Among North America’s rarest mammals, this elusive fox has a population numbering somewhere between just 18 and 39 animals. If you want a chance of seeing one, head to the high, snowy backcountry of the central Sierra Nevada in California – think Sonora Pass and the remote northern edge of Yosemite National Park. A second, equally tiny group clings on further north, near Lassen Volcanic National Park.

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North America's most elusive creatures, where to spot them