I just got back from a hunting trip to Colorado and on one mountainside I observed small creatures I had never seen before.About 5 inches long,brown,plump and furry with small rounded ears and no tail.Very cute,they would run around squeaking.Kinda looked like a hamster.I suspect they were a type of lemming,anybody out there know for sure?

Ok, i gotta know to.......can ya maybe find a pic of one and post it?

Rock rabbits?

They a are tiny breed of rabbits with stubby round ears and from a distance would appear to have no tail. If I remember right they have tiny rear feet. I've only ever seen them on a single mountain range within a 5 mile radius... they generally live in rock slides.


-DallanC

They may be rock rabbits,I have never heard of such a thing.They were living in a rockslide by an old abandoned mine.I tried to get a picture of one but was unsuccessful,they seemed pretty skittish.Need a telephoto lense.I was able to watch them quite a bit through 10 power binos.I looked up lemmings on net and the pictures shown didnt quite look like animals I saw.Thanks for your input.

Dallan,
I looked up rock rabbits and that is indeed what they were judging from the pictures.Also known as pikas or conies according to website.

Looks like a hampster.

10ring,
thanks for posting the picture,while I could probably figure out how to I am not very computer profficient.Cute little bugger,isnt it??

No problem Roklok.

They are cool looking, but in this pic i can imagine why you can't really see them because the little bugger blends right in.

They were definately Pika. They live in rocky areas in Colorado, Wyoming, and Montana. They are more closely related to pack rats and chinchillas than actual rabbits. Watch a group long enough and you will probably see a Pine Martin as well. They eat Pikas and are basically a really large weasel. If you find a Pika nest in the rocks it will look like a trash heap, they will gather all the crap people leave behind, wrappers, paper, tinfoil, fishing equipment, etc.

Cute little buggers, I agree.

mikekuzara wrote:

They were definately Pika. They live in rocky areas in Colorado, Wyoming, and Montana.

And Utahs Uinta Mountains. Only place I've seen them inside of Utah.

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They are more closely related to pack rats and chinchillas than actual rabbits.

Thats probably correct. I never heard the "pika" name but I've heard a couple people call them Rock Rabbits. I think I first heard the name Rock Rabbit from my dad once while fishing a high mountain lake and asking him what those tiny things are running around.

Quote::

Watch a group long enough and you will probably see a Pine Martin as well. They eat Pikas and are basically a really large weasel. If you find a Pika nest in the rocks it will look like a trash heap, they will gather all the crap people leave behind, wrappers, paper, tinfoil, fishing equipment, etc. Cute little buggers, I agree.

I'd love to see a Pine Martin but am unsure if they range down into Utah, Odds are there are probably some in the Uintas though.