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Description and Ecology Ocelots ( Leopardus pardalis ) look similar to an average housecat. A fully grown ocelot stands 16 to 20 inches tall, measures about 2 to 3 feet long, and weighs 17 to 33 pounds. Its tail is between 12 and 20 inches. An ocelot’s fur is usually reddish tan with black splotches. The fur is white on the chest and stomach, as well as under the tail. This coloring helps the ocelot blend in with its habitat. Because the ocelot is a predator, its eyes are on the front of its face. Territorial and solitary, ocelots spend most of the day resting out of sight in brush or among tree vines or roots. They hunt mostly at night. To find prey, they roam throughout their territory and then spend up to an hour at a time motionless in a single spot waiting to strike. The diet of ocelots consists mostly of small mammals such as rabbits and mice, but they also eat lizards, frogs, and even birds. An interesting fact about ocelots is that they are strong swimmers. Th...

Photo courtesy of Adam G. Clause By: Salman Al-Sulaiti Description The California Tiger Salamander is a large, stocky salamander with a broad, rounded snout. Adult salamanders range from 6 to 9.5 inches in length. Their coloration usually consists of random yellow markings on a black body. The California Tiger Salamander is endemic to the Santa Rosa Plain, the San Joaquin-Sacramento River valleys and bordering foothills, and the coastal valleys of Central California south to Santa Barbara. This particular blog is about the Sonoma County DPS (Distinct Population Segment), this listing is due to the geographical isolation and genetic differences of the Sonoma population as compared to the Santa Barbara and Central DPSs. Courtesy of U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Geographic Historically the range of the Sonoma California Tiger Salamander was approx. 100,000 acres, prior to human intervention of the Plain. By the mid-1990s there was an estimated loss of 80% of the vernal ...

Nick Adler 11/10/17 Southern Sea Otters (Enhydra lutris nereis): Super Cute Guardians of the Kelp Forest Fig. 1 Smiling Sea Otter Description: At first glance it can be hard to believe that this silly looking creature is absolutely essential to an entire ecosystem. But the Southern Sea Otter is just that, acting as a keystone species in Kelp Forests off the Pacific Coast of the U.S. The Sea Otter is the heaviest species in the Weasel family, though it is the smallest marine mammal native to North America. They have the densest coat of fur in the animal kingdom, which helps to insulate them against the cold ocean water as they no fat or blubber as many other marine mammals do. They influence the Kelp Forest primarily through their diet, which consists largely of Sea Urchins, which if left unchecked would devastate the kelp. Females typically give birth to one pup a year, which, despite being uncommon among carnivores, is “consistent with other marine mammals, except...

Lucas Bartell                 The Mexican Wolf ( Canis lupus baileyi ) Listing: Endangered, 04/28/1976  Updated Listing: Experimental Population, Nonessential 01/24/1998                                                                                             http://carnivoraforum.com/topic/10500620/1/ Description and Ecology  The Mexican Wolf is an endangered top predator native to the Southwestern United States and Mexico. It hunts in packs in areas of dense forrest, and primarily prays on elk and deer. The Mexican Wolf is a subspecies of the gray wolf, and is easily distinguished by it's yellowish gray pelt and smaller build.   grayareathefil...

             Northern Idaho Ground Squirrel           (Spermophilus brunneus brunneus) *Hailey Bohmaker BIO 227 https://www.inaturalist.org/taxa/179996-Urocitellus-brunneus/browse_photos Description: Spermophilus brunneus brunneus, otherwise known as the Northern Idaho Ground Squirrel is a member of the genus Spermophilus and is generally small in size. It  is 1 of 2 subspecies of the Idaho ground squirrel, which is native to Idaho. The average male length is approximately 23.4 centimeters, and the average female length is 22.6 centimeters. Northern Idaho Ground Squirrel’s coats appear to be a dark reddish tint due to a blend of black and yellow hair along with dark red spots. This species  has a short, narrow tail, tan feet and ears, and a grey-brown throat.  There is a ring of white located around both eyes of the subspecies. Ecology: ...