Tiny footprints, big discovery: Reptile tracks oldest ever found in Grand Canyon

Geologist investigating 310 million-year-old fossil trackway from ancient reptilian creature

Date:  November 8, 2018

Source:  University of Nevada, Las Vegas

A geology professor at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, has discovered that a set of 28 footprints left behind by a reptile-like creature 310 million years ago, are the oldest ever to be found in Grand Canyon National Park.

The fossil trackway covers a fallen boulder that now rests along the Bright Angel Trail in the national park. Rowland presented his findings at the recent annual meeting of the Society of Vertebrate Paleontology.

"It's the oldest trackway ever discovered in the Grand Canyon in an interval of rocks that nobody thought would have trackways in it, and they're among the earliest reptile tracks on earth," said Rowland.

Rowland said he's not prepared to say that they're the oldest tracks of their kind ever discovered, but it's a possibility, as he's still researching the discovery.

"In terms of reptile tracks, this is really old," he said, adding that the tracks were created as the supercontinent Pangaea was beginning to form.

Rowland was first alerted to the tracks in spring 2016 by a colleague who was hiking the trail with a group of students. The boulder ended up along the trail after the collapse of a cliff.

A year later, Rowland studied the footprints up close.

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Volunteer hunters wanted to cull Grand Canyon bison

The National Park Service is looking at a reduction plan that would allow volunteers to shoot bison using non-lead ammunition

Associated Press

Monday 11 September 2017 23.04 BSTLast modified on Monday 11 September 2017 23.26 BST

The National Park Service plans to thin a herd of bison in the Grand Canyon through roundups and by seeking volunteers who are physically fit and proficient with a gun to kill the animals that increasingly are damaging park resources.

Some bison would be shipped out of the area and others legally hunted on the adjacent forest. Within the Grand Canyon, shooters would be selected through a lottery to help bring the number of bison roaming the far northern reaches of the park to no more than 200 within three to five years.

Some 600 of the animals now live in the region, and biologists say the bison numbers could hit 1,500 within 10 years if left uncontrolled.

The Grand Canyon is still working out details of the volunteer effort, but it’s taking cues from national parks in Colorado, the Dakotas and Wyoming that have used shooters to cut overabundant or diseased populations of elk. The park service gave final approval to the bison reduction plan this month.

Sandy Bahr of the Sierra Club says she’s hopeful the Grand Canyon will focus mostly on non-lethal removal.

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First gray wolf seen at Grand Canyon in 70 years killed by Utah hunter- UPDATE

Echo, who was spotted near the north rim of the famous Arizona landmark in 2014, was shot by a man who said he mistook her for a coyote

Wednesday 11 February 2015 22.25 GMT

A gray wolf killed last year by a Utah hunter was “Echo”, a female that had garnered international attention after roaming from Wyoming to become the first of the protected animals seen at the Grand Canyon in Arizona in 70 years, US wildlife managers said on Wednesday.

News that the lone wolf spotted last fall near the north rim of the Grand Canyon was the same animal later killed in Utah by a hunter who said he mistook it for a coyote ignited outrage among wildlife advocates.

“It’s tragic that Echo traveled over 500 miles (800km) only to be cut down by an incredibly irresponsible coyote hunter,” said Bethany Cotton, wildlife program director for WildEarth Guardians.

Authorities have not released the name of the coyote hunter, who in December reported to Utah wildlife officers that he had accidentally shot and killed a radio-collared wolf near the border with Arizona.

It is illegal to kill wolves without a special permit in the lower 48 states, where most wolves are protected under the US Endangered Species Act. Wolves in just two states – Idaho and Montana – are not on a federal list of endangered and threatened species and can be legally hunted.

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Grand Canyon Gray Wolf May Have Been Shot in Utah

by Megan Gannon, News Editor | December 30, 2014 12:40pm ET

After a 500-mile (800 kilometers) trek across the West, a lone wolf's journey may have come to an end this weekend.

A coyote hunter in Utah mistakenly shot and killed an endangered gray wolf, which wildlife groups worry was the same wolf photographed near the Grand Canyon this fall. That animal had strayed from its pack in the northern Rockies and was the first of its species to roam Arizona in 70 years.

The slain wolf, which was wearing a radio collar, was shot near the south end of the Tushar Mountains near Beaver, Utah, on Sunday (Dec. 28), the Utah Division of Wildlife Resources (DWR) said in a statement.

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Lone Wolf May Be Roaming Grand Canyon National Park

Lone Wolf May Be Roaming Grand Canyon National Park

by Megan Gannon, News Editor | October 31, 2014 02:26pm ET

Representatives with the Center for Biological Diversity say this is a picture of the wolf that has been seen around the North Rim of the Grand Canyon.

Credit: Courtesy of the Center for Biological Diversity

A wayward gray wolf has been spotted several times this month around the North Rim of Grand Canyon National Park, according to conservationists.

The wolf, which is wearing an inactive radio collar, could be the first of its species to roam Arizona in 70 years; gray wolves were exterminated from the state in the 1940s.

Federal authorities are investigating the sightings. Representatives from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) said they are trying to confirm whether the animal is actually a wolf or a "wolf-dog hybrid" by collecting a feces sample. 

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Squirrel kick video: £10,000 reward offered to track down 'heartless' French men who kicked squirrel into Grand Canyon

A £10,000 reward has been offered to anyone who helps police track down two men who were filmed kicking a squirrel into the Grand Canyon.

The two men, who are believed to be French, lured the animal to the edge of the canyon using a trail of breadcrumbs before one of them kicked it off.

They are now wanted by the US authorities – but park officials fear their chances of finding the pair are remote.

Launching an appeal to track down the “heartless thug” who carried out the kicking, the US, UK and French branches of animal rights group Peta have joined together to put forward a possible reward of £10,000 ($16,870).

Ben Williamson, a spokesperson for Peta UK, said those who abuse animals are a “danger to everyone” and must be stopped “before they act again”.

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Hog-nosed skunk causes stir at Grand Canyon

FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. (AP) — Desert bighorn sheep, river otters and mountain lions, yes. But a hog-nosed skunk at the Grand Canyon? Hardly.

The striped creatures are usually found in southeastern Arizona, Texas and Mexico. But one of them somehow made its way north of the Colorado River last year.

A group of rafters camping along the river in August was headed for bed when they noticed a black-and-white animal in the bushes near one of their tents. Jen Hiebert grabbed her camera, zoomed in and took some pictures.

When the rafters didn't see the skunk listed as one of the animals found at the Grand Canyon, Hiebertsent photos and a note to the National Park Service.

"It was just walking through the canyon, totally ignored us and was just digging away in the sand," said Hiebert, of Moscow, Idaho. "I'm not sure what it was after."

Grand Canyon biologists later confirmed the group's suspicion that it was a hog-nosed skunk.

At first, officials weren't sure whether the skunk was merely visiting the area, or if they should to add it to the list of about 90 mammals that live in the national park. They decided that by listing it — even as extremely rare — people might be on the lookout for more of the skunks, and that could help biologists determine how prevalent they are in the park.

"Obviously it's in the park and there's a photograph of it," Grand Canyon wildlife program manager Greg Holm said. "I guess the question would be, is it going to live out its life here or was it traveling from point A to point B?"

Continued:  http://news.yahoo.com/hog-nosed-skunk-causes-stir-grand-canyon-201053314.html;_ylt=AkJ3cTboRPLKGfEpQqo60HDtiBIF;_ylu=X3oDMTNxY25oMG5wBG1pdANUb3BTdG9yeSBPZGRVU1NGBHBrZwNjMDhlNWVhZC0zODdjLTM1ZWUtOTU0My00ODg2ZTdmN2FjZDIEcG9zAzQEc2VjA3RvcF9zdG9yeQR2ZXIDYWZlYjAwNzEtNWU5OC0xMWUyLWE3ZmEtNjYzZGU1NDE5YmFk;_ylg=X3oDMTFtOW42ZDltBGludGwDdXMEbGFuZwNlbi11cwRwc3RhaWQDBHBzdGNhdANob21lfG9kZARwdANzZWN0aW9ucw--;_ylv=3

Rare Sight: Black Bear Photographed at Grand Canyon

A hidden camera caught a rare picture of a large black bear roaming near the South Rim of the Grand Canyon last month.  The picture was recently released by park officials.

It's highly uncommon to see bears around this area because there are only a few natural water sources and it offers only marginal habitat, said Greg Holm, wildlife program manager at Grand Canyon National Park.

Holm told OurAmazingPlanet he thinks the bear may have been driven by thirst. "It's very, very dry this year," he said. "The theory is that that bear or some bears may have been traveling into the park to find new sources of water."

Wildlife biologists use several wildlife camera traps, like the one that snapped a photo of the bear on June 14 near Hermit Road, to gain information about animal populations in the park. Cameras are particularly helpful in studying elusive carnivores, which are typically nocturnal. The devices operate via heat and motion sensors to trigger them to automatically take pictures when there is movement within the camera's range.


This is a "reason for people to be more cautious about bears in the area," Holm said. Use common sense, like not feeding bears or approaching them, he said. While bears generally avoid people, it's always good to remember that uncovered trash, recycle bins, pet food and even bird feeders can act as bear attractants.

http://www.livescience.com/21571-grand-canyon-black-bear-photo.html