Tag: rare sighting

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.

RELATED: Yellowstone coyote clearly visible, but can you spot the other critter?

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.”

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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.”

Rare orca encounter off San Diego includes ‘rainblow’ surprise

Footage shows one of the killer whales swimming to within feet of the boat and greeting passengers with a “rainblow.”

A rare orca encounter Wednesday off San Diego was made extra special when one of the mammals swam to the boat and provided an enchanting moment.

“As if seeing this beautiful animal in the wild wasn’t enough, it also gifted us with a beautiful rainbow!” Domenic Biagini, owner of Gone Whale Watching San Diego, exclaimed via Instagram.

The accompanying footage shows the orca’s close approach – and features  Biagini’s exuberant narration – and its “rainblow” greeting.

https://www.instagram.com/p/C_Qd676JbeC/

Biagini and crew, acting on tips from nature and local sportfishing captains, located more than 10 Eastern Tropical Pacific killer whales, or orcas, near the U.S.-Mexico border.

ETP orcas are commonly encountered in Mexico’s Sea of Cortez but occasionally venture into U.S. waters to hunt dolphins and other marine mammals.

Biagini explained the tip he received from seabirds:

“Our initial exploration found a lot of interesting wildlife, but what stood out to us the most was the number of Black-Footed Albatross we were seeing much closer to shore than usual.

“Those Albatross are often a harbinger of larger predators being around like False Killer Whales, sharks, and especially Orcas!”

Biagini promised “more to come from this incredible day” as the ETP watch is in full swing after the encounter.

The orcas were headed south as Biagini returned to port, but that does not mean that they will not resurface off San Diego or elsewhere in Southern California in the coming days.

Alligator sighting in Washington State prompts investigation

The 10-foot gator was last seen in Snohomish County, headed toward a river. Several questions remain unanswered.

**UPDATE: As reported Saturday afternoon by KIRO 7, the reptile in question turned out to be an exotic tegu lizard that recently escaped from its owner.

Alligators are not native to Washington State and could not establish a population in the region because of its cool climate. But somewhere in Snohomish County, a very large gator is on the prowl.

“Granite Falls Deputies are investigating the sighting of a 10’ alligator near the 9400 block of Ray Grade Rd.,” the Snohomish County Sheriff announced late Friday via X. “The reptile was last seen south of Ray Grade Rd. toward the Pilchuck River.”

A grainy image shows the alligator in dense vegetation.

KIRO 7 reported that the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife is aware of the sighting but, at this point, does not plan to try to locate or capture the reptile.

“There aren’t any houses near where the gator was spotted so deputies are hopeful there won’t be any interactions with humans,” KIRO 7 reported.

It’s not clear who previously owned the gator or how long it has survived in the wild.

American alligators are native to the southeastern United States and thrive in hot, steamy regions such as the Florida Everglades.

Sightings in Washington State are extremely rare, but in 2016 several reported sightings on Lake Meridian prompted Kent city officials to post warning signs along the shore.

–Generic image atop this post is courtesy of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service

Can you spot the Yellowstone moose on the distant ridge?

Local photographer asks author if he can spot the moose in a Yellowstone wildlife quiz with an amusing twist.

Last week in Yellowstone National Park, I was observing badgers at their den when a local photographer asked if I could spot the moose on a distant ridge.

I became excited because I had yet to log a moose sighting and, after a few seconds, I realized that the photographer had presented a quiz with an amusing twist.

So I’ll do the same: Can you spot the moose on the ridge in the accompanying images? (Answer at the bottom.)

Can you spot the moose? Photo: ©Pete Thomas

It’s worth noting that moose sightings are somewhat rare in Yellowstone, with fewer than 200 animals inhabiting the massive park.

According to the park website, moose numbers have declined over the years “due to the loss of old growth forests surrounding the park, hunting outside the park, burning of habitat, and predators.”

They’re also solitary creatures, for the most part, except during mating season from September into early October.

So moose sightings are cherished, in part, because they occur so infrequently.

The regal critters are usually spotted near marshy areas or water bodies, which is why I was surprised when the photographer asked me to look at a  ridge more suitable for bighorn sheep.

As many might have already figured out, this is not a quiz that should demand too much of anyone’s time. So I’m presenting the answer below and apologize if I’ve thrown anyone a curve.

Moose-shaped vegetation on the ridge. Photo: ©Pete Thomas

I’m also including an image of an actual moose that I spotted on a roadside slope two days later.

The moose caused a significant traffic jam and there was no place to pull over so I snapped a few quick shots from my vehicle.

Actual moose a bit farther east. Photo: ©Pete Thomas

Hardly a giant but still impressive, and it marked my first actual moose sighting in 6-7 years of visiting the park.

Yellowstone wolves visit Old Faithful in surreal webcam footage

Members of the Wapiti wolf pack were observed strolling across the boardwalk system that winds around Old Faithful and other thermal features.

Yellowstone National Park fans who tuned into the Old Faithful webcam  Thursday morning were thrilled to see wolves strolling across the iconic thermal region.

“What a view this morning!” Yellowstone Forever exclaimed via X. “The webcam captured some incredible footage of the park’s Wapiti wolf pack making its way through the Upper Geyser Basin.”

The webcam footage – rare footage, indeed – shows several wolves on and near the basin’s sprawling boardwalk system. (See footage below.)

A 10-minute version produced by the National Park Service (posted below) shows more extensive exploration by the wolves near Old Faithful and other geysers as steam floats across the wintry landscape.

At times, the wolves are traveling on boardwalks that are crowded with tourists in spring and summer. One wolf is shown near a geyser’s vent, as if savoring its warmth.

A screen shot from the webcam footage was posted on the Yellowstone Insiders Hub Facebook page by Joe Nagel, who exclaimed: “Wolves right now on the Old Faithful webcam!”

One follower joked: “Get. On. The. Boardwalk,” in reference to a park regulation that applies only to human visitors.

Another remarked, “Well, that probably cleared the elk and bison out of the geyser basin.”

Old Faithful is in the southwest portion of the 2.2-million-acre park, which is situated in Wyoming and small portions of Montana and Idaho.

Although wolf sightings can occur anywhere inside the park, the most likely spotting destinations are across the vast northern range.

–Footage courtesy of the National Park Service

Watch: Mysterious white whale thrills boaters off Thailand

The sighting of a white whale near the Phi Phi Islands was the first in the region and possibly in the country.

A white whale was spotted recently off Thailand in what might have been a first for the country.

The appearance of the whale alongside a tourism vessel was brief and the species was not confirmed, although there was speculation that it could have been a Bryde’s whale or Omura’s whale.

The sighting occurred in the Andaman Sea near the Phi Phi Islands.

In the footage, the whale swims swiftly alongside the boat before veering off and surfacing briefly as tourists marveled at the sight.

Yutthapong Damsrisuk, chief of Hat Nopparat Thara-Mu Ko Phi Phi National Park, told The Nation that it was the first known sighting of a white whale in the region and possibly the first off Thailand.

Damsrisuk did not provide the date of the sighting.

The whale was most likely leucistic. Leucism involves the partial loss of pigmentation, causing white or pale coloration.

Boaters in the area were informed of the whale’s presence and asked to exercise caution.