Despite the public’s interest in wildlife, the reality is that wild animals and their habitat continue to suffer from a wide range of damaging practices and projects.
Even government agencies that are legally bound to protect threatened wildlife species are often guilty of allowing programs and projects that push certain species towards extinction. Often the U.S. Forest Service and the California Department of Fish and Wildlife lack the staff and the funding to effectively locate rare wildlife species and adequately protect critical wildlife habitat.
Using cameras to find wildlife
For many years, CSERC’s staff has set up photo detection stations in remote, unprotected roadless areas and other places within the Stanislaus National Forest and Yosemite National Park to locate rare wildlife species.
The goal of these surveys is to identify which rare wildlife species still survive within the unprotected roadless areas of the Stanislaus Forest or in other areas of special importance. These wild areas often contain pockets or blocks of old-growth trees and undisturbed habitat. They are remote from the roads and human activities that disturb many wildlife species.
The evidence we gather about sensitive or threatened wildlife is provided free to the U.S. Forest Service, the Park Service, and other wildlife researchers. Our hope is to use our photo-detection surveys to help preserve critical habitat areas by protecting them from new roads, logging, and development.
In 2011, CSERC captured a picture of a Pacific Fisher in Yosemite NP
Rare red fox caught on camera
A new Sierra Nevada red fox was detected by CSERC staff in October 2015.
Check out this video captured of the Sierra Nevada red fox by CSERC’s camera stations near Sonora Pass in 2011: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=04-Azu4X2_Y
You can see more great photos and more info on the red fox that was detected (and why this is so significant) here!
Help us find more rare species in the Yosemite region
If you visit the Yosemite region and see one of below (or any other) rare animals, then please let us know:
- Fisher
- Wolverine
- Sierra Nevada red fox
- Porcupine
Send an email with your findings to: [email protected]
Read more about the wildlife issues in the Yosemite region here