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About Jonathan Wright
Expertise
I can answer questions about wild mammals, as well as other wild animals. I can also answer questions on extinct animals and zoos. PLEASE DON'T SEND ME ANY QUESTIONS ABOUT PETS. IF YOU ARE REALLY WORRIED, YOU SHOULD CONTACT A VETERINARIAN. PLEASE DO NOT ASSUME THAT UNPAID PEOPLE ON ALLEXPERTS ARE AVAILABLE 24 HOURS A DAY AND WILL PROVIDE YOU WITH ADVICE THE MOMENT YOUR ANIMAL GETS ILL. Find out how to look after a pet before you get it. It is unfair to keep an animal in inappropriate conditions and give it the wrong food. If you can't keep an animal in good conditions, please don't bring it into your home. I'm not a vet and I don't have any expertise in animal medicine and care. I don't agree with people taking animals out of the wild and then expecting other people to give free advice on how to look after them. It is cruel to take animals away from their parents, who are able to look after the babies and may look for them, while putting their other babies at risk. You may need a licence to look after some animals. You may be breaking the law by keeping wild animals; please check with a local wildlife organisation. IF YOU FIND AN INJURED ANIMAL, PLEASE CONTACT A WILDLIFE VETERINARIAN OR CHARITY AND LET TRAINED STAFF LOOK AFTER THE ANIMAL. DO NOT TRY TO LOOK AFTER AN INJURED ANIMAL IF YOU DO NOT KNOW WHAT YOU ARE DOING. Please do not remove eggs from nests. The mother birds will know the right temperature for the eggs and will not sit on them if the temperature is warm enough for them to develop naturally. It is illegal to remove eggs of some species and, unless you have an incubator or a broody hen, the egg may not develop. If you are allowed to touch the eggs, you can candle them (check details on websites) to see if the eggs are fertile. If the eggs are not fertile, they will not hatch. I do not agree with fights between different animals. Please do not ask me questions about them.

Experience
I have a zoology degree and have been interested in animals since I was two years old. I am a zoo volunteer at London Zoo. I have appeared on a BBC Radio Quiz, 'Wildbrain'.

Organizations
World Wide Fund for Nature. Zoological Society of London. London Bat Group.

Publications
Newsletters of London Zoo volunteers and the London Bat Group

Education/Credentials
BSC degree in Zoology. 'A' levels in Zoology and Chemistry. 'O' Level in Biology.

You are here: Experts > Animals/Pets > Veterinary Medicine > Wild Animals > strange noise in wilderness

Wild Animals - strange noise in wilderness

Expert: Jonathan Wright - 7/8/2009

Question
I was camping in the Pisgah Forest near Grandfather Mountain recently when I was woken by a strange noise. There was an owl hooting nearby and my dog went to investigate. About 100 yards away from the campsite the dog barked twice and an animal, presumably, mimicked him closely. I heard the dog go closer and the wild animal erupted with a series of guttural noises that were reminiscent of a gorilla grunting. The sound was low pitched and was like nothing I'd heard before. I can't say it sounded like a cat or a fox but perhaps these animals make unusual noises when protecting offspring. Any links or suggestions to what it could possibly be would be great. Thanks for the site-it's fantastic!

Answer
Dear Eric

Thank you for your question. I also wish to thank the authors of the websites I used.

http://www.mammalsociety.org/statelists/ncmammals.html is a list of mammals from North Carolina. I have tried to determine the ones that are most likely to produce low-pitched grunting sounds.

http://www.mammalsociety.org/statelists/ncmammals.html says the American black bear makes grunting sounds, especially when a mother protects her cubs.

http://www.texasboars.com/hunting/calling.html says that wild boars also make grunting sounds. http://www.deerhunting.ws/vocalization.htm says that white-tailed deer do the same.

I think these three mammals include the one you heard, but I haven't got enough information to say which one it was. http://www.google.co.uk/search?q=mammal+pisgah++&hl=en&safe=active&sa=2 indicate that deer and bears live in Pisgah, while other sites indicate that boars are common in North Carolina.

All the best

Jonathan

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