Oregon

Siskiyou Chipmunk, Neotamias siskiyou, Oregon Caves National Monument

Crater Lake, Oregon

A night here in 2024 to look for Pacific Martens and Western Pocket Gophers in 2024 only produced the latter.

Gold Beach

Humboldt’s Flying Squirrel, Glaucomys oregonensis

In June 2020 I saw three Humboldt’s Flying Squirrels along the Francis Schrader Old Growth Trail close to Gold Beach.

Oregon Caves National Monument

In July 2013 I flew to Portland, Oregon, and spent a few days driving down to LA. One of my targets was the Siskiyou Chipmunk, which has a pretty limited range on the California/Oregon border. I spent a night at Oregon Caves National Monument to look for them after a tip from squirrel guru John Koprowski.

Some of the information I’d read suggested they were most likely at around 7,000 ft, but they were easy to find by the visitor centre at Oregon Caves National Monument (at around 4,000ft) and also pretty muvh at sea level at Jedediah Smith Sate Redwoods Park, just over the border in California: indeed the Redwood Highway (Hwy 199) that joins the two parks goes through prime Siskiyou Chipmunk habitat from Cave Junction to Crescent City and you would probably see them on the roadside in the early morning.

Siskiyou Chipmunk, Neotamias siskiyou

Identification is fairly easy as the only other species that overlaps is the more colourful Yellow-Pine Chipmunk, which I found in the forest along the trail back from the cave.

Yellow-Pine Chipmunk, Tamias amoenus

The caves themselves are home to 8 species of bats in the winter, but they are not often seen in summer. I didn’t see any during the cave tour, though the ranger said there had been a couple of Townsend’s Big-eared Bats fluttering around earlier in the day.

A 30 minute spotlight after dinner was unproductive. Bushy-tailed Woodrats are common it seems (there had been one in the staff dormitory kitchen the night before). Other mammals I saw included a Black-tailed Deer, a couple of Western Deer Mice (caught in the forest outside the park), and a Douglas Squirrel.

Portland

Camas Pocket Gopher, Thomomys bulbivorus

In June 2020 Camas Pocket Gophers were easy to see in the Emerald Estates Park in Bethany.

Mount Humbug, Port Orford, Oregon

I looked for Red Tree Voles here in 2024. I did not see them: just a Western Deer Mouse and a (probable) Long-eared Myotis.

Heceta Head, Oregon

California Sea Lion (Zalophus californianus)

There were many Western Pocket Gopher diggings around the picnic table at the Heceta Lighthouse in 2024. The only mammals aboive ground were California Sea Lions from the well sign-posted viewpoint to Sea Lion Caves.

Salem, Oregon

Gray-tailed Vole (Microtus canicaudus)

I spent a night at Salem iin the Williamette Valley in 2024  and saw a Grey-tailed Vole at the Oak Grove Rest Area (northbound) on I5 as well as Western Deer Mice