Page 28 - (DK Eyewitness) Travel Guide - Pacific Northwest

26  INTRODUCING THE P A CIFIC NOR THWEST

Wildlife of the Pacific Northwest

The landscapes of the Pacific Northwest are
the most varied in North America. The cold
waters of the Pacific Ocean fill sheltered bays
and wash onto great lengths of sandy beach,
dense old-growth forests carpet the Coast
and Cascade Mountains, and arid plateaus and
high deserts spread across the eastern parts
of the region. Over the past 150 years, settlers Sea lions make their homes on rocky
have created new landscapes, including the outcroppings along the Pacific shore.
fertile farmland of Oregon’s Willamette
Valley and the expanses of orchards and
wheatfields in eastern Washington and
British Columbia. These landscapes – lush
river valleys and harsh deserts alike – provide
rich habitats for a great diversity of wildlife,
and viewing these animals is a rewarding
part of a visit to the Pacific Northwest.

Pacific salmon migrate from cold ocean
waters, where they feed until maturity, into
the inland streams, rivers, and lakes of their
birth where they spawn, then die. Once they
have reached fresh water, they stop feeding
and live on their stored body fats. The fish
often make journeys of more than 1,000 miles
(1,600 km), swimming up rapids and Elk
bypassing dams. Each of the five species of
Pacific salmon – sockeye, pink, chum, coho, Elk reside in the subalpine forests of the Rockies and
and chinook – has a distinct appearance and eastern Oregon mountains. During the mating
life cycle. The pinks, for example, live up to season in the fall, males become aggressive and
two years and weigh little more than 5 lb fight for herd domination. The nasal, whining
(2.3 kg), while the chinook can reach 120 lb sound they emit, known as “bugling,” should be
(54 kg) in weight and live up to seven years. taken by humans as a warning. Approaching a
mother elk and her calf is dangerous.

Sea otters were rendered almost extinct in the 19th
century by trappers who obtained enormous prices for
their pelts, but they are now making a comeback along the
Pacific Northwest coast. These creatures eat the equivalent
of a third of their weight a day, providing quite a show as
they feed. A sea otter lies on its back and, using its paws,
smashes crabs, mussels, and other shellfish against a rock it
has placed on its chest. Otters can be easily spotted, lolling
on rocks or floating asleep on the water, their bodies
entwined in kelp to keep them from drifting.

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