People ask us all the time what kind of wildlife do we have in this area of Southern Colorado near Trinidad, Aguilar and Walsenburg and we share with them that you can expect to have Black Bear, Mountain Lion, Bobcat, Coyote, Elk and Deer plus any number of other mountain animals and critters. But by far the most feared encounters are with Black Bear and they are also maybe the most frequent encounters.
Let’s face it we are moving into their backyard and while our state’s required 35 acre minimum parcel size leaves a lot of room for both wildlife and humans it also makes it easier for wildlife encounters. In fact the Colorado Division of Wildlife say that Bears have People Problems….because they are just being bears. To learn more about how to deal with Bears and other wildlife in your new or planned mountain property visit their web page “Living With Bears“. Another good article about Bears and other wildlife encounters is called “Bears and Other Wildlife in our Backyards“.
Over the years of living in the Southern Colorado Mountains we have seen and heard lots of experiences and encounters with mostly Black Bears. We don’t see many mountain lions or hear much about them but they are certainly here. Check out this photo taken in June 2009 just outside a friend’s RV on Santa Fe Trail Ranch.
Seeing a Mountain Lion is very rare in this area and in fact we have only seen the tail of one or two since 1995 when we moved to this area and we are on property multiple times each week. While we realize this is a rare opportunity to photograph a mountain lion this close up we also realize that they are closer than we might think even if we don’t see them. You have to be aware of their presence at all times.
If you are visiting or moving to the Colorado Mountains please learn and be informed about our wildlife and how you can live in their backyard safely.
Have you had a wildlife encounter that you would like to share?
Charlie
Adobe Gold Properties
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Since moving into our new home on Santa Fe Trail Ranch in December 2008, we have naturally seen many wild animals. I’d like to share two incidences involving bears and mountain lions. We were driving from our home at about 6:30pm in May 2009. Less than a quarter mile from home we saw two reddish blurs streak in opposite directions in front of our slow moving car. Turns out it was TWO mountains lions. Certainly made us aware of their close proximity! About two weeks ago we were preparing to leave for Denver for a wedding. We were gone for 4 days and upon our return we saw our empty platform feeder torn from the deck railing, an empty wire bird feeder suspended from a shephards hook attached to our high deck destroyed, a hummingbird feeder that had 1 inch of nectar left on the ground, and a swallows nest box ripped from the trunk of a pine tree. Didn’t take any detective work to know we’d had a bear visit. The muddy pawprints all over the deck and railing confirmed that! Totally my fault for leaving them out even though they were empty or nearly so. Two days later Mama bear and one cub paid us another visit in the early evening as we sat on our deck. They ran for the hills upon seeing us. Four days later, also early evening, they revisited and got several blasts from an airhorn which sent them up trees and finally away. It’s been about a week and a half with no more visits but we have come out of this much wiser than we thought we were. Even if feeders are empty it can be enough to cause some bears to investigate closer than is comfortable. The bears have taught these humans to be smarter in bear country!