ZION Mammals of Zion-Bryce and Cedar Breaks

MAMMALS OF ZION-BRYCE AND CEDAR BREAKS

List of Mammals
(continued)

AMERICAN ELK, Cervus canadensis nelsoni. — Elk at one time were native to this region, as shown by the Paiute name Paria (meaning "elk") for the stream which drains from Bryce south to the Colorado; and also by the finding of a badly weathered elk antler in Willie Creek, Bryce, 1932. It is reported also that an elk was killed at Willis Creek by a Mr. Johnson of Cannonville, sometime between 1900 and 1910. The subspecies is thought to have been nelsoni.

In 1925, 17 or 18 head of elk were introduced to the Markagunt Plateau from Yellowstone. They have done exceptionally well, as shown by the 1933 estimates of 75 to 150 head. In that year limited hunting was started, and it is now conceded that the herd has been considerably reduced. The principle elk range is slightly northeast of Zion National Monument, but the animals sometimes wander inside the boundaries. Two were seen on the East Rim of Zion Canyon in October, 1937.

MULE DEER, Odocoileus hemionus macrotis. — Deer are very common in Zion National Park, abundant in Zion Canyon, and fairly common in the other park areas, yet many motorists drive hurriedly through the parks without seeing a deer, and are surprised to learn that from 10 to 40 head may be seen grazing in front of Zion Lodge at dusk each evening. October and November afford even better opportunities for watching them, because in these months large numbers migrate from the high plateaus down through the canyons to the foothill winter range south of the park. (269 head were counted in Zion Canyon during migration, Nov. 16 1936.) A few remain as high as 7500 feet in spite of snow two or three feet deep, and from 40 to 90 head can be seen at any time of the year in Zion Canyon, where many have apparently given up their migratory habits and remain in the same locality all year. At Bryce and Cedar Breaks the protected areas inside the boundaries are so small that deer do not become tame, hence are not often seen.

Fawns are born in June and early July, but are so well hidden for the first month that few are seen until August. Singles and twins are common, triplets uncommon; I have seen but one set of triplets in 4 years. In October the reddish summer coat (spotted with white on the fawns) is replaced by the "blue" winter coat (actually dark gray). At this time or earlier the bucks rub the velvet from their antlers. Fighting between the bucks goes on during the fall and early winter, but the height of the rutting season is in late November. In early spring, February to April, the antlers are shed, and now ones start growing about a month later.

ANTELOPE, Antilocapra americana americana. — Antelopes are known to have once lived in this region, but are now extinct within the park areas. Indians tell of them on the Paunsaugunt Plateau, at the present site of the north and of Bryce Park, A few still exist on the desert west of Cedar City.

BUFFALO, Bison bison. — These disappeared from southern Utah before the coming of white men, but a portion of a skull found in 1938 buried nine miles north of Cedar Breaks, near Parowan, shows their previous existence in this region. At Johnson Canyon, 26 miles east of Zion Park, there is an Indian pictograph of a buffalo. The wild buffalo now in Houserock Valley are descended from a herd brought there from Texas in 1905 by C. J. ("Buffalo") Jones.

BIGHORN, Ovis canadensis nelsoni. — A small band of bighorns still lives in the rough section between Zion and Parunuweap Canyons, and a few are occasionally seen by motorists on the Zion-Mt. Carmel Highway, between the two tunnels. As many as five were seen at one time during the summer of 1936, and in the winter of 1938-1937, a ram and two yearlings were seen in Zion Canyon. They are seen in Parunuweap Canyon almost every spring. The size of the band has been variously estimated at from 6 to 25 head. It seems probable that they reached a minimum about 1932-1934, and are now slowly increasing. Their home range around Bridge Mountain and Stevens Wash has been set aside as a special wildlife reserve so that the animals will not be disturbed by humans. Fortunately for the bighorn, the area is too rugged for any but hardy mountaineers.