Wildlife in Kings Canyon and Sequoia National park

Our week in Kings Canyon and Sequoia National Park was accompanied by the singing and sounds of a lot of different birds.  They spent most of their time up in the dense forest of trees and we rarely saw them but they almost continuously filled the air with their songs.  Many of the sounds were unfamiliar.  It would have been fun to have seen what the birds looked like that were making those unique sounds.  I did, however, recognize one and eventually saw many of them....the Steller's Jay.  They're so pretty dressed in blue.

We knew there was a lot of other wildlife in the park but it was very rare to see too.  We only saw a few deer the whole week.  They were difficult to capture on film because we were in the car each time and they didn't stay in one place for very long.

Once they 'dnotice someone was near, they'd start moving...

And, then running...

Then...in almost a blink of an eye they were gone.

We've learned that when we're in areas like this and we see people stopping their cars in the middle of the road or pulling over to the side for no apparent reason...there's probably something to see and that something is often an animal.  That's how we found the one and only bear we saw the entire week.  I'm glad we only saw one because they should be shy and avoiding humans.  This one was quite a distance away in the woods...which explains why it's hard to see it in these pictures.  I did zoom in on this photo to see him but wanted to show how it's off in the woods.  Look very carefully in the very center (if you click on the photo it should enlarge a bit)...

Here it is zoomed in a bit more...

It was munching on plants and seemed like it didn't even know we were there.  Although, I'm sure they probably have very good hearing and it not only knew we were there but also kept tabs on us.  Luckily, for the bear, there were just two cars and five people watching him and we were all smart enough to keep our distance.

The only other wildlife we saw during our stay were bugs and butterflies, a few chipmunks and squirrels and some wild trout.  But, that's just fine with me.  Wild animals should be just that, wild.  It's not normal for them to want to be near humans.  And, not safe!  That's why many parks have signs asking visitors not to feed them or try to pet them.  It's best to let them be and they'll let us be. 

Next time...Morro Rock in Sequoia National Park.