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Porcupine Mountains Wilderness State Park is home to some very
interesting and rare wildlife. The park features several peregrine
falcons which are the fastest birds in the world. They live and
nest on the escarpment cliffs. It is very important that these
rare birds go undisturbed. Porcupine Mountains Wilderness State
Park is also home to a large population of black bears. Seeing
these however is more of a random encounter. The rare goshawk
and also inhabits the park, but predictably in low numbers. Some
would even say an animal long thought to be gone from the region
still inhabits the rocky remote areas of the park - the cougar.
There have been several sightings over the past twenty five years
in and around the park. Porcupine Mountain Wilderness State Park
is also home to the legendary wolf.
Bald Eagle: Lake Superior shoreline (especially inlets),
larger inland lakes and vantage points from cliffs(Lake of the
Clouds, Summit Peak).
Coyote: All over park, especially forest edges and near
roads.
Fisher: Deep woods.
Black bear: All over the park.
Deer: All over park
Wolves: Very hard to spot, deep interior of park and winter
deer areas.
Bobcat: Present, but difficult to see.
Hawks: High points, Lake of the Clouds.
Loons: Uncommon in the park. Focus on quiet lakes.
Moose: Rare and very uncommon. The Michigan moose herd
is in trouble.
Steelhead and salmon: Below barrier falls on streams near
Lake Superior in the spring and fall. Observe clear gravel runs
while staying out of site.
Brook trout: Most park waters. Be careful not to cast
your shadow onto the water.
Porcupine Mountains Wilderness State Park offers great opportunities
for wildlife photography. For DLSR users, I recommend an ultra
wide angle lens due to 95% of the park being forested. This makes
for tight areas, making the wide angle very useful. This would
be a 10-22 mm lens on a 1.6x crop body, or a 16-35mm lens on a
full frame camera. For wildlife, you will want at least 300mm.
Due to the dark nature of being in a forest canopy, a tripod or
sturdy monopod is a must have.
Some useful items for attempting to observe and photograph wildlife
in Porcupine Mountains Wilderness State Park:
Camera, wildlife lens, spotting scope, ultra wide angle lens,
guide to wildlife photography, rain gear, tents and backpacks.
Photo
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