(Update: Adding video, photographer, ODFW biologist s comments)
BEND, Ore. (KTVZ) Alan Miles of Bend took these photos of what appears to be a rare Sierra Nevada red fox at a Mt. Bachelor parking lot.
He said the fox was passing through the Skyliner parking lot on Monday.
According to the Center For Biological Diversity, This unique animal is one of the rarest mammals in North America and is now limited to only two tiny California populations that likely consist of fewer than 50 and possibly even fewer than 20 individuals. I saw a lady taking a photo of this animal on the hill, looked up and it was this very unusual animal it was not a dog and just thought it was real special, Miles said.
Wolves removed from endangered list
Decision would make lethal control possible for stock depredation; a controversial move
In January, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service formally removed most gray wolves in the lower 48 from the Endangered Species List, which turns management over to state fish and wildlife agencies including ODFW.
In Oregon, wolves west of Highways 395-78-95 had remained on the federal ESA when the area east of this boundary was delisted in 2011.
While U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service was the lead agency in the western two-thirds of the state, ODFW has always played a significant role in wolf conservation and management statewide since wolves began to re-establish themselves in Oregon in the 2000s.