Wildlife, landscape and weather photography
I had just remarked to my wife that it was odd we hadn’t seen many pronghorn when this little one and a bunch more appeared. Two bucks, three does and four fawns helped wrap up our tour of our favorite are of the park.
As is typical for the species, none really wanted anything to do with us but this one was quite curious, walking closer while the others maintained their distance.
When I first happened across this handsome (but scraggly, shedding) fellow, he was actually pretty close. But, pronghorn are quite shy and this one was no different, quickly putting some distance between he and I.
They are, however, also notoriously curious and I used a trick I learned long ago – I waved my arm. That motion was enough to get him to stop, turn around, and investigate.
As you can tell, he is shedding his winter coat and none too soon given how hot it has been lately here on the Colorado Front Range.
Oh my goodness! Such an absolutely amazing encounter yesterday!
I had gone to Cheyenne for work and on my way back, as always, I was watching for pronghorn. Just inside the Colorado border I spotted a doe standing a good ways off in a field and then saw movement behind her – a fawn – and it clearly had just been born!
Quickly, I snapped bunches of pics when I noticed movement in the grass in front of her. A second fawn! Twins! Both were still very wet from birth and already working hard to get those long, wobbly legs moving. I suspect they had been born less than an hour before I spotted them.
Now, I have seen recently born animals many, many times before but never ones so “fresh.” It was amazing to see new life immediately after it was brought into the world and, honestly, brought tears to my eyes.
These guys don’t get the press that moose, elk and deer do, but I absolutely love them. How can you not find the fastest land animal in the western hemisphere cool?
While my photo trip Saturday didn’t turn out as planned, I did find a couple of good-sized herds of these speed demons and, thankfully, they obliged me with some nice shots. Here, a buck decided it would rather not pose and took off running.
Being capable of speeds of 55mph and not usually liking people, they are a challenge to photograph. By far I have taken more “pronghorn butt” pictures than the rear-ends of any other animal. 😉
One last “top shots” video recapping my 2020 photo year. Today, I look back at some of the mammals that I photographed. From the tiny American pika to the massive moose, I was fortunate to spend time with some pretty amazing creatures. Two new animals that I had never photographed were highlights including a suburban bobcat family and the wild #horses of Sand Wash Basin. All images taken here in Colorado.
The most fleet-footed animals on the plains, pronghorn are not only fast, they are pretty skittish. This handsome fellow proved that true on both counts.
He was fine with me driving by but the second I stopped my truck, it was off to the races. Here I caught him mid-stride with him stretched out and all of his legs in the air.
One of the puzzles about these creatures is why did they evolve to run so fast (50+ mph)? There is no reason for them to have that speed as there are no predators in North America that have a prayer of keeping up. Skeletons have been found indicating there used to be an American cheetah that has long been extinct. It is theorized that the pronghorn developed its speed to be able to get away from that predator.
This past weekend we camped out on Colorado’s eastern plains. While the rest of the crew slept in, I of course headed out to see if I could find something worthy to take pictures of.
Unfortunately, photo ops overall were pretty few however I did come across a number of pronghorn. This pair of bucks was nice enough to stop and give me a nice pose before turning tail and running off. I kind of liked the opposing look of the two, kind of like a mirror image.
Well, two out of the five did. Despite repeated directions to stop their movement, the other three pretty much ignored me. 😉
A pleasant surprise this past Saturday happening across this bachelor herd of the Great Plains’ speed demons. It had been a while since I had seen them in this area so I am glad to know they are still around.
In the background, you can see the Front Range suburbs and a hazy view of the Rocky Mountains. Unfortunately, at about the time this picture was taken a derecho was approaching kicking up tons of dust in front of it thus obscuring the distant view
This handsome fellow wasn’t about to stick around for pictures on a recent visit to the Pawnee National Grasslands in northeastern Colorado. We crested a hill and he was right there but there was no hesitation on his part to put some distance between us. Off he went, probably running at 40mph or more.
Sometimes jokingly referred to as “speed goats”, pronghorn are the fastest animal in the western hemisphere and the second fastest in the world. Unfortunately they tend to use that running ability to put distance between them and me. 😉
Yesterday my son and I headed out to the Pawnee National Grasslands for some recreation and relaxation. I didn’t take many pics as it was mainly just about spending time together but there were a couple scenes I had to capture, this being one of them.
At this point, Longs Peak, the most prominent mountain in the picture, was 65 miles away but no less impressive than if far closer. The scene was gorgeous with those snow-capped Rocky Mountains and the sprawling plains in front of them. The pronghorn buck seemed to appreciate the seen as much as I as he looked toward those beautiful peaks.
