Cute little Kit Fox at night!

Came upon this cute little Kit Fox near Boulder City last fall. It was used to begging for food and it was evident that people had been feeding it. It wouldn't let me get too close but I did manage to get a couple of photos. It would show up at dusk at the Boulder City Airport on a regular basis.

Saw the "old man" in Valley of Fire yesterday!

On the way out of Valley of Fire yesterday we spotted the old ram that I wrote about in a blog last week. He was in the same area that we saw him about 5 days before.

Update: Reunited w/ Ground Squirrel in Valley of Fire

12-8-2010

On a trip to Valley of Fire today, we found the little Antelope Ground Squirrel that I blogged about last week. He was still as friendly as ever.

Mojave Wildlife 2010

This is a slide show presentation of some of my best wildlife encounters in 2010.

To see the presentation in full detail, click anywhere on the screen and when the title appears in the upper left-hand corner (Mojave Wildlife 2010) click on it.

The oldest Bighorn Ram I have ever seen . . .

Yesterday, at Valley of Fire, we came upon a Bighorn Ram by the campgrounds near Poodle Rock. It was all by itself. We got out and took some photos. I have never seen a older or mangier Bighorn in my life. We got back in the Trekker and followed the Bighorn back into the campground and was able to drive up very close to the old fellow for some very close photos.

This was the first look that we got from the road. You can see the campground in the background.

A closer look at the old boy . . .

It let us drive right up close and everyone got some great close-up shots.

This is one old, grizzled Desert Bighorn!

Click on the photo for a closer look.

A second click even zooms in more.

Now, compare the old boy to one of the Hemenway Park sheep in Boulder City.

Quite a big difference, isn't there?

The old Valley of Fire Ram seems to have lived a very hard life. Biologists say that Bighorn Sheep in Nevada live to be about 12 years old, even though their lifespan can be 20 to 25 years.

They say that Nevada sheep suffer from parasites like Bott Fly and Lung Worm that shortens there natural lifespan.

Close encounter with an Antelope Ground Squirrel today.

At the Valley of Fire today, this little guy came running up to my group with absolutely no fear at all. It is a White-tailed Antelope Ground Squirrel. One of my guests pulled a soda cracker out of her purse and crumbled it up and put it on the ground. We were able to get real close with our cameras, the closest I had ever been able to get.

After close observation of the squirrels behavior, I was able to feed it out of my hand. It was so cute. It would get a chunk of cracker and run off and hide it under a rock, and then run back for more. It wasn't completely tame however, as it would scurry away at any quick movements or loud noises.

In this close-up you can see how the squirrel uses its tail like a small umbrella, bending it back to protect itself from the harsh rays of the sun. When it is extremely hot, the Antelope Ground Squirrel goes down into its burrow and becomes very inactive, restricting its activity.

Caution: remember that it is a good idea not to handle small rodents in most cases as they can carry viruses and can bite you when you least expect it.

This is one of the ways that the Antelope Ground Squirrel cools down on hot summer days. It will lay flat out on the ground in the shade and cool it's body down.

Sea Otter and Wildlife Quest

Sometimes my Pink Jeep guests ask me what I did in Alaska and where I lived. This is a video presentation that I put together while captaining whale watching cruises in Sitka Sound. I lived in Sitka for 12 years.

One of the tours we did was called the Sea Otter And Wildlife Quest Tour. This video was made to promote the tour to people visiting Sitka on the cruise ships.

For a full view and better quality, click on the title in the upper left hand corner. (Sea Otter and Wildlife Quest) If the title is not there, click on the screen in the upper left-hand corner and the title should appear.

Racetrack Playa - magical and mystical! #2