lot last winter, but he disappeared in the early spring. I’m not sure what happened to him, but I think a pack of coyotes got him. I saw them pass through the open area he used to hang out on. I think he could have held his own with one coyote, but I doubt he could do so with two or more. There were no trees or other means of escape anywhere near where I used to see him. I photographed him a lot and miss him.
Point Reyes has a healthy population of coyotes. Like the bobcats, they are easiest to find in the winter when they spend more time out during daylight.
Point Reyes has a good population of badgers, but they are somewhat hard to find because they are such nocturnal critters. In 2011 I photographed two single adults plus two females in the spring with two cubs each. This is one of the single adults. I found this individual a couple of weeks ago.
Of all the wildlife Point Reyes has I think the species people think of first is the tule elk. They are fairly easy to find and photograph at Point Reyes. Needless to say, this photo was taken during the rut. With his angry-looking eyes and wide-open mouth he looks pretty fierce. Every time I see how big his mouth is I picture four canine teeth in there and wonder what life would be like if elk had canines.
Point Reyes has some resident peregrine falcons. They are often seen from Chimney Rock to the Point Reyes Lighthouse. This one decided to dine in ranch country.
California quail are quite common in the Seashore. When things are slow they can save the day. I think the peregrine above was feeding on a quail.
There are several ospreys that live and nest in and around the Seashore. This one decided to perch on a dock in Inverness which is just over the ridge from the Seashore.
Red-tailed Hawk, Point Reyes National Seashore
Red-tailed hawks are common at Point Reyes, especially in the winter. They are probably the raptor seen most often in the Seashore.
Great horned owls are also common, although you don’t see them as often as their numbers would suggest because of their nocturnal ways. Find any good sized clump of trees, though, and odds are good that you will find one or more great horned owls in there. Pound for pound they are about the most deadly bird in North America. While they normally prey on mammals and birds smaller than them, they have been know to prey on such things as house cats, canada geese and even bald eagles. Field Guide to Owls of California and the West, Hans Peeters, at 191.
There are a lot of other wildlife species at Point Reyes , many of which I blogged about, but it’s time to stop. If you’d like to see some more images from Point Reyes or elsewhere you can continue viewing my blog or you can visit my website, www.jimcoda.com.
Happy New Year to All, and thank you Jim Goldstein.
I photographed this coyote on my last trip to Point Reyes. The photo was taken just before noon. Seeing a coyote midday is fairly unusual, especially for the summer months. They are crepuscular (active during dawn and dusk hours) and nocturnal. That doesn’t mean you will never see them during daylight hours. It just means that they are less active then. I believe there is a seasonal aspect to it as well. I see far more coyotes during the daytime in winter months than I do during summer months.
I spotted this individual while driving back from the Pierce Point area. I stopped slightly past the coyote and had to hand-hold for this photo. Not my first choice with a big lens.
Pardon the hyperbole, but if a cow can jump over the moon why not a coyote? This photo was taken last winter. I’ve never seen a coyote jump this high while mousing (or doing anything else). This is the coyote I’ve covered before, including the day before yesterday, with the injured right foreleg. It looks swollen at the wrist. Nevertheless, he landed front feet first.
This coyote has a swollen area under his left eye. This is the same coyote I’ve posted photos of before. He had an injury to his right foreleg which caused him to limp last winter, but that seems to have healed. As an old friend of mine is fond of saying: “Life is tough.”
