UPDATED!!! Animals We've Seen

On our trip we've seen a number of animals ranging from prarie dogs to elk. We decided that we wanted to tell everyone what we've seen, please note that the posting date will change as we update the list. Have fun hearing (or reading) about which animal we have seen.


Here is a basic list of the mammals we've seen in the wild

• Mule deer (CO, UT, AZ, NM, WY, MT, AB)
  
• White-tailed deer (all over the eastern states, AB)
  
• Elk (CO)
  
• Pronghorn antelope (NM--close up!, WY, MT)
  
• Prairie dogs (AZ, MT--at Little Bighorn Battlefield)
  
• Bighorn sheep (CO--Pikes Peak, near Glenwood Hot Springs)
  
• Ground squirrels (AZ)
  
• Coyotes (AZ--Grand Canyon, WY)
  
• Jackrabbits
  
• Longhorn cattle (Ranching land!! -- WY, MT, etc)--okay these aren't wild...but they're cool!
• Muskrats (CO--walking with Aunt Janette)
• Caribou (N American name for Reindeer) (all along AK Hwy in BC)
  
• Wood Bison (endangered! we saw 56 plus 1 calf along and ON the Alaska Hwy in BC)
• Stone Sheep -- male & female (along AK Hwy in BC)
• Black Bears (beside AK Hwy in BC)
• Horses (assumed to be running wild -- near an indian reservation BC)
  
• Beaver LODGES -- haven't seen any actual beaver yet!
  
• Moose (2 calfs and a number of adults. around AK)
• Grizzly Bears (2 by the roadside in AK)

And here is a list of the birds we've seen

• Seagulls (in the prairies of Montana and Alberta--no water nearby)
• Mallard ducks
• Burrowing owl (AZ--with Uncle David)
  
• Roadrunner (AZ--beside road at Casa Grande)
  
• Ravens (AZ--Grand Canyon...and everywhere since!)
  
• Hawks (All over)
  
• Cranes (WY--along Platte River??)
  
• Herons
• Great blue herons
• Pileated Woodpecker (in RV Park near Great Falls MT)
  
• Red wing black birds (AB)
  
• Magpies (AB)
  
• Clark's nutcracker (at Lake Louise AB)
  
• Finches (AZ, NM, CO...)
  
• Bald Eagles
• Puffins.

a list of marine life seen in the wild

• Orca whales (AK)
• Humpback whale (AK)
• Harbor seals (AK)
• Moon jellyfish (AK)
• Star fish (AK)

and a list of unusual pets:

• African spurred tortoises (traveling to ALASKA from TX---met family in Colorado Springs)

That's all so far...

califonia condors

here are some facts about California condors

• California condors are an endangered spices.
• there is only 350 condors left in the world
• they have a wingspan from wingtip to wingtip of nine and a half feet which is wider than our trailer!
• these condors don't flap they keep there wings wide and glide on the currents, meaning that its rare to see one flap.
• the first condors to be born in the wild were born around a year ago at the grand canyon.
• California condors can only be found in a few areas of California and the grand canyon area.

saguaros

the saguaro is a fairly common type of cacti in Arizona. a few random facts about them are listed here

• can grow to about 50 feet tall
• lives as long as 200 years
• are often damaged by lightning
• when they're 8 years old they are still less than 1 foot tall
• don't grow any arms till they are over 80 years old
• the width is affected by how much water is stored in the cacti's trunk
• its "skeleton" is made of a wood like material that is sturdy enough for a half inch thick pole as tall as my shoulders to stand up to almost 130 pounds weight leaning on it.
• are sometimes called the ancient giants