Mammals of Oakhurst Fiorest Preserve

Mammals

Most mammals are fairly secretive, so actually catching a glmpse of one is less common than you think. There are a few exceptions - namely squirrels, chipmunks, rabbits, and at Oakhurst, white tailed deer. In all the years I have visited Oakhurst, I have only seen one coyote and one virginia opossum. I have stumbled across the remains of raccoons on a few occasions, but never come one still breathing. Nor have I spotted any of the other midsize mammals - fox, skunk, woodchuck - all of which live in the area. I may have spotted a mink, but it was from a distance so I cannot be certain.I have a field guide of aniamls tracks, so perhaps the best time to detect their ppresence is after a snow fall.

While the lake is home to beaver, you are much more likely to find their work than see one in person. This past winter saw a lot of beaver damage to trees along the lakeside, and I was fortunate to finally spot a culprit munching on resprouts from a felled tree. He was too fast for me to take a photo. The other mammal that can be found in the lake is the common muskrat. They look very similar to beaver, but are much smaller and have a long slender tail as opposed to the flat paddle-shaped tail. Muskrats also swim with their whole body visible, while with beaver only the head is above water.

As rodents are the largest mammal order, there are probably species at Oakhurst that I am unaware of. I have come across a white footed mouse, meadow vole, and the occasional dead shrew. There are also several species of bat native to our region, but they're difficult to identify from afar without the aid of sonar detection. I was lucky enough to find a red bat hanging out in a shrub.