Wild Things v4 [Gold!]

Hiked: 4/12/2018
Distance: 1.2 miles round trip on trail
Difficulty: Easy

I pulled my trailcam away from the watering hole near a popular trail in the Santa Ana Mountains so I could deploy it back to the deep forest inside the proven hunting grounds of a mountain lion. But I struck gold over the last two weeks as the animals were very busy. I even got a full shot of a lion, the holy grail of mythic animals in the mountains. In a few months, I am going to be tempted to put it back to at this watering hole or find someplace similar. Hey, everything needs water. I've broken up the photos by sections in this order:

• Turkey Vulture
• Raven
• Coyote
• Bobcat
• Mountain Lion (Cougar)

The coyotes are moving around in the daytime and at night. They don't seem to have a set schedule. Exit photos show some of them moving upstream on the rocks to the right, while others head up the hill at the back. There is a faint use trail there that people and dogs also use.

Bobcats are fast. I have many trailcam shots of half a bobcat or a bobcat moving blur. Some of these shots are solid and the bold patterns on the fur would make any cat proud. This particular bobcat haunts the area and is seen on multiple consecutive days. They are notoriously hard to photograph in person. I've seen fleeting glimpses of half a dozen but never gotten a clean photo.

This lone full body shot of a mountain lion (cougar) was a shock. She only visited the watering hole once in the previous month, maybe because water is drying up in other parts of the creek. She does not appear to be collared or tagged, but there isn't a clear view of her ears. She appears to be hunting and exits upstream to the right. Wow!