At this point in the early 21st Century, California is a "thick broth" of heterogenity" as it relates to people from every Nationality, Ethnic Group and Religion living and working together.......In the 16th through mid 19th Centuries, The Golden State was a cornucopia of Carnivore diversity with Wolves, Jaguars, Cougars, Wolverines, Coyotes, Black Bears and Grizzlies feasting off the abundance of the land...............A great West Coast history read for all of you Saturday blog readers

 Historical Distribution of Wolves, Cougars, Jaguars,

 Grizzlies,Coyotes and Black Bears  in California

Wolves in California

Schmidt (1987, 1991) throughly reviews the historical record of California back tothe 1750s and documents the occurrence of wolves throughout California though details on densities are unclear.....from 1750 to 1850 wolves were present in the Coastal Range from San Diego to Sacramento when these areas were first being explored and settled. From 1850-1900, wolves were seen in Shasta County and in the central Sierra Nevada.

 Young and Goldman (1944) report the appearance of wolves as fairly rare in both California and Nevada based on observations dating back to 1827, about75 years after Schmidt's early records. This probably already reflects the growing intensity of persecution of wolves by the growing human population.

Jameson and Peeters(1988) report that the wolf historically occurred along the eastern edge of the state and inthe central valley (See also distribution map in Hall 1981, pg. 932). They also cite the frequent references to wolves in the 1850 diary of gold miner J. Goldsborough Bruff and how he clearly distinguished wolves from coyotes (Bruff 1949 cited in Jameson andPeeters 1988). They report that the last wolf was taken in California in 1924, the last fromNevada in 1923, and the last from Oregon in 1974.

Ingles (1965), in writing his key to mammals of the Pacific Northwest, identified an wolf specimen killed in 1962 near Sequoia National Park (later identified as an Asian species and probably an escaped orNorthern CA - Southern OR Gray Wolf DPS released exotic) with the last previous observation in California in 1924. He reports the last record of an Oregon wolf was from 1927 when government hunters killed a wolf east of Fort Klamath.

A recent review by Geddes-Osborne and Margolin (2001) illustrates how wolves mayhave been much more widespread throughout California prior to the time of the first European exploration in 1769. Anthropological studies of native languages, both extant and extinct showed that the wolf had a central place in their languages and belief systemsand was probably present throughout the California territory (Geddes-Osborne andMargolin 2001).

 Schmidt (1987, 1991) found clear records from 1750 to 1850 indicating that wolves were present in the Coastal Range from San Diego to Sacramento when these areas were first being explored and settled. From 1850-1900, wolves were seen in Shasta County and in the central Sierra Nevada. Schmidt noted two compelling reasons for trying to determine the past distribution of wolves in California. First, the possibility of reintroducing wolves to the state has frequently been discussed, and information about their historical range could be useful in this debate. A feasibility study for the restoration of the wolf to the Klamath-Siskiyou and Modoc Plateau regions that overlap northern California and southwestern Oregon, conducted by the Conservation Biology Institute, determined this area could support up to 470 wolves (Carroll et al., 2001).

 These historical reports of wolves appear in divergent areas of the state; reports surfaced in different areas over time as European exploration and settlement shifted from the coasts toward the inland forests, mountains and plains.

 Geddes-Osborne and Margolin (2001) reported that the wolf was known among many California tribes statewide, as demonstrated in language, artwork, ceremonial garb, and creation stories. The most compelling evidence of widespread wolf presence is found in tribal languages; more than 80 distinct languages were spoken in California when Europeans first arrived and most had clearly differentiated words for wolf, coyote, fox and dog.

 European settlement changed the very landscape of California from wilderness to a land marked by Missions, towns, ranchos, agricultural development and roads. Simultaneously, prey populations that would have supported wolves were decimated by market hunters, and the state legislature enacted bounty laws to rid the state of wolves and coyotes.

 By the middle of the 1920's any wolves that may have existed in California seem to have disappeared entirely. One was trapped in San Bernardino County in 1922. Another, the last to be captured in the state, was trapped in Lassen County in 1924. Although the US Forest Service estimated that some 50 wolves existed in the Lassen, Tahoe, Eldorado, Stanislaus, Angeles, and Rouge River National Forests as recently as 1937, there was little evidence that any wolves were actually present. Schmidt concluded that all of the wolves trapped in recent years have been ones released from captivity.

 Second, eradication of the wolf may have had an important impact on the ecosystems from which they were eliminated, which might help to explain the current distribution of species such as elk, deer, and coyotes. Reintroduction of wolves might be expected to shift those populations back towards their historic levels. Studies conducted in Yellowstone National Park since the reintroduction of wolves there - which took place after Schmidt posed this intriguing question -- appear to support this notion, demonstrating multiple and widespread examples of the wolf's key role in restoring natural ecosystem dynamics.

 
Today, there is another reason for interest in the wolf's former range. Wolves dispersing from Idaho have been confirmed in Oregon, from an original lone female identified in 1999 to the more recent confirmations of adult pairs and packs with pups in 2008-2009. Wolves have also been confirmed in Washington state in recent years and, in both Washington and Oregon, reports exist of wolves in the Cascade range. This mountain backbone could provide a natural dispersal route that could extend into California, Nevada and neighboring states. At this time, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has no plans to recover wolves in California but this highly migratory species could reach the state on its own in the near future.

 Coyotes

Old California was a landscape where Coyotes (Canis latrans) were apparently fairly common: their bones were found in archaeological deposits, and numerous explorers mentioned them. Pedro Fages in July 1769 in what is now San Diego described, "deer, antelope, conies [cottontail rabbits?], hares without number, wildcats, wolves, some bears, coyotes, and squirrels of three kinds" (Priestley, Herbert. 1937. A Historical, Political, and Natural Description of California by Pedro Fages, Soldier of Spain. University of California Press: Berkeley).

Wolverines

I talked with carnivore biologist Leslie Chow with the U.S. Geological Survey at Yosemite National Park about interactions in the past. "We just had a report of a wolverine up by Mule Pass!" he told me excitedly, savoring every chance to see this highly secretive squat animals. Only two confirmed sightings exist for the whole park. They were carion specialists, so needed large territories (of several hundred square miles) to search out their food -- they could walk 50 miles daily. Logging, ski-resort development, other habitat fragmentation, and fur-trapping (which was finally prohibited in 1970) all hindered these solitary brown beasts. He speculated that the now-rare mountain-dwelling Wolverines (Gulo gulo) might have been attracted out onto the open Central Valley plains in the past, to scavenge on wolf- and grizzly-killed elk, deer, and antelope carcasses.

Mountain lions

The status of the mountain lion in California evolved from that of "bountied predator" between 1907 and 1963, meaning monetary incentives were offered for every mountain lion killed, to "game mammal" in 1969 to "special protected mammal" in 1990. The change in legal status reflected growing public appreciation and concern for mountain lions. 4000 to 7000 are believed to exist in the State in 2011.
Mountain lions live in many different types of habitat in California, from deserts to humid coast range forest, and from sea level to 10,000-foot elevations. They generally will be most abundant in areas with plentiful deer.

Population: In California, mountain lion populations have grown. In 1920, a rough estimate put the mountain lion population at 600. Since then, more accurate estimates, based on field studies of mountain lions, revealed a population of more than 2,000 mountain lions in the 70's. Today's population estimate ranges between 4,000-6,000

Jaguars in California

More exotic felines roamed California in the early years of colonial expansion, apparently disappearing with barely a whisper as Euro-American settlers began developing their habitats. The Jaguar (Felis onca) inhabited parts of California, up from Mexico. These big cats were found in the Colorado Desert as around Palm Springs, and were last seen about 1860. More surprisingly, jaguars (often called "tigers") were reported as far north as Monterey and San Francisco in the 1820s.

Grizzlies

The California grizzly bear (Ursus californicus) was designated official State Animal in 1953. Before dying out in California, this largest and most powerful of carnivores thrived in the great valleys and low mountains of the state, probably in greater numbers than anywhere else in the United States. As humans began to populate California, the grizzly stood its ground, refusing to retreat in the face of advancing civilization. It killed livestock and interfered with settlers. Less than 75 years after the discovery of gold, every grizzly bear in California had been tracked down and killed. The last one was killed in Tulare County in August 1922, more than 20 years before the authority to regulate the take of fish and wildlife was delegated to the California Fish and Game Commission by the State Legislature.
 In California, the grizzly once inhabited most of the state, except for the sparse desert areas of eastern Modoc and Lassen Counties and the California desert. Much of the grizzly range overlapped the mountain forest range of the black bear (Euarctos americanus), but also included large areas of grassland, chaparral, and oak woodlands.
Drs. Tracy Storer and Lloyd Tevis, in their excellent work The California Grizzly (1955), felt that the California grizzly was not only one of the largest grizzly subspecies (based on skull measurements and other clues) in the lower 48 states, but also that is was largely a lowland species, inhabiting the vast areas of brush that dominate California's coastal hills and Sierran foothills. (This would complicate reintroduction efforts, as these lowland areas are heavily used by people.)
Grizzlies do den in the winter, although in California's milder climate, they may have been active year-round in lower elevations. California's bear population may have bred and given birth to cubs on a year-round basis, although in Yellowstone and other areas with more pronounced seasons, breeding is generally done in the summer, with the female giving birth to young in the winter den in January.

 In the first issue of his journal(mid 1850's) The Overland Monthly and Out West Magazine devoted to the development of the country, publisher Bret Harte wrote about why he chose a California Grizzly Bear as the publication's logo.

"The bear who adorns the cover may be 'an ill-favored' beast whom 'women cannot abide,' but he is honest withal. Take him if you please as the symbol of local primitive barbarism.
"He is crossing the track of the Pacific Railroad, and has paused a moment to look at the coming engine of civilization and progress - with a prodigious shrieking and puffing - and apparently recognizes his rival and his doom. And yet, leaving the symbol out, there is much about your grizzly that is pleasant. The truth should however be tested at a moment when no desire for self-preservation prejudices the observer. In his placid moments he has a stupid, good-natured, grey tranquility, like that of the hills in midsummer.
"I am satisfied that his unpleasant habit of scalping with his forepaw is the result of contact with the degraded aborigine, and the effect of bad example on the untutored ursine mind.
"Educated, he takes quite naturally to the pole, but has lost his ferocity, which is perhaps after all the most respectable thing about a barbarian. As a cub he is playful and boisterous, and I have often thought was not a bad symbol of our San Francisco climate. Look at him well, for he is passing away. Fifty years and he will be as extinct as the dodo or dinornis."
 The California Grizzly Bear, the largest and most powerful of the bears, thrived in the state for centuries. Some grew to a formidable height of 8 feet and weighed 2,000 pounds, according to a history of California written in 1898. When European immigrants arrived in the state, it was estimated that 10,000 grizzlies inhabited most regions of California. As humans began to populate the state, the grizzly stood its ground, refusing to retreat in the face of advancing civilization. Less than 75 years after the discovery of gold, however, every grizzly in California had been tracked down and killed. It has been extinct since 1924.
The killing begins
Although the grizzly had roamed the state at will for 300 years, the gold rush of 1849 rang the death knell for the bear. It has been said that the appearance of the repeating rifle in 1848 spelled death for the grizzly. Initially hunted by miners and others because it was considered dangerous, the grizzly was then mercilessly hunted for sport and for its warm fur. Settlers in the late 1800s commonly shot and poisoned bears to protect their livestock.
The stock market connection
Spanish caballeros roped grizzlies, dragging them into doomed public battles with wild bulls. This popular spectator sport inspired betting as to whether the bear or the bull would win. This gave the modern stock market its "bear" and "bull" nicknames -- the bear swipes downward while the bull hooks upward.
The path to extinction
The last known physical specimen of a California grizzly was shot and killed in Fresno County in 1922. Two years later, the last wild California grizzly was spotted several times in Sequoia National Park and then never seen again. Civilized man had made California's official animal officially extinct by 1924.

Habitat: