Wildlife on the PCT

The southern portion of the PCT is full of wildlife. By mile 328 I have seen:

• countless rattlesnakes, some light-colored, some darker; most slither off the trail, but occasionally they coil up and stand their ground, and you must go around them
• a gopher snake
• a couple dark snakes that move extremely fast
• a thin green snake
• mule deer
• rabbits or hares, squirrels, gophers, chipmunks
• dozens of horned lizards
• myriad other lizards, some of them quite exotic
• possibly, the side of a mountain lion -- it was a large tan shape that moved out of sight quickly and silently, and I could have been seeing things
• tarantulas; one had been stung by a wasp and was immobile, the other was lurking in its den 1 foot from my groundcloth waiting for insects (I fed it some)
• a dead bobcat (roadkill)
• coyotes; did not see them, but heard their wailing
• countless bird species from hummingbirds to hawks
  

Videos:

Riled-up rattlesnake; had to go around it: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gp2YDNnqitk
Rattlesnake moving off trail: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ovEDftFqmHg


Photos



Horned lizard. The coloring of these things varies widely.

Is this lizard surveying his dominion or merely sunbathing? Either way, he appears highly self-content.

Rattler poised for a strike. Nature's way of posting a "Detour" sign.

Tarantulas usually lurk in their holes and rarely come outside.

Male lizards overcome by the "mentality of scarcity."

Is this a gecko?


Probably a gopher snake.


Chickens huddling together to preserve warmth.

Homo sapiens after some successful hunting and gathering.