Mammals of the Kern National Wildlife Refuge

Kern National Wildlife Refuge is found just beyond the southern edge of historic Tulare Lake in the San Joaquin Valley of California. The Southern San Joaquin valley was a vast wetland surrounded by saltbush scrub and grassland prior to the 1900's. Herds of elk and antelope roamed throughout the entire Central Valley. They were stalked by the now extinct California grizzly bear as well as by mountain lions and coyotes. The large game animals were hunted to near extinction in the mid 1800's. No large mammals, with the exception of the coyote, exist on the refuge today. Reclamation of valley habitats began in the 1850's and continues today. The damming of the San Joaquin valley rivers for flood control and irrigation purposes depleted the water supply to the lakes and marshes.

Kern National Wildlife Refuge was established on November 18, 1960 to resurrect portions of these reduced ecosystems. This 11,249-acre refuge has wetland and upland habitats suitable for a variety of mammals.

As with most mammals, daytime observation is limited. Ground squirrels and coyotes are the only frequently seen mammals during daylight. Visitors to the refuge will seen many species of birds and a few reptiles in their search for elusive resident mammals. The summer months can be extremely dusty, hot and dry. Refuge ponds are generally dry during the May through August period resulting in limited opportunities for wildlife observation.

The refuge headquarters is located at the junction of Garces Highway and Corcoran Road, 18 miles west of Delano, California.

This list of 40 species is adapted from the official refuge mammal list maintained by Jack Allen and the checklist of the Recent Mammals of Kern County California by Alison Sheehey. Not all species on this list have been officially recorded on the refuge. Species not confirmed are extrapolated from literature range information sources.

Virginia opossum* (c)

Buena Vista Lake shrew (c)

Broad-handed Mole

Western small-footed myotis

California myotis

Yuma myotis

Silver-haired bat

Western pipistrelle

Big brown bat

Hoary bat

Western red bat

Townsend's Western Big-eared Bat

Pallid Bat

Mexican free-tailed bat (c)

Western mastiff bat (c)

San Joaquin kit fox (c)

Coyote (c)

Raccoon (c)

Long-tailed weasel (c)

Badger (c)

Western spotted skunk (c)

Striped skunk (c)

Bobcat (c)

Cattle* (c)

San Joaquin antelope squirrel

California ground squirrel (c)

Botta's pocket gopher (c)

San Joaquin pocket mouse (c)

Heermann's kangaroo rat (c)

Tipton kangaroo rat (c)

Southern grasshopper mouse

Deer mouse (c)

Western harvest mouse (c)

California vole (c)

Muskrat (c)

Beaver (c)

Black rat* (c)

House mouse* (c)

Desert cottontail (c)

Black-tailed jackrabbit (c)

Didelphis virginiana

Sorex ornatus relictus

Scapanus latimanus

Myotis ciliolabrum

Myotis californicus

Myotis yumanensis

Lasionycteris noctivagans

Pipistrellus hesperus

Eptesicus fuscus

Lasiurus cinereus

Lasiurus blossevillii

Corynorhinus townsendii

Antrozous pallidus

Tadarida brasiliensis

Eumops perotis

Vulpes macrotis mutica

Canis latrans

Procyon lotor

Mustela frenata

Taxidea taxus

Spilogale gracilis

Mephitis mephitis

Lynx rufus

Bos taurus

Ammospermophilus nelsoni

Spermophilus beecheyi

Thomomys bottae

Perognathus inornatus

Dipodomys heermanni

Dipodomys nitratoides nitratoides

Onychomys torridus

Peromyscus maniculatus

Reithrodontomys megalotis

Microtus californicus

Ondatra zibethicus

Castor canadensis

Rattus rattus

Mus musculus

Sylvilagus audubonii

Lepus californicus

Kern National Wildlife Refuge Complex
P.O. Box 670

Delano, CA 93216-0670

(661) 725 2767

NATURE ALLEY AREA CHECKLISTS Parrot Project of Bakersfield

Kern River Preserve California PARROT PROJECT

This page was created on February 22, 2000 and last updated on Thursday, January 17, 2008.

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MAMMALS OF THE KERN NATIONAL WILDLIFE REFUGE

Delano, California

Alison Sheehey © Nature Ali