Recently CSERC received a grant to buy two new cameras for our wildlife survey efforts. The new digital cameras feature infrared imaging that allows detailed pictures to be taken at night without any camera flash that might scare away wildlife.
John and Lindsey recently set up the new equipment far out in the wilderness, and they soon got photos of flying squirrels, chickarees, chipmunks, and big black bears that all visited the bait and triggered the camera. But what really got our staff's attention was an enormous mountain lion that paid a lengthy visit to our station one night. 
The picture at right shows Lindsey refreshing the bait and an attractant scent that she applied on a pine tree in a remote spot in the wilderness.
Seeing Lindsey by the tree helps to give a good perspective on the size of the big cat that visited a few nights later. Scroll down to check him out! He was definitely muscular and powerful -- much bigger than either John or Lindsey!
 
Our camera captured over 40 images of this mountain lion as it rubbed against the tree. Surprisingly, the lion didn't take a single bite of food. One of the advantages of the new digital game camera system is that we can take literally thousands of photos, rathering than being limited by a single roll of film.
As a side note, we also are sharing with you an excellent wildlife photo taken by wilderness ranger Nicole Ver as she hiked through the Carson Iceberg Wilderness this past summer.
The two little American martens were so busy socializing with each other that Nicole had enough time to capture several photographs of them up in the canopy of the large, old growth trees. Images like this help to emphasize the value of conserving critical habitat for at-risk wildlife species.
As CSERC continues our wildlife survey efforts, we will post other interesting and valuable images on our website as well as our Facebook page. Stayed tuned for more results!
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