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Thursday, September 23, 2010

Beautiful Beasts

Roosevelt Elk

The local herd of Roosevelt Elk have returned to run amuck around our fields leaving destruction in their wake.

Roosevelt Elk

You would never think that this stunning bull and cow would do anything but graze peacefully along with the rest of their herd as they pass through but so far they have ripped limbs from the apple trees, eaten the tops off of the young trees and now that the rainy season is upon us they will tear up the fields with their massive hooves.

Roosevelt Elk

But despite all of their faults I am continually in awe of them. The fall brings the cows along with this years young ones and they are never far from their overprotective leader. The moms are extremely skittish and it is quite rare that they allow me to get close enough for decent photos. Today must have been my lucky day *grin*.

We were making breakfast in the kitchen and would have never known that they were silently grazing behind the hedge if we had not seen the massive antlers of the bull rise above the shrubbery!

Roosevelt Elk

My oldest son and I crept out the back door as stealthily as we could, across the back lawn, through the hedge to find ourselves crouching behind the tractor while being watched intensely by the bull. I thought it was best to put the tractor between us and the herd because if you have ever seen them go into survival mode you know that you don't want to be out in the open *grin*.

We only had about ten minutes to watch them before something spooked them and they bolted for the corner of the fence that they repeatedly break through and were gone. If you're interested in seeing more photos of them I've got more in my flickr account :)

Hugs,
Rosina

9 comments:

  1. that is an awesome site Rosina...wow, I would be struck with awe too...Hope they didn't mess everything too bad... How long do they hang around during this time of season? You got some great shots! That was cool to see..Mica

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  2. We see them the most in the spring and then in the fall/winter. They come and go but they do the most damage during the winter when grass is scarce. They'll strip the bark right off of the trees if it gets to snowy so we usually chase them off but I really love watching them *grin*.

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  3. Unbelievable Rosina. They are SO gorgeous. However, I'm not sure I'd be as understanding with them if they were to cause devestation on MY property. :) I suppose there isn't much you can do though if they repeatedly break the fence you have to keep them out. Beautiful pictures. xoxo

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  4. Ah, nice pics. Would love to see them in the real. Daughter has moved to Rolla, ND so maybe one of these days will see, bear and moose too!

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  5. Wow! Your photos are amazing. It was really interesting to see them so close up. My hubby hunted elk in Colorado a couple of times. But, the rack we have in our basement isn't as big as the bull's rack on your property. I showed your pics to my hubby who really appreciated seeing them, too. They are really beautiful creatures; too bad they are destructive. Thanks for commenting on my blog and for your prayers; they are greatly coveted :)

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