Edge

Yup, chupacabra, recognize him anywhere.

Great work, nice pics.

That's a coatimundi or maybe Richard Gere misplaced a gerbil. . I had a ringtail cat living near my house in UT, Kept wondering what was making those tracks outside his rock den, saw him only a couple times. Much different eye shape and ears, a little smaller too.

coatimundi A ring tailed cat has......a ringed tail.

Look long and hard enough, you can grow horns on a jack-rabbit.

My dad grew up the oldest of seven siblings in W. PA during the Depression and Prohibition. Deer, raccoon, squirrels and corn mash were staples. The willingness and ability to poach and brew, meant going to bed hungry or not or letting down your family. They didn't talk much about that illegal stuff, but I do recall my dad talking about a bear that his buddy shot at a distance with a .375 H/H up in unit 27. They tracked the blood trail where as they probably should have been more patient and let the bear bleed out. But they kept the pressure on it and the bear would get up and move on as they approached. Eventually, they tracked the bear to where it crossed a muddy patch of creek bottom. When they arrived there, they could make out where the bear had stopped and scrapped up mud and packed his wound with it, minimizing it's bleeding and eliminating the blood trail.

Welcome to AZ , Since you're fond of firearms and hunting, how did you ever get along in CA? This is a great forum and friendly, too. On one of my other shooting forums, a fellow mentioned he was moving here from CA recently and was skinned alive by the members. I have a son moving here from CA soon. He was stationed at Camp Bruno, USMC so he had little choice and can't wait to breath some free air again. PM me, I'll show you the closest hunting and shooting spots to Glendale..

measure the inside hole, too. Even Chevy wheels wont fit over the Ford hub

These probably wont fit my 97 Ford.

Hogs don't sweat, so you'll only find them near water. Had an uncle shoot one around Bullhead City in the early '70s.

JS, thanks for the kind words. At 17h tall and nostrils you could fit grapefruit in, that mare can cover some territory. No, I haven't been to the Picacho Hills area since the '80s when Uncle Sam sent me to Gila Bend. Would like to get over to the Belmonts or Bighorns in the next couple days. Tell us if ya see anything.

When I was 10 or 11, my parents started putting me on the Greyhound From Tucson to Gage, NM to help the grandparents out. They put me to work around the ranch for .65 cents an hour. I'd board the bus in Tucson with one suitcase, a ,22 Remington and a brick of .22s. Within 2 weeks, I'd be bugging the old folks for a ride (72 miles roundtrip) into Deming for more ammo. My how times have changed.

Anyone hunting, 4x4ing along the Mexican Border in the last 40 years had their movements watched by Fat Albert, too.

African or European?

Yesterday we (MULEPACKHUNTER and I) rode about an 18 mile loop thru the Eagletail Mountains north of the anvil. Didn't see squat for animals or sign of bighorns, just a few deer tracks and a chipmunk. Certainly was a good ride in a beautiful spot, though. Was shocking how the water at Indian Springs dried up or was consumed by cattle since just a few days ago when the water was abundant. Still plenty of water in the AZGF catchments.

Dear Mr. and Mrs. Mountain Lion.... Your very welcome. But please understand that the wealth redistribution of the tasty mutton was for all to enjoy, including someday, we pesky human hunters. Why allow only your cousins and that crazy uncle Leo of yours, over in the Kofa Range, enjoy the feast? Your thanks and gratitude may be somewhat premature, however. When we released those zany, madcaps into your backyard, the rams didn't give a d@mn and the ewes seemed rather askew. But that's ending now and the sheep are re-banding and herding up. More eyes and ears at the waterhole and fewer solo acts mean you'll be working harder for your meals. And by exploiting these wooly, tender loins, you've exposed yourself for some much needed kitty cleansing. Perhaps if you hear more hounds at bay, you'll find a little less time for that procreation, recreation? Fewer felines means more sheep, more deer and safer trails for those hippie hikers. If you're still around next fall, there will be another sheep release. I'll be looking for you there (looking thru my 3-9x Redfield, that is). Sincerely, AZGF

thanks, learned something new. me and mulepacker heading to the Eagletails tomorrow......

I know some info on this topic, my step-daughter is a AZGF biologist that worked on the capture/release of these sheep. She also has the ability to track them via satellite. I think a biweekly update is fine. And if a sheep dies on a given day, it's way too soon to expect answers the following day. The collars give off a mortality ping if the animal hasn't moved in 24 hours. But you get the same ping if the collars come off, and they are designed to come off if the animals collar gets snagged, they out grow it, or in 24 months, whichever comes first. And each mortality ping means that collar is tracked down by a ground crew and if there is a dead animal, the animal is carried back to the lab for necropsy. This takes time. The first ram that died perished from cardiomyopathy. But when ground crews found it, a bear was happily munching on it, Should they have run to the mics and claimed a bear was the culprit, when in reality, bears and mountain lions scavenge. Perhaps AZGF has put a little too much faith in the wildlife corridor improvements made. Seems every time AZGF helps some critters, others pay the price. They build catchments and conduits to help game survive and travel about. But the predators quickly adapt too and use these man made improvements to help catch their prey there. In GMU 37A, AZGF writes about mountain lions.... Mountan lions lounge in the overflow tubes of the AZ Canal to ambush wildlife... Duh.

I've spent 5 out of the last 9 days in the northern Eagletails, GMU 41. No sheep and none on my game cams. They're probably further south. I got no 41E on my AZGF map, where is it?

"Why do McDonalds have a brail menu at their drive thru's??" So blind folk can make poor food choices, too.

Why does my hunting license have a box marked SEX, but no boxes for YES or NO?

If you want to PM me your number, I'll call you if I spot a lion. I rode a trail last Wed and when I rode it back out again found lion tracks in mine so they were 6-8 hours old or less.

Back when I was knee high to a grasshopper, the family was up at Reservation Lake, hunting trout. It was noonish and dad had the charcoal grill going. It's not a big lake and on the opposite side from us, a bear walked out of the woods and waded into the lake. We all watched in wonderment as that bear tried to catch his lunch by tossing fish up onto the shore as we human siblings waited for our burgers and the parents cooked steaks. The bear wasn't having much luck trout tossing but he did get a good whiff of our grill. So he started swimming. "Oh, aint nature grand?" Mom commented as that bear started dog paddling straight towards us. Narratives such as; "He will never make it, it's too far across the lake." and "Don't overreact, he's just out for a swim." Soon gave way to..."Jean, get the kids into the camper, I'll save the food." Mom safely stowed us kids into the overhead bunk as dad joined us in the camper, carrying the grill with him. In true caveman form, he wasn't giving up that meat without a fight. Meanwhile the bear was just coming ashore with a big grin on his face, some 30' away and shook off like a dog. He cantered straight up to the back window of the camper, stood on his hind legs and peered in. Dad had unholstered his 1911 and was holding it point blank at the bears face. Mom was pleading with dad not to shoot unless he had to, dad was telling mom to "shut-up." I think that bear sensed a bad outcome for him if he pressed the issue at our camper, so he sauntered over to the camper beside us. Those trout hunters had just left the screen door closed and they were still out on the lake..... The bear had no trouble pushing the screen door in, then went ahead and completely trashed their camper. The bear reemerged from the camper with a Tupperware container of fried chicken, which he pounced on till it popped. Then that bear grabbed a drumstick and laid on his back and held that chicken leg between his front paws and munched away. But all fun must end and the sound of the neighbors boat coming on shore, sent the bear scurrying away with as much chicken as he could fit into his mouth. We exited the camper with food intact but a little dizzy from all the fumes. Dad had saved our lunch but nearly poisoned us in the process. Love ya, dad.

I would put a rug sack over that sleeping bag. If you don't want to buy a bedroll cover, an old pant leg works good.

Oh my yes, a hungry bear definitely came in for his meal, I didn't have to wait long for that. Must say that was the first time I smelled a bear before I saw it. It came in from behind me, shuffling his feet like a locomotive thru the woods.