In looking back through the years during which mammal studies have been
carried on at Mount Rainier, three periods stand out in which
considerable field research was accomplished. The first of these was in
July and August, 1897, when a party headed by Dr. C. Hart Merriam,
Vernon Bailey, Dr. A. K. Fisher and Walter K. Fisher made the first
field studies of the mammals of the park. Following this very important
piece of work there was a lull in field activities until the summer of
1919 when a party working under the auspices of the National Park
Service and the Bureau of Biological Survey conducted studies on the
local bird and mammal populations. In this party were such well known
scientists as Dr. Walter P. Taylor, in charge, George G. Cantwell,
Stanley G. Jewett, Professor J. B. Flett, Professor William T. Shaw,
Professor J. W. Hungate and Mr. and Mrs. William L. Finley. Upon the
completion of this study there was again a long period in which little
of a systematic nature was accomplished. The last period of note came
during the years 1934-1936 when Mr. E. A. Kitchin, a member of the
Wildlife Division of the National Park Service, supervised field studies
in various portions of the park. Many of these studies were concerned
with observational data rather than extensive collecting. For the next
few years only brief observations from members of the park staff were
added to the park records. Then, during the summer of 1947, special
studies were begun by the Naturalist Staff on the status of the mountain
goat and the problems arising from a foot disease that occurred in the
deer population. It is planned that other special studies shall be
carried on in future years, designed to clarify the status of other
important mammalian species in the park.
Because of the extensive data that have slowly accumulated through the
years since the 1919 survey, the need for a publication to bring all
information up to date has become increasingly apparent. This booklet is
designed to answer that need.
The sequence of species used brings many of the larger animals ahead of
the smaller and more obscure kinds, and thus does not in many cases
follow in systematic order. However, it is felt that the order used best
meets the needs in a publication of this type. Common names selected are
those most generally accepted for the animals in question.