Mammals of North Carolina:
their Distribution and Abundance

Species reported for North Carolina but never documented.

These species have been reported in at least one reference as occurring, or having occurred in the past, in North Carolina. However, we are unaware of any conclusively documented records for North Carolina.
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North American PorcupineErethizon dorsatumLee et al. (1982, p. 7) state that "There is some reason to suspect that the Porcupine and Fisher may have once occurred in the mountainous portions of North Carolina, but their presence in historic times cannot be substantiated." Kellogg (1939), in an "Annotated List of Tennessee Mammals", says "Mercer ... found the dried feces and quills of a porcupine in Bigbone Cave near Elroy, Van Buren County, Tenn. During the recent rearrangement of the mammal collection in the National Museum, a left mandible of an immature porcupine labeled as coming from 'a Tennessee cave', but with no other data, was found." Linzey (1995) says "Hall (1981) indicated that its range may extend through the mountains as far south as the Smokies. Jawbones of porcupines have been recovered from archaelogical [sic] sites west of Chattanooga in Marion County, Tennessee".

Thus, though there is some evidence that Porcupines might have occupied the mountains of Tennessee into the 19th Century, there seems to be nothing on record of even sightings from North Carolina, much less reports of specimens or carcasses.

Swamp RabbitSylvilagus aquaticusUnlike with the Porcupine, Snowshoe Hare, and the Fisher, there actually is an existing specimen of a supposed Swamp Rabbit. Lee et al. (1982, p. 39) state "We recently discovered in the collection of the North Carolina State Museum (NCSM 843) a male specimen of S. [= Sylvilagus] aquaticus from Clay County, N.C., which was erroneously labeled S. floridanus [= Eastern Cottontail]. The specimen was collected on 18 August 1956, 11 miles E of Hayesville by Tom Beadles (total length 429 mm, tail vertebrae 49 mm, hind foot 96 mm, ear 63 mm, weight 1042 g; skull not saved.) The specimen appears to be molting into adult summer pelage, but no other information is available."

The above information, from a species account for Swamp Rabbit in "A Distributional Survey of North Carolina Mammals", would seem to be a "slam-dunk" case for inclusion on the North Carolina state list. However, Dr. David Webster, at UNC-Wilmington, studied the specimen in the mid-1980's, and found it to be in very poor condition, such that he was unable to tell what it was. As a result, this species has not appeared on the N.C. Scientific Council on Mammals list of rare species, nor has it appeared on the state listing of endangered, threatened, or special concern mammals of the state (i.e., on the N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission state protected list), even though the species had been reported from Clay County, where presumed to be resident, at the northern edge of the range. The N.C. Natural Heritage Program supports the decision of the Scientific Council in not considering the Swamp Rabbit to be convincingly documented for the state.

Snowshoe HareLepus americanusKellogg (1939), in an "Annotated List of Tennessee Mammals", says "Information received from local residents suggests that varying hares [i.e., Snowshoe Hares] were formerly present in the mountainous district extending from Mount Guyot to White Rock, Cocke County. These residents inquired if Perrygo had seen any of the rabbits that turned white in winter and made such long jumps when chased in the snow by dogs. He was told that they were usually 'jumped' from rhododendron thickets near the summits of the peaks. From repeated inquiries, Perrygo learned that these rabbits were very rare now but formerly were often seen during winter months by local hunters."

Several recent field guides and reference books not surprisingly include North Carolina and/or Tennessee as being at the southern edge of the species' range. However, neither state considers the Snowshoe Hare as being conclusively documented in the region, and the species certainly is extirpated over the past 150 to 200 years, if not longer.

FisherMartes pennantiAccording to Powell, in an article in the 1991 "Wildlife in North Carolina", "John James Audubon and the Reverend Bachman talked to hunters and trappers who had killed fishers in the North Carolina and Tennessee mountains; Bachman apparently saw carcasses or pelts of such fishers." He states that the "last records of fishers in the southern Appalachians date from the 1830s."

Though there seems little reason to doubt these excellent biologists, no specimens of Fishers from North Carolina or Tennessee are known to reside in any museum collection, and thus we have no conclusive evidence of their presence in these states.