Yellowstone (Part 5) Where the Elk and the Antelope Play

Prickly pear cactus in Yellowstone.  It was a surprise to me.  In late June these plants have pretty, yellow flowers.

The elusive coyote. Great excitement to see the coyote walking along the meadow. Alert to every sound, I could see this coyote's ears moving forward and back, and saw him tilting his head to focus on particular sounds. As he got discovered by more people along the meadow, he picked up his loping pace and I was astounded at how quickly he ran, and darted out into the overgrown sage and disappeared from sight.

This elk herd were grazing in front of Devil's Slide, which is just outside the Yellowstone boundaries. Church Universal and Triumphant (CUT) has settled nearby and wished to rename this distinct mountainside Angel's Arc, but somehow the new name never stuck.

Elk in the sage, just watching.

A proud member of the herd, sniffing the air to check for possible danger. If there's something suspicious this elk will alert the rest of the herd.

Elk numbers in Yellowstone are estimated around 15,000. They were heading toward overrunning the Park when the wolves were exterminated. With the return of the wolves has also come a return of many plants to the ecosystem that the elk were eating to extinction. This includes the beautiful aspen trees. Since these trees are recently reintroduced, some of these and other endangered plants are surrounded by exclosure fencing. This is fencing meant to keep the animals out in order to protect the trees, the other growth, and the ecology.

An elk losing his winter coat and enjoying the spring grasses.

A pair of elk who felt we spectators were worth a curious glance, but not a full out alert to the herd.

Here's the famous Roosevelt arch, near Gardiner, Montana.  It was dedicated by President Theodore Roosevelt in April, 1903. One of the entries to the world's first National Park. The legislation declaring this National Park stated it was land set aside for the benefit and enjoyment of the people. I hope now we all realize this Park is the home to the animals - their home. And we are very fortunate to be visitors in their home.

Pronghorn antelope are so beautiful in the wild. Interesting to know, they are near sighted. They also don't like deep snow, their hooves are don't move well in it.  They will come way down in elevation during the winter in order to avoid that snow.

I found that pronghorn antelope herds move very fast and very erratically. Pictures of them truly on the move are mostly a blur. This herd that you see starting to graze had suddenly come running down a hill nearby in our direction. Running incredibly fast, they absolutely glide when they run. There's no bouncing, the entire running motion is completely smooth. The only animal that runs slightly faster is the cheetah. Pronghorn Antelope can run about 60 mph.

Pronghorn Antelope are very wary for their newborns, which are a favorite target of the coyote.  Otherwise, coyote focus on squirrels and other rodents, birds, and insects. Now coyotes are learning how to survive around wolves, often feeding on the remains of wolf kills while staying out of the wolves' way. With the wolves' return, more pronghorn fawns are surviving, helping these beautiful herds grow in number.