Bobcat, Point Reyes National Seashore

Bobcat Point Reyes National Seashore

A bobcat crouches as it walks through the grass in Point Reyes National Seashore.

This bobcat photo was taken in Point Reyes National Seashore in early March.  The grass was nice and green from the winter rains.   It’s a different story now.  Thanks to our Mediterranean climate, for the next six months you’re photographing most wildlife in brown grass and scattered green shrubs.  In areas where there is no livestock grazing, the tall brown grass can be aesthetic.  But where grazing has occurred, it loses that tall, aesthetic look.  And where grazing has been heavy, it can get downright ugly.  It’s that way in a lot of the ranching area of the Seashore.  Needless to say, my favorite time of year to photograph wildlife in the Seashore is during the rainy season, from November or December through April.

Point Reyes, Point Reyes National Seashore

Photo of Point Reyes from the Tomales Peninsula.
Point Reyes

Have you ever been out on the coast on a foggy day when some cracks in the fog let the sun shine through?  This was one of those times.  I was driving back from the Pierce Point Ranch area just after lunch when I saw these sunspots on the ocean.

Addendum:  As I posted this WordPress informed me that this is my 200th blog posting.  I started this in May of 2010 as I was leaving on a trip to Yellowstone.   I didn’t know then if I would manage to keep doing it for very long.  I still don’t know.  Twenty two months isn’t that long, but it is a milestone of sorts.  We’ll see how long it goes.

Pack of Coyotes on the Hunt

Coyote Pack, Point Reyes National Seashore
Coyote Pack on Outcrop

I went out to Point Reyes yesterday afternoon.   I saw four bobcats, although one was probably a double count.  It’s hard to be sure.  I saw no coyotes until the last hour of the day when I saw a pack of four.  That’s the most I’ve ever seen there in a group.  I think I saw three of these individuals a week ago in the same area.  Unfortunately, when they got to this point they were too spread out to all be in the frame together.  These two were in the lead.  Are they the alpha pair?  Click here to order a print of this image.