Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Land Mammals
California's most symbolic land animal - it graces the state flag - is the grizzly bear.
Grizzlies once roamed California's beaches and grasslands in large numbers, eating
everything from whale carcasses to acorns, but were extirpated in the 1920s after relentless
persecution. All that remains now are the grizzlies' smaller cousins, black bears. Despite
their name, their fur ranges in color from black to dark brown, cinnamon or even blond.
These burly omnivores, who feed on berries, nuts, roots, grasses, insects, eggs, small
mammals and fish, are rarely seen along the coast, preferring to live in mountainous
forests further inland.
As foreign settlers moved into California in the 1800s, many other large mammals fared
almost as poorly as grizzly bears. Immense herds of tule elk were hunted to near-extinction
by the 1860s. A small remnant herd of tule elk was moved to Point Reyes National
Seashore in the 1970s, where the population has since rebounded. Much larger Roosevelt
elk once ranged from San Francisco Bay all the way into Canada, but by the 1920s there
were only 15 left. Today, species conservation efforts have increased the population to
more than 1000 Roosevelt elk, protected by the North Coast's Redwood National and State
Parks.
Mountain lions (also called cougars) hunt throughout California, especially in woodsy
areas teeming with deer. Solitary lions, which can grow 8ft in length and weigh 175lb, are
formidable predators. A few attacks on humans have occurred, usually where human en-
croachment pushes hungry lions to their limits - for example, at the boundaries between
wilderness and rapidly developing suburbs.
If you can't tell a tufted sea lion from a whiskered harbor seal, pick up one of the excellent
California Natural History Guides
published by the University of California Press
(
www.californianaturalhistory.com
), which are compact enough to carry in a day pack.
