YELLOWSTONE'S WILD WORLD

The weather is spring nuts in Yellowstone – warm and sunny one minute and raining, snowing, blowing and freezing the next.  Keeps life interesting and makes for some dynamic landscapes while out watching for wolves late in the day.

Night before last the boys were out hiding and howling in those hills across Soda Butte Valley, wanting their girl to come see them.  And, that dome shaped rock wall to the right in this photo?  That is where the Mollies stood, on top, when 967 was trying to scale the vertical wall.  At least I have the memories of those six!

Our Queen of the Valley has become vastly famous and all throughout the day people are staring off into the den area, hoping for a glimpse of her.  And, many are taking home cherished memories that they will re-tell to their friends.  That is how wolf advocacy and awareness works.

All for this little girl.

So, she came down and chewed on bones for awhile, at the elk carcass that has been gone for several days, and wondered where the guys had gone.  And then she returned to her pups and not long afterwards the guys showed up, from the opposite direction.  They tried to get to her but couldn’t get across the road.  Though, Rick was theorizing that if they didn’t have food they might not really be in a hurry to let her know.

We waited for the guys, after watching 965 howl for awhile, and had the wonderful opportunity of listening to Rick tell stories and answer questions.  The wolves did not come down but no one went home disappointed.

And, so this morning signals on 965 and 926 were bouncing and we could not find them.  No wolves had been seen by the time I left at 7:30 p..m.  But, some were still hoping and maybe they got lucky.

When I am not waiting on the wolves I am photographing the bison in the landscape of Lamar at sundown.

Or, attending the best show on earth – the Picnic sow and her two new cubs of the year!

I first met this sow 3 years ago, before I had moved to Yellowstone.  She had one cub, a black male with a roman nose, and they were in the same area that she has been hanging out in for the past several days.  That might have been my first black bear cub, come to think of it.  He is my first bear of the year the past two years, coming out in the same area that mom has the new cubs.

She is a great mom!  I am thinking that she might be around 7 or 8 and quite possibly the sister or daughter of the current Rosie at Tower with the three yearlings.  She has the same white patch on her chest.

She likes to pick the cubs up with her teeth and toss them around a bit.  This particular time she grabbed her little son by the face, which looked painful but he went back for more.

We had a downpour when she went up the tree to get the cubs and so they stayed up there until it passed, watching us watching them.

The full moon has passed but it was a beauty while here.

See you tomorrow.