Rocky Mountains Off The Beaten Path

1 more image

Chipmunk. Chipmunks are very common inhabitants of the Rocky Mountains, they're pretty much everywhere. As far as I'm concerned I don't like them since my food has been pilferred many times even inside my tent (picture 2). Doesn't matter where you are always keep your eyes on your backpack and food otherwise chipmunks are coming. Their omnivorous diet consists of grain, nuts, birds' eggs, fungi, worms, and insects.

Come autumn, many species of chipmunk begin to stockpile these goods in their burrows, for winter. Other species make multiple small caches of food. These two kinds of behavior are called larder hoarding and scatter hoarding. Larder hoarders usually live in their nests until spring.

Moose. Moose can be found all over North America, that includes almost all of Canada, Alaska and the Rockies. Male moose normally weighs between 540 - 720 kg and females usually weigh about 400 kg, not ideal partners for a quarrel.

Look for them around marshlands and small lakes or in Anchorage, Alaska.

Mountain Goat. Also known as Rocky Mountain Goat. Both sexes have beards, short tails, and long black horns. One can addle dall sheeps and mountain goats easily although they have differential sign such as the horn. Adult males typically weigh between 45 and 100 kg.

Mountain goats are the largest mammals found in their high-altitude habitats, which reach elevations of 3,000 meters or more. They seem so peaceful but keep away they can be very dangerous. This picture was taken in Alaska though...hope you excuse:)

2 more images

Dall Sheep. To be more exact the name of this animal is Dall Sheep proper lives just the north side of the Rocky Mountains and Alaska. Male Dall Sheep have thick curling horns. The females have shorter, more slender, slightly curved horns. Males live in bands (picture 3) which seldom associate with female groups except during the mating season in late November and early December.

Lambs are born in May. Not particulary shy anmials they rather curious if they see people. Sometimes it's hard to meet them unless you get higher in the backcountry although I've seen a couple of dall sheeps north of Muncho Lake on the cliffs.

2 more images

Bison/Buffalo. In American Western culture, the bison is commonly referred to as "buffalo"; however, this is a misnomer. In fact, buffalo are distinctly different animals from bison. The American and European bison are the largest terrestrial mammals in North America and they live to be about 20 years old. The most common all over northern BC and the Yukon Territory.

2 more images

Marmot. Marmots are very nice living in burrows and hibernate there through the winter. Most marmots are highly social, and use loud whistles to communicate with one another especially when alarmed. You will probably hear this strange sound. The tail of the marmot is large, reddish-brown and bushy and they can be really big. This is a small one but once (Near Lake Agnes) I saw a huge one..I was so scared when it ran across the trail.

1 more image

Ground Squirrel. Sometimes it's hard to make differences between the different species of ground squirrels or small mammals look like that. This one is called Golden-mantled Ground Squirrel and can be found all over North America. It eats seeds, nuts, berries, insects. Golden-mantled Ground Squirrels dig shallow burrows up to 30m in length with the openings hidden in a hollow log or under tree roots or a boulder.

The female gives birth to a single litter of 4–6 young each summer.

These animals are very nice and they'll ponce for food just note human foods are not healthy for them can effect death too.

Porcupine. Very hard to catch a sight of porcupines although it's a very common animal all over North America. Most porcupines are about 60-90 cm long, with a 20-25 cm long tail. Weighing between 5-16 kg, they are rounded, large and slow. The common porcupine is entirely vegetarian. A major shift in its food habits takes place between the winter and summer months. These animals are very shy and sometimes difficult to recognize they can hide very well just like this one.