hi, I should be visiting California and driving from Monterey to San Diego, visiting all major zoos on the way. I have a couple of wildlife days and was wondering where is the best place to spot pikas? Thanks.
The only place where pikas live in California is high in the Sierra Nevada mountains. I have never seen one and do not know of any places where they can be reliably seen. I've read that they occur around the ghost town of Bodie in the eastern Sierra, but that is several hundred miles from where you will be along the coast. There was this exchange on Mammal Watching that has some advice: where is the best easy trail to find pikas in California? – Mammal Watching
Thank you, a bit off topic, but does anyone know where in California is best for muskrat or skimmers? I’m visiting Dallas also if that helps
Muskrat are not native to California. I have seen skimmers on the beach across the street from the Santa Barbara Zoo.
Black skimmers can be seen in summer into fall at the Upper Newport Bay, especially from the Jamboree Blvd. bridge and the nearby Vista Point.
Pikas are a difficult one. Between Monterey and San Diego no luck, as others have noted. Only in the extremely high Sierra Nevadas is there much chance of seeing any. I don't know of any easy place to see them. Muskrats you could probably find with a little effort around a well-vegetated marsh or pond, so long as it's reasonably clean. Dusk or dawn would give you best chances. Can't help you on skimmer, still trying to find one myself!
