Touring - Wildlife encounters

Hi, I was cycling on a day trip a couple of days ago on a semi-paved road that went trough the jungle and near to the beach. It is very nice to cycle in such empty places... anyway I was on my way back when I noticed a long (like 1m), thin snake, black with a bright yellow stripe. It was zig-zagging across the road really fast, it was about 3mts from me when we both noticed each other, I must have been going at 30km/h... I think I might had run over it if the snake didn't have the reaction of suddenly putting the brakes ... It was cool too see it raise like a cobra trying to stop its momentum and then turn around. I was so glad I didn't hurt it in the end.

This kept me thinking about all the creatures that see their habitats so severely distrupted by having a road right trough, but anyway that's probably a topic for another thread. At least the impact of traveling by bicycle is not so severe.

A bit off topic, here are the coordinates of where the event happened if anyone wanted to check out on earth.google.com 21.33260, -86.79562 :) (Im such a geek)

Has anyone else had any interesting wildlife encounter stories to share?

About a week ago, I had 3 wild turkeys run across the road RIGHT in front of me.
Luckily I was climbing, so I wasn't going too fast :)

One venomous snake (copperhead), lots of harmless snakes, lizards, turtles, wild turkeys, hordes of grasshoppers, a cloud of mosquitos, and a standoff with cows (not wildlife - but they were outside the fence.)

Most of those out in rural settings, but a lot of snakes and turtles in the urbs and suburbs of St. Louis. And the mosquito encounter was on Galveston Island. I pulled off the road into a grassy area, and I was suddenly covered with mosquitos. They rose up from the ground and formed a swirling cloud. Trying to wipe them off resulted in bloody smears.

I bike Northern Wisconsin and see all types and kinds of wildlife. I have seen coyotes to deer to snakes to every bird kown to these parts. Turtles and frogs. Every ride is something new. It is wonderful to be out in touch with mother nature, makes wish I could move out of this darn city and go back to the simple way of farming.
Stacey

I think my most memorable animal encounters while actually on my bike took place between Kota Tinggi & Mersing, Malaysia. There was little car traffic on the road and mostly forest on both sides. There were lots of macaque monkeys scampering across the road as long as there were no cars whizzing by. Usually large troupes of them would run across together. If the macaques would see or hear us, they would quickly hide behind the vegetation and peer out at us as we rode by.

A few days later while biking up the east coast of Malaysia, we were forced to continue riding after dark one evening. There was jungle adjacent to the west side of the road. After dark, the volume and variety of noise coming from the jungle was astounding. All sorts of shreaks, buzzes, cries, and buzzing. It was very eerie (esp. the shreaks), and I wish I had had a tape recorder. We only had to ride for about an hour in the dark and I was somewhat afraid to stop because of all the nearby noise, and having no idea what creatures were making the noise.

Further north near Kota Baru and the Thai border, there were a remarkable number of (mostly dead) snakes on the road. I've never seen so many dead snakes anywhere else. A few days earlier, we had seen several very much alive banded kraits in the trees close to the road. They're a deadly species in the cobra family.

There's a spot near a river mouth on the Pacific coast of Costa Rica (between Jaco & Punta Arenas) that nearly always has some enormous crocodiles on the rocks and in the water. You can safely view them from the road overpass. I've told a few people about the spot and every one has reported back that they're still there.

Tasmania was a great place for spotting wildlife. Right after I saw a "Wombat Crossing" sign in western Tasmania, a wombat crossed the road, the only one I saw in the wild.

About a week ago, I had 3 wild turkeys run across the road RIGHT in front of me.
Luckily I was climbing, so I wasn't going too fast :) Nice, it reminded me of once seeing a horse standing right in the middle of the road, I thought wow its good I had seen it in time, I tried scaring it off the road but just gave me funny looks.



...a cloud of mosquitos...Encounters like this have taught me to keep my mouth shut while cycling :)
Also reminded me of New Zealand's South Island sand flies, they would get between my camping tent cover and tent, must have been hundreds of them because they made it sound like it was raining when they smashed against the tent trying desperately to get to my blood.

I think my most memorable animal encounters...Wow, those stories make mine pale in comparison, you must be very experienced. Cheers!

Also reminded me of New Zealand's South Island sand flies, they would get between my camping tent cover and tent, must have been hundreds of them because they made it sound like it was raining when they smashed against the tent trying desperately to get to my blood.
Yes, sandflies are nasty creatures. I had my encounters with them. Also on the South Island, on the Otago peninsula near Dunedin, are an albatross colony & yellow-eyed penguins. I have no idea what the current rules & restrictions are for viewing both, as it was many years ago I was there. Watching the albatross land and take off from the cliffside was amazing. They are enormous! The penguins weren't too far away, but I recall having to push my bike through sand to reach the beach area where they nested. You had to view them from a distance.

I met a touring cyclist on the South I. whose bike seat was partially wrapped with duct tape. She told me that a kea had eaten part of it while she was away hiking, though she hadn't actually seen it happening. I believe her, though, because I saw a kea pull out rubber door seals from a car parked near where the Routeburn Track began/ended. The same kea tried to eat parts of a backpack resting on the ground while a hiker was getting things out of his car.

aardvarks, ants, bears, boars....stoats, goats, and expecially rabbits!

well actually I've never seen an aardvark except in the zoo

Saw lots of moose in Norway (no reindeer!). I've cycled past two black bears so far this year and a few deer.

Also on the South Island, on the Otago peninsula near Dunedin, are an albatross colony & yellow-eyed penguins.Wow, now I regret that I ended my tour before getting to Otago, it was getting too cold. Will have to do that region next time ;)



She told me that a kea had eaten part of it while she was away hiking,...True, I had a brief encounter with keas and the little bastard tried to get a piece of my tire. Heres a pic:


http://corelian.com/gnzpictures/nz/05-islasurenbici/bici/images/MVC03841.jpg


Here is another wildlife encounter while kayaking in NZ's Abel Tasman park:


http://corelian.com/gnzpictures/nz/04-abeltasmankayak/kayak/images/MVC03267.jpg

While biking I have seen turkey vultures, white (albino) squirrel, fox, numerous hawks, big black and yellow corn snake, python (escaped from circus), peacocks, and owls. Animals that I do not know their nameinclude long-legged white birds (stork like), and a large black hawk. Both seen on the Hennepin Canal bike path.

Where I live, it's mostly quail and rabbits that I need to look out for. An occasional coyote will show themselves early in the morning.

Now.... if we want to talk about RoadKill...

I seen me some compressed critters! (I joke, but it's awful sad)

Many MANY moons ago, back when I was a wild kolleje student, I was riding along MA 202 (tripping on some outlandishly clean "Woodstock" blotter and came across a COMPLETELY splattered house cat... For some reason the first thing that popped into my mind was:

"Whoops... someone dropped their Chinese food!"

I fluckin laughed like a hyena the rest of the ride back...

I have seen lots of deer and smaller animals while riding trails on my MTB. Bikes are so fast and quiet one is on them before they have the least chance to do anything
about it.

Anything dangerous I have seen like gators and snakes has always been on foot. Just because I tend to be on foot when I travel.

About a week ago, I had 3 wild turkeys run across the road RIGHT in front of me.
Luckily I was climbing, so I wasn't going too fast :)

What, and you didn't stop to drink them???

Being from Australia I get to see quite a few Kangaroos, Wombats and Echidnas when out riding in the country. Always a pleasure to see them. You can often get quite close to them on a bike. Also plenty of cows and sheep of course and the odd menacing dog. Have also gotten a little too close to a couple of snakes but luckily managed to ride around them. Actually here we have the Australian Magpie, a fantastic bird except that in breeding season they like to dive bomb cyclists. Some more persistent ones draw blood when they attack but that's never happened to me so far. Eye contact is the key. They'll always turn away....

I seen me some compressed critters! (I joke, but it's awful sad)
2 other excellent terms I've seen are "flattened fauna" and "road pizzas".




Actually here we have the Australian Magpie, a fantastic bird except that in breeding season they like to dive bomb cyclists. Some more persistent ones draw blood when they attack but that's never happened to me so far. Eye contact is the key. They'll always turn away....
Were they introduced to NZ? I was dive-bombed by a magpie on the North Island. Like you said, when I looked up, they veered away. Still, I was glad I was wearing a helmet. An Aussie later told me that in areas of Australia where magpies are a problem, little kids will wear "magpie beanies" which have 2 little fake eyes on top. Is that true, or was my leg being pulled?

About a week ago, I had 3 wild turkeys run across the road RIGHT in front of me.
Luckily I was climbing, so I wasn't going too fast



What, and you didn't stop to drink them???mmh, is "wild turkey" a brand of beer somewhere? I usually see lots of "coronas" when I ride here in Mexico :) not good to try to drink them before the riding is over though.

I saw Mountain Lion pug marks (tracks) two weeks ago. No lion which is good as the pugs where huge. They were on a forrest service road intermixed with deer tracks. My first ever lion tracks.

Joe

(already posted this in Foo in a similar thread, but I think it's a good one, sooo...)

Too many rattlers to count, scorpions too... Skunks, wild burros, javelinas, giant beetles, bee hives, big-horn sheep. I was hiking through an aspen grove when a bunch of elk came running through. If it wasn't for all of the fallen trees, I could easily have been trampled. Bobcats, coyotes... Maybe I spend too much time in the hills.

The craziest one happened this last may. I was out riding trails with my cousin in a fairly remote area. He was riding point when I had a bad crash. He didn't hear me yell and kept going. I was pretty resigned to just lay in the trail until the pain stopped but I heard something coming quickly down the trail towards me. Cool, I thought, more riders, I may need some help. At the same time, I was laying on my face in the middle of the trail and I didn't want to get run over, so I raise my head and look up. This all happened pretty fast. From when I crashed to when I raised my head was just a matter of seconds. When I looked up, it was a mountain lion, and it had been moving quickly towards me until I looked up. Now it was just standing there, very close. I was on my feet pretty quickly. I've seen these cats before, but rarely, and at a distance, and they always run away. When I jumped up, it just stood there and my stomach dropped. It didn't seem very impressed with me, so I yelled and cussed at it and it took off into the bushes next to the trail. It didn't go far though, so I kept yelling and threw some rocks at it, but it stayed put. I was feeling pretty lonely at this point. The cat was probably in the same weight class as me, but it is for all intents and purposes a professional killer and I work in an office. I was also feeling pain again. I picked up my bike(thankfully undamaged)and start walking backwards down the trail keeping an eye on kitty with a big stick in my hands. When I had some distance and a good straight shot on the trail, I jumped on and took off.

I was moving fast, but considering how my last spill ended up, I was probably riding a little conservatively. I ran into my cousin a few hundred yards down the trail & started spitting out my story. He was looking at me like 'yeah right' when his face changed and he pointed behind me. It had followed me down the trail. When it saw both of us it walked off the side of the trail and disappeared. We didn't see it for the rest of the ride, but my mind wasn't exactly focused on the trail and I crashed a couple more times, each time jumping up immediately and looking for lions.

It has given me a great way to look on the bright side of things, "I burnt my bagel... Oh, but I didn't get eaten!".
I've never seen a bear though. ???

Were they introduced to NZ? I was dive-bombed by a magpie on the North Island. Like you said, when I looked up, they veered away. Still, I was glad I was wearing a helmet. An Aussie later told me that in areas of Australia where magpies are a problem, little kids will wear "magpie beanies" which have 2 little fake eyes on top. Is that true, or was my leg being pulled?

No, It sounds right. They were introduced to NZ. One of our fine contributions (?) along with Possums.... I think the fake eye theory is a bit flawed. They are actually pretty smart birds. If it stops them dive bombing it's probably because they're too weak from laughter.

I've seen a black and white cat... err skunk, a black steak I'm pretty sure was a black bear, numerous ground hogs (or was it a wood chuck?), coyotes, and even a red fox once. I've seen mice cross the road (for some reason thats odd in a funny way), red tail hawks, kestrals (the bird, not the bike), snakes and lots of dead stuff. Beavers from a bridge and dogs chasing me from the back of a pickup truck. Deer and wild turkey and other thing not shot yet. Bison and elk, but that was Yellowstone... do they realy count? Wood peckers, warblers, chicadees, titmice, cardnals, robins, starlings, birds, birds and more birds. I've mistaken turtles for rocks, but realized my mistake before it was too late. I've seen fish jump out of water (small mouth bass maybe). I've eaten many insects and clear spider webs with my face. I've seen tourist, rednecks, hicks, yuppies and Californians. If you keep your eyes open you see a lot. It might be the slower speeds of a bike that make it possible. Or it might just be that I've been on a bike for a long, long time.
Thats my feeble attempt at poetry...
Scott

No, It sounds right. They were introduced to NZ. One of our fine contributions (?) along with Possums.
On the same trip when the magpie attacked me on the North Island, I hiked the Routeburn Track on the South Island. I spent an insane night in a mountain hut. Everyone was awakened in the middle of the night by a screaming German woman in our midst. A possum had wandered in the open window and the woman freaked out. A couple of us got it out the window. A couple of hours later, we were awakened again by the strangest sound. Something was sliding down the corrugated metal roof above us, followed by a soft plopping sound on the ground. It kept happening over and over. I wouldn't have believed this if I hadn't seen it myself, but the noise was coming from a kea (nice photo above, gnz) which was amusing itself by sliding down the roof onto the ground. Then it flew back up onto the roof and did it again and again. You have to admire an animal which does something strictly for fun.

Then there's the astonishing call of the kookaburra, heard while camping in Australia. It should win some sort of award!

I was hiking through an aspen grove when a bunch of elk came running through. If it wasn't for all of the fallen trees, I could easily have been trampledReminds me of that stampede scene in the movie Jurassic Park :)




The craziest one happened this last may...Scary encounter with the lion, reminds me of being prepared by knowing what would be the correct reaction ... I mean, you kind of stood up to the animal and it worked out, in the case of a bear I think (please someone correct me if wrong) this would have been a no-no.




I've seen tourist, rednecks, hicks, yuppies and Californians...You missed a common type of animal seen often on the road: a**hole drivers :) (the ones that seem to ignore cyclists)




Then there's the astonishing call of the kookaburra, heard while camping in Australia. It should win some sort of award!I have vivid memories of one particular bird that often woke me up while camping throughout NZ's south island ... I think it was the tui but not so sure, its song was very elaborate with like seven notes, really amazing.

Wow great story bikemiker!
If you hadn't looked up when you did, you might have been dinner!

gnz
there's two schools of thought with a bear encounter.
Stand your ground, talk in a calm voice, don't look them in the eye, back away slowly. If charged, don't run, if it looks like its going to maul you play dead, cover your neck and head with your hands. Thats for a grizzly

If attacked by a black bear, fight back for all your life, be as aggressive as you can.
Don't play dead.

Thats the latest I've heard.

On the same trip when the magpie attacked me on the North Island, I hiked the Routeburn Track on the South Island. I spent an insane night in a mountain hut. Everyone was awakened in the middle of the night by a screaming German woman in our midst. A possum had wandered in the open window and the woman freaked out. A couple of us got it out the window. A couple of hours later, we were awakened again by the strangest sound. Something was sliding down the corrugated metal roof above us, followed by a soft plopping sound on the ground. It kept happening over and over. I wouldn't have believed this if I hadn't seen it myself, but the noise was coming from a kea (nice photo above, gnz) which was amusing itself by sliding down the roof onto the ground. Then it flew back up onto the roof and did it again and again. You have to admire an animal which does something strictly for fun.

Then there's the astonishing call of the kookaburra, heard while camping in Australia. It should win some sort of award!

Kookaburra's are interesting birds. One particular one followed us down the road as we cycled. I was wondering what it was doing until suddenly it dived into the grass beside the road and came up with a small snake. It was expecting us to disturb it's dinner as we rode past and it was right....

Getting back to Magpies. They have a very complex array of calls. In fact researchers are talking of it more like a language. There are litterally hundreds of different ones....

While biking I have seen . . . white (albino) squirrel . . .

That's funny that you should mention white squirrels. I went for a ride this morning and saw the first white squirrel I've ever seen. We have lots of totally black squirrels in my neighborhood, but never see a white one before.

I hit a great blue Heron once. It sat on a bridge post and spooked when i rode up, but instead of flying away it went right into my chest.

Somehow i crossed the bridge without crashing while a bird with a 6 foot wingspan went nuts in my lap. The thing was the size of my dog! Funny though, tastes like chicken.

Just kidding, birdy flew away squaking. I kept riding half afraid it would chase me down.

I hit a great blue Heron once. It sat on a bridge post and spooked when i rode up, but instead of flying away it went right into my chest.

Somehow i crossed the bridge without crashing while a bird with a 6 foot wingspan went nuts in my lap. The thing was the size of my dog! Funny though, tastes like chicken.

Just kidding, birdy flew away squaking. I kept riding half afraid it would chase me down.

Holy Shyt!

You're damn lucky that neo-dinosaur didn't beak out your eyes and talon your hide!

I lived in FL for about a decade, and once had to deal with an injured (broken wing) BH that decided to convalesce in my fish pond. Damn thing was like a Hellcat.

The blue herons are really amazing. We have a few on our polluted river here. I used to ride the unpaved river trail into the downtown daily, but it takes me right by the place where I was hit by a car...

I still go on the trail sometimes to see the fish and watch the blue herron. THe herron take off when they see me coming, first with an evasive walk and then with flight. even if they're across the river.

Mostly there I see woodchucks, groundhogs and beavers though. beavers can tolerate just about any pollution. they're the only animals that inhabit the acid mine drainage sites here in pennsylvania, which are regularly regarded as the places in the world where the most pollution can be seen with the naked eye... truly the most disgusting creations of mankind, the fact that they're unintentional consequences of greed is really the saddest aspect of living in this area...

I wonder if they'd let me bring a bike on the running of the bulls in Pamplona next year?

I wonder if they'd let me bring a bike on the running of the bulls in Pamplona next year?

Wow great story bikemiker!
If you hadn't looked up when you did, you might have been dinner!

gnz
there's two schools of thought with a bear encounter.
Stand your ground, talk in a calm voice, don't look them in the eye, back away slowly. If charged, don't run, if it looks like its going to maul you play dead, cover your neck and head with your hands. Thats for a grizzly

If attacked by a black bear, fight back for all your life, be as aggressive as you can.
Don't play dead.

Thats the latest I've heard.

Um... who's going to stop and check?

My advice. When a bear attacks reach down, grab a peice of poop, and throw it at the bear. (What do you do if there's no poop underneath you?)... There will be.