wildlife

Wildlife is an important part of life in and around Rocky Mountain National Park. Within the Park boundaries, all wildlife and plant life is protected by Federal regulations. Along the edges, the wildlife may not have the same "official" protection, but many Park neighbors, take the well-being of their wild neighbors very seriously.

Please help keep wildlife wild by not feeding or approaching animals. Let them be themselves.

Mule deer live here, but are not seen as often as the elk.

Perhaps the most abundant and visible of the big animals are the elk.

Moose are not native to Rocky, but have moved into the Park from neighboring Jackson county where they were reintroduced several years ago.

Bighorn sheep are sometimes seen in the higher elevations. They gather in herds of a few to a few dozen. Even if they are seen near roads or other human areas, they are deeply affected by the presence of people. Please stay back to avoid stressing them.

Mountain lions live here, too. They are rarely seen, but sightings are becoming more common. These big cats are loners. They will take deer, weakened elk (very old, very young, or sick), rabbits or other small game. They mostly prefer to avoid humans, but may be attracted by children or joggers. Never let small children wander from your side. If you jog, try to do it with a partner or group, and avoid jogging in the evening. Just think of a house cat -- to get it to play you make something move, like running prey. A running human may trigger the cat's hunting instinct. If you meet a mountain lion, make yourself as big and tall as possible and DO NOT RUN. Keep your kids with you and in sight at all times.

Their smaller cousins, the bobcat and lynx live here, too. They are as secretive as the mountain lion, so consider yourself extremely fortunate if you see one.

Coyotes make their presence known by serenading each other. Their songs carry on the night air, providing music to those who like their songs; frightening folks who are less familiar with the canny canine. They spend a lot of time searching for mice, voles, grasshoppers. Sometimes, if you're lucky, you'll see them out in the open during the daylight hours. They'll eat carrion, too, if they can find it. If you see tracks that look like a medium dog's, you may be walking where a coyote passed.

Another wild dog you might see is the red fox. Much smaller than the coyote, the fox has a very bushy tail with a white tip. They, too, eat any small critter they can catch. Consider yourself luck to see one, but the most likely places are the open meadows, the edges of the village of Grand Lake. Their tracks look like little dog tracks, but in a single line.

In winter you might see any of the resident wildlife using the roadways to avoid the effort of pushing through deep snow.

There are about 260 species birds that use the park. Most are here in summer. Keep your eyes open; see how many different bird species you can spot.

While not in the park, a bird that has been sighted more and more in the surrounding area is the white pelican. A few years ago a couple of them were spotted at Windy Gap, about 17 miles from the park. At that time, the bird checklist said they were an "accidental" species, only having been sighted about 5 times. Since that time I have seen them every spring and fall at either Windy Gap, Lake Granby, or both. The summer of 99 about 15 of them stayed at Windy Gap all summer! Maybe they will become a permanent addition to our wildife.

We humans are often tempted to feed animals that look hungry or look like they might want something. Unfortunately, there are many reasons why we should not "help" our animal friends. The most important -- if they become used to getting handouts they stop looking for the foods that keep them healthy. They don't teach their young how to gather the right foods. When the crowds go home, they lose their "meal ticket" and go hungry. Most wild animals' digestive systems are not able to handle human foods well. We cook, season, process, and otherwise change our foods into something far different from grass, bark, leaves and raw meat. An animal may enjoy our foods, but in the long run our foods might as well be poison for them. And our packaging and wrappers can block their digestive systems when they seek out human food from garbage cans or unattended picnic hampers.

Wild animals need to keep their fear of unknown things. When they are fed, or when garbage is available to them, they lose their fear of the human scent. Being too close to an animal puts you in greater danger if something goes wrong -- you're too close to get away from a frightened or angry animal. Some even start association the smell of humans with food and begin to approach people looking for food. Some even become aggresive in their quest for food.

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