Animals and Insects
Animals and Insects (17)
Observing the wildlife that inhabit the trail is part of the beauty. Snakes, bears, coyotes, foxes, wolves, bobcats, wild boars, raccoons, porcupines, deer, moose , elk, hares and rabbits, squirrels, opossums, skunks, wild turkeys and grouse all live in the states along the Appalachian Trail. It's key to remember that none of the animals found on the Appalachian Trail will attack a human unless it is provoked, cornered or rabid. If the animal suddenly changes its behavior, you probably are too close.
Black bears are the only bears found in the east. They are smaller and less aggressive than the Grizzly but still can be 400 to 500 pounds. Black bears have limited eyesight but a keen sense of smell and hearing. As we have encroached into their territory more and more,…
Bobcats are between 15 to 70 pounds, have stubby tails, tufted ears, and a tawny coat with mottled brown spots.
Though abundant in the mountains, as night hunters they are rarely seen on the trail. Their prey consists of hare and rabbit, mice, porcupines, squirrels and cave bats. They occassionally…
Approximately 2 feet tall, 4 feet long and weighing 20-40 pounds, Coyotes inhabit the entire length of the AT.
Their coat is gray or reddish gray, and their tails are bushy and have a black tip. Coyotes prey upon small rodents, birds, eggs, and young or hurt deer, though are…
Deer are abundant in the mountains, with a particularly large deer population in Virginia and Pennsylvania.
They have become accostumed to humans in the state parks and will come pretty close to hikers.
Their method of dealing with threat is to snort and stamp their feet, alerting other deer in…
Thought to be near extinction in the early 1900s, the NPS has reintroduced the elk back into the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.
The experimental program began with 25 elk in 2001 and an additional 27 in 2002 and will continue unless the elk threaten park resources or cause significant…
Approximately 8-15 pounds and a little more than a foot in height, fox inhabit the mountains throughout the trail.
The two most common fox species on the trail are the red fox and gray fox. The red fox has reddish fur and a bushy tail with a white tip. The…
The two types of grouse inhabiting the Appalachian Trail are the ruffed grouse and the spruced grouse. The ruffed grouse is found in all the states the trail passes, whereas the spruced grouse is only found in Maine. The size of chickens and excellently camouflaged, ruffed grouse are usually a…
The two species of hare that inhabit the AT are the snowshoe hare and the brown or European hare.
The snowshoe hare change color with the seasons, dark brown in summer, white in winter, and a mottled brown with white for the white snow patches on the ground in the…
Moose inhabit the northern section of the AT, from Vermont up. The largest deer in the world, they can weigh up to 1400 pounds.
Though they usually stay away from people, moose can be dangerous. Know that some bulls have attacked humans.
Be especially careful of protective cows with their…
One of the few marsupial species found on the trail, the Virginia Opossum is the size of a large cat. Most have a mottled-gray and white upper coat and long white hairs that cover dark fur underneath. Their distinguishing feature is a long, hairless tail. They are nocturnal and solitary…
Raccoons are nocturnal animals and usually avoid people. They can be pests though and are especially corageous in areas where they are protected.
Raising food sacks off the ground will keep your food safe from raccoons in addition to bears. However, you also want to keep the food sack away…
The two species of skunk that live on the Appalachian Trail are the spotted skunk and the striped skunk. Smaller than the striped skunk, the spotted skunk has horizontal stripes on the neck and shoulders and spots on its sides. In contrast, the striped skunk has two thick white stripes…
Though most of the snakes you will encounter will be nonpoisonous, some poisonous snakes do inhabit the Appalachian Mountains. These include:
Copperheads are found from Georgia to Maine, but rarely spotted north of Massachusetts.
Timber rattlesnakes are found from Georgia to Maine, but again, rarely spotted north of Massachusetts.
Eastern…
Squirrel species that inhabit the trail include: the gray squirrel, fox squirrel, red squirrel, northern flying squirrel and southern flying squirrel. Named for its color, the gray squirrel is gray, though in the northern states it looks black. Its tail has some silver hairs amongst its bushy gray. The fox…
Boars were originally brought over to the US from Europe and confined to hunting preserves. Many escaped and interbred with the domestic pig, though full-blooded boars still inhabit the mountains of the AT, mainly living in eastern Tennessee and western North Carolina in the Nantahala and Cherokee National Forests.
Recently…
Hikers usually observe wild turkeys in small flocks and during light rain or mist. They inhabit the AT from southern Vermont and south.
Though the NPS and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service tried to reintroduce the wolf back into the Great Smoky Mountains in 1991, the program was terminated after 8 years. The pups were having a hard time surviving, and the wolves were not able to make a home range in the…
