rare sighting – Syndication Server

Rarely seen Yellowstone wildcats appear boldly on ridge

Footage shows the normally elusive mountain lions traversing a snow-covered ridge as if out for a Sunday stroll.

A guide in Yellowstone National Park last week captured footage of rarely seen cougars traversing a snow-covered ridge as if out for a Sunday stroll.

MacNeil Lyons of Yellowstone Insight told FTW Outdoors that he was leading a photography tour with a guest from the U.K., who was “extremely excited” to observe cougars for the first time.

Understandable, considering that most visitors to Yellowstone do not see cougars, or mountain lions. Although the park is home to perhaps a few dozen of the large wildcats, they’re famously stealthy and elusive.

Lyons shared the accompanying footage via Instagram, writing:

“High in elevation, between craggy peaks these two sauntered on the ridge line with a backlit ‘bluebird’ sky! As the lions went out of view from one vantage point, I read the landscape and moved a few miles down the road to try a different vantage point.

“Our luck continued as we picked them up as one sat and peered over the edge of large snow cornices. We had our time with them for at least 20 minutes.”

Lyons told FTW Outdoors that he captured the footage in the northern range from more than a mile away, with an iPhone attached to a Swarovski spotting scope.

He said the cougars might be the same pair – perhaps a courting pair, or a mom with a subadult offspring – that was spotted recently on a ridge hunting mountain goats.

https://www.instagram.com/reel/DFZPuDixW3Q/

According to the park, cougars are native to the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem but were nearly eradicated throughout the Lower 48 states during predator-removal campaigns in the early 1900s.

They survived in the West largely because of their preference for remote, rugged habitat, and their elusive nature.

Lyons, who has documented an astonishing 37 cougar sightings in 25 years of living in Montana, expressed concern for the future of the park and surrounding region in light of new or proposed laws that could jeopardize wildlife.

He concluded his Instagram post:

“We need these Wild Places. But more importantly the entire 4-legged, feathered and scaled community needs this wild space. Pay attention to new state & federal laws that lessen the protection of our Public Lands.

“Times are changing and seemingly not to the benefit of those without a voice… the animal community. Be their voice for protection and ethical stewardship of these wild spaces.

“Thank you to all that are keeping up the Good Fight.”

Watch: Lions in a quandary after cobra slithers onto road

Footage shows the lions pause in their tracks, unsure how to react, after encountering the cobra and smaller reptile.

An African safari company on Thursday shared rare footage showing two lions encountering a cobra as the venomous snake stalked a lizard.

The extraordinary scene plays out on a road and viewers can hear a guest express disbelief at being able to photograph “a cobra and a lion in one shot.” (Video posted below.)

But, as Daniel Wildlife Safari explains, and as viewers can see, the lizard also stars in this bizarre confrontation:

“What seemed to have happened was that the cobra was hunting the lizard. The hunt must have caught the lions’ attention. The lions cautiously stalked the snake which drew the attention of the snake away from the lizard. Once the tension between the lions and the cobra eased, the lizard stumbled in front of the lions.

“The lions were unsure of this whole situation and were shocked! After encountering the venomous cobra, the lions did not want to take the chance with the defenseless lizard. They left the lizard alone and all 3 animals went away seemingly unscathed.”

https://www.instagram.com/reel/DFucOm5t97o/

Orcas kill gray whale in rare predation event off L.A.

A rarely seen pod of marine mammal-eating orcas is presumed responsible for killing the 25-foot gray whale.

**UPDATE: Orcas might not have killed the whale despite an initial claim by a prominent researcher. An examination of the carcass after the whale washed ashore revealed possible shark bites, but results of a necropsy are pending. We apologize for any erroneous information that might have been provided by sources.

Two Los Angeles-area boaters on Saturday spotted a juvenile gray whale that had recently been killed by orcas and was missing most of its head.

Alisa Schulman-Janiger, director of the ACS-LA Gray Whale Census and Behavior Project, told FTW Outdoors that Jean Huber and Christy Varni discovered the floating carcass at mid-morning less than a mile off Marina del Rey.

Huber and Varni, project volunteers, said the orcas, or killer whales, were not present. But they said tooth-rake marks (common after orca predation) were evident on carcass.

Schulman-Janiger, also Lead Research Biologist for the California Killer Whale Project, said the orcas are likely the same five orcas spotted farther south, off Orange County, on Thursday.

Gray whale carcass missing much of its head. Photo: Jean Huber

They were photo-identified by Schulman-Janiger after Thursday’s sighting as Bigg’s killer whale CA56 and her three kids, along with a closely associated female, CA133.

“I can’t say for sure that this was them, but they were confirmed to have killed at least one common dolphin on Thursday,” Schulman-Janiger said.

Bigg’s killer whales prey predominantly on other marine mammals, including gray whales. But virtually all previous gray whale predations have involved much smaller calves.

The CA56/CA133 pod has only been documented seven times as of Thursday, with most sightings logged off Monterey in Central California.

Until Thursday, the farthest south these orcas had been documented was off Santa Barbara in December 2023.

Famous white dolphin surfaces off California with dazzling new look

Famous Risso’s dolphin is documented in region for perhaps the first time, looking sleeker than ever.

A white Risso’s dolphin known to frequent Monterey Bay looked especially luminous Saturday during an extraordinary Southern California appearance.

Capt. Delaney Trowbridge of Pacific Offshore Expeditions announced the sighting via Instagram:

“Casper the Risso’s dolphin has NEVER been documented outside of Monterey Bay – but today we found him alongside other Risso’s and bottlenose on the front side of Santa Rosa Island.”

Casper the white dolphin next to pod mate. Photo: Delaney Trowbridge

Santa Rosa Island is part of Channel Islands National Park off Ventura and Santa Barbara, more than 200 miles south of Monterey.

Risso’s dolphins, which can measure 10-plus feet, are robust cetaceans that typically travel in groups of between 10 and 30.

They’re born with dark skin that lightens to a pale gray as they age. As adults, their skin boasts scars caused by rough socializing or battles with squid and other prey.

https://www.instagram.com/p/DE_fu3MxHkL/

Casper, first spotted as a white calf in Monterey Bay in 2014, is either leucistic or albino. But while his skin had a slight film of algae during previous sightings, on Saturday it was pure white.

“Initially I thought we had found Blanco, the other white Risso’s dolphin that I’ve encountered a few times off of San Diego and Catalina Island,” Trowbridge told FTW Outdoors. “Comparatively, Casper is much whiter, Blanco has dark lips and a dark trim on his fin.

“Once we got that closer look it dawned on me, ‘Wow, this dolphin is porcelain white – it wasn’t Blanco.’ ”

Casper next to pod mate with scarred body. Photo: Delaney Trowbridge

Alisa Schulman-Janiger, a researcher, helped Trowbridge determine, based on fin markings, that the dolphin was Casper.

Schulman-Janiger said diatoms that caused the yellowish hue had died off, perhaps in warmer Southern California waters, revealing the sleeker look.

The sighting occurred just days after a white killer whale named Frosty was spotted with other orcas near the Channel Islands.

Pacific Offshore Expeditions was on a successful Killer Whale Quest when Casper and his pod mates were encountered.

Missouri deer hunter charged after shooting cougar from tree stand

Mountain lions are protected in Missouri and the animal was walking away from the elevated stand when it was shot.

A Missouri deer hunter who shot and killed a mountain lion as it passed beneath his tree stand last month has been charged with a misdemeanor.

According to KY3 News, Joseph Licklider of Desloge, Mo., informed the Iron County Sheriff’s Department on Nov. 16 that he had shot the mountain lion, or cougar, while in the tree stand with his partner.

Missouri does not have an established cougar population, but a handful of sightings are reported each year. The protected animals can only be killed in self-defense or to protect pets or livestock.

The cougar that Licklider killed was wearing research tags from the Nebraska Game & Parks Commission, and walking away from the elevated stand when it was shot.

The charge for illegally killing protected wildlife was leveled after an investigation determined that Licklider’s action was unjustified. He’s scheduled to appear in court in February 2025.

As Yellowstone bears sleep, park warns of another dangerous critter

Yellowstone National Park elaborates that just because bears are hibernating, visitors should keep bear spray handy.

Yellowstone National Park this week cautioned that while most bears are hibernating, winter visitors should still carry bear spray.

That’s because mountain lions, or cougars, are active year-round in the park.

“Though these big cats are extremely elusive and averse to human activity, you should always take care when recreating in the park — even in the winter,” the park explained via Instagram. “Carry bear spray and keep it handy, not inside your pack.

“If you see a cougar, ACT BIG! Yell, show your teeth, and make eye contact.”

Yellowstone cougar keeps watch from tree. Photo: NPS/Connor Meyer

Biologists estimate that as many as 42 cougars inhabit the park’s northern range, and that other cougars enter the park sporadically.

MORE OUTDOORS: Yellowstone grizzly bear makes snow angels

For comparison, the park is home to about 125 wolves, which are also active year-round.

But wolves, although they can be elusive, reside in packs and are more predictable, in terms of revealing their locations, than mountain lions.

https://www.instagram.com/p/CZ7wIOxjgIl/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=embed_video_watch_again

From the park website: “Wolves are not normally a danger to humans, unless humans habituate them by providing them with food. No wolf has attacked a human in Yellowstone.”

Cougar encounters, while extremely rare, do occur.

In February 2022, Yellowstone Wolf Tracker shared distant footage showing a large cougar rising from its resting spot and exiting the frame. (Video posted above.)

The ecotour company exclaimed: “Low-quality video but a high-quality sighting!”

Cougars prey mostly on deer and elk, but also small mammals such as marmots.

According to the park’s website, bears and wolves sometimes displace cougars from their kills, and wolf packs have been known to kill adult cougars and cougar kittens.

The park adds that “very few documented confrontations between cougars and humans have occurred in Yellowstone.”

But it’s best to be prepared.

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Watch: Orca performs ‘headstand’ during rare San Diego sighting

The Eastern Tropical Pacific killer whales, more commonly spotted off Mexico, are famously boat friendly.

When Eastern Tropical Pacific killer whales visit San Diego waters via Mexico, it’s always exciting for observers.

For starters, the ETPs visit primarily to hunt common dolphins. These predation events, while deadly for dolphins, are acrobatic spectacles that showcase the orcas’ skills as cunning, top-level predators.

But also, ETP orcas are famously boat friendly and seemingly curious about their human admirers.

The accompanying footage, captured Dec. 4 by Capt. Erica Sackrison and deckhand Jess Aubry of Gone Whale Watching San Diego, shows an orca thrilling passengers by performing a “headstand” just feet beyond the vessel’s bow.

https://www.instagram.com/p/DDOP0o5JH7v/

“He’s upside down!” one passenger exclaims in the footage, moments before the mammal raises its tail section above water.

Gone Whale Watching San Diego via Instagram:

“Christmas came early for the Gone Whale Watching family yesterday when a few members of the same pod of ETP Killer Whales made yet another memorable visit to San Diego!

“The notoriously boat-friendly orcas constantly interacted with our boats, making it clear they wanted ATTENTION! Us meager whale watchers were only too willing to oblige!”

ETP killer whale sightings off Southern California are rare, but this time of year is when most sightings occur.

Gone Whale Watching San Diego has logged three sightings involving members of the same orca pod over the past three weeks, and is hopeful for more encounters:

“While it is utterly impossible to predict when we’ll see them again, a string of recent sightings can only be taken as a positive omen!”

Watch: Orca launches 20 feet high while pursuing prey off San Diego

Footage from the rare encounter shows the orca “channeling his inner Top Gun” with an acrobatic assault on a common dolphin.

Boaters off San Diego on Saturday witnessed a rarely seen spectacle involving killer whales, or orcas, that are more commonly encountered much farther south in Mexico.

“Who needs SeaWorld when the greatest Orca show in the world is in the WILD!” Domenic Biagini, owner of Gone Whale Watching San Diego, exclaimed via Instagram.

The accompanying footage, captured by the company’s Erica Sackrison, shows one orca ambushing a dolphin from below, sending the stunned mammal flying while launching at least 20 feet above the surface.

MORE: Orca bats seal 70 feet skyward

The Eastern Tropical Pacific orcas only show up a few times a year off San Diego and it’s almost always to hunt common dolphins, which are abundant off Southern California.

https://www.instagram.com/p/DCwdOo2PFTp/

Biagini explained that the day’s excitement began with the sighting of a surface-feeding humpback whale and hundreds of dolphins.

Then, in the distance, dolphins began to stampede in a panic. A crewman noticed a splash from a larger mammal, indicating that a killer whale hunting party was present.

“Our initial thought was that a Humpback had done something surface active; when suddenly the unmistakeable shape of a Killer Whale exploded into the air!” Biagini wrote.

The orca in the footage is a previous visitor nicknamed Top Notch, because of distinctive markings. Biagini joked that Top Notch was “channeling his inner ‘Top Gun’ by rocketing 20-plus feet into the air in pursuit of a common dolphin breakfast.”

The orcas were not encountered Sunday.

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Mystery animal near Yellowstone likely one of area’s rarest critters

Dash-cam footage shows the animal – likely a wolverine – bounding across a snowy road just outside Yellowstone National Park.

A Montana photographer on Tuesday shared blurry dash-cam footage showing a low-profiled animal bounding across a snow-covered road just outside Yellowstone National Park.

Trent Sizemore, based in West Yellowstone, theorized via Facebook that the critter was a wolverine:

“It was dark in color, had a noticeable tail, was the size of a small wolf, but much lower to the ground. It loped across the road more like a wolverine than a wolf.”

(Click here to view footage if video player doesn’t appear below.)

https://www.facebook.com/sizemorefineart/videos/457324234047166

That would represent one of the rarest animal sightings to occur in or near Yellowstone National Park.

The stocky carnivores are solitary and extremely elusive, and only a handful are believed to reside in a greater Yellowstone region that includes vast swaths of Montana and Wyoming.

A verified wolverine sighting was documented inside the park in March 2022, also in the snow, by the tour group Yellowstone Insight. (Click here to view images from that encounter.)

In January 2021, the park shared month-old trail-cam footage showing a wolverine loping across the snow.

The park stated: “Park biologists were excited to find one of Yellowstone’s rarest mammals triggered a remote trail camera outside the Mammoth Hot Springs area!”

That was the first wolverine footage captured by a trail camera inside the park.

Generic wolverine image courtesy of Wikipedia

West Yellowstone is just outside the park’s West Entrance. Sizemore told the Cowboy State Daily that he was driving his wife to work at 7:30 a.m. when the animal crossed in front of their vehicle.

“My first thought was it was either a coyote or a black wolf,” Sizemore said. “But it was loping across the road, too low to the ground to be a wolf, and I realized it might be a wolverine.”

Sizemore shared the footage with Cat Wood, a biologist who studied wolverines in Alaska. She told the Cowboy State Daily that the animal is likely a wolverine.

“It’s called a loping gallop,” Wood said of a gait that is “very specific to wolverines.”

If, in fact, it was a wolverine, it would represent a once-in-a-lifetime sighting. But Sizemore, of course, would love to get a another look at the animal in more favorable conditions.

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Seal develops whale of a problem after feeding mishap; photos

A harbor seal in the Pacific Northwest on Friday found itself in the mouth of a humpback whale and in dire need of an exit plan.

A harbor seal in the Pacific Northwest on Friday found itself in the mouth of a humpback whale and in desperate need of an exit strategy.

The image atop this post, captured by Tim Filipovic of Eagle Wings Tours, shows the moment the seal realized it needed to be elsewhere, and quickly.

A secondary image, by Brooke Casanova of Blue Kingdom Whale & Wildlife Tours, reveals a similar expression of bewilderment and fear.

Humpback whale with seal in its mouth. Photo by Brooke Casanova

Erin Gless, executive director of the Pacific Whale Watch Association, told FTW Outdoors that its member vessels were whale watching in the Strait of Juan de Fuca, southwest of Victoria, B.C., when the lunge-feeding whale scooped up the seal.

She described it as an “incredibly rare event” but stressed that the seal was not in danger of becoming prey.

“Humpback whales eat small fish and krill, not seals,” Gless explained. “While they have very large mouths, their throats are roughly the size of a grapefruit, so they can’t swallow something as large as a seal.”

https://www.facebook.com/ThePWWA/posts/pfbid02zFdXUgFMgcMucrgJroWKMcyMtpkPM3ic5AvFTpUXgQurBapoJw2grK3r7C3yEPH3l

Humpback whales typically feed on bait fish by lunging, either vertically or horizontally, through large schools. They can take in thousands of fish in one gulp.

The female humpback whale that gulped the seal (temporarily) is scientifically cataloged as BCX1876, nicknamed Zillion.

Gless recalled how Zillion ended up with the pinniped in her mouth:

“At one point, Zillion opened her jaws and lunged toward the surface for a mouthful of fish, but got an unexpected surprise when she realized that mouthful also contained an unsuspecting harbor seal!

“The harbor seal was likely feeding on the same small fish and found itself in the wrong place at the wrong time. Zillion repeatedly opened her jaw and lowered her head into the water until the seal was able to swim away.”

In reference to the image atop this post, Gless remarked via Facebook that the seal looked “like a little kid in a wave pool.”