Elk Winter Scene
by Judi Dressler
Title
Elk Winter Scene
Artist
Judi Dressler
Medium
Photograph - Photography
Description
It was snowing in Rocky Mountain National Park, but the elk were out as usual, and this bull elk was rounding up his females and making sure no other bull was getting near them, and that no females were straying too far for his comfort.
This was during a fluke snow storm in early September. Temperatures had been around 100 degrees F in Denver, when overnight they dropped by over 60 degrees and the snow fell. A couple days later we were back in the 80s!
Elk are also called wapiti, a Native American word that means “light-colored deer.” Elk are related to deer but are much larger than most of their relatives. A bull elk's antlers may reach 4 feet above its head, so that the animal towers 9 feet tall, and a mature bull elk weighs around 700 pounds.
Bull elk lose their antlers each March, but they begin to grow them back in May in preparation for the late-summer breeding season.
During the late summer breeding season the bugling of bull elk echoes through the mountains. These powerful animals strip the velvet off their new antlers using them in violent clashes that determine who gets to mate with whom. Males with the bigger antlers, typically older animals, usually win these battles and dominate small herds.
Photo taken on September 8, 2020, in Rocky Mountain National Park, Colorado
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Won 1st Place in FAA's COLORADO WILD ELK contest, on 10/14/2023
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Descriptive keywords and tags for this image includeelk, bull elk, herd, winter, snow, snowing, scene, male, females, rockies, rocky mountain national park, majestic, antlers, wapiti, deer, horns, buck, wild, wildlife, colorado, cervidae, cervus canadensis, mammals, animals, nature, judi dressler, and dressler.
Uploaded
December 9th, 2020
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Viewed 1,125 Times - Last Visitor from New York, NY on 04/25/2024 at 6:39 AM
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Comments (41)
Annettes Whimsies
CoNgRaTs for your first place tie in the ’FAA Colorado Wild Elk Contest’ ! ⭐️ Members of ‘Colorado Wildlife Group’ may archive their winning artwork in the group discussion tab ‘Colorado Wildlife Contest Winners for 2023’. ThAnKs for participating in the contest.🎉
Gary F Richards
Great find! Spectacular elk composition, lighting, shading, colors and artwork! F/L voted
Luther Fine Art
Congratulations! Your fantastic photographic art has been chosen as a Camera Art Group feature! You are invited to archive your work in the feature archive discussion. There are many other discussions in the group where you can promote your art even further more.
Monte Arnold
Wow! What a fantastic shot Judi!! Great write up too! I lived by Banff most of my life & we were always hearing tourists Congdon elk with moose when they saw them. There's a hilarious book called 'when do they let the animals out' that you'd enjoy 😂🙂👍
Judi Dressler replied:
Thanks a lot, Monte! That's so funny about tourists, lol! That book sounds like a great read.
John M Bailey
Congratulations on your feature in the Fine Art America Group "Images That Excite You!" Sharing on Pinterest Board - Images That Excite You!
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