YELLOWSTONE'S WILD WORLD

Well, I was jumping for joy today because at last there was some action and some photos to take.  Not abundant by any means but enough to keep me entertained.

I did go up to Swan Lake Flat before dawn this morning, determined to see every second of wolf action but there was none.  I also wanted to hear the coyote/wolf chorus but only one type of canid was singing that song.  Several coyotes and quite loud but I missed hearing that long drawn out deep voice of the wolf.

There was some alpenglow on Electric Peak but not a lot of color because of the clear blue sky.  A herd of elk that I watched quite a bit yesterday suddenly came from out of the trees and carefully made their way across the flat.

I watched the elk in the shadow of pre-dawn, as they carefully, very carefully, crept across the way, making sure not to draw attention to themselves.  The wolves had been after this herd and so they were extra careful.

The bull was still corralling one female, the gal with the collar and was still keeping the young boys away.

We must be growing elk overnight, since they are everywhere right now.  And since we supposedly had run out.  🙂

No wolves to be seen and so I continued south, with a detour to Blacktail to see what was there.  The wolf watchers are being extra secretive these days so one has to read them to make sure nothing is missed.

When I drove through Mammoth I was struck by the wonderful light on the cottonwoods that stand in front of the homes that line the street.

Nothing on the Blacktail and so I eventually made my way south, through the construction and continuing towards Madison.

Finally!  I found a predator – a coyote hunting in the field near the road.  Got to tell you, I had so much fun photographing this guy and he was having fun catching voles.

He jumped many times but most of them were with his butt towards me.  And then he finally did a jump just for me!

And then he began making his way towards the road, coming closer.

Once he crossed the road, the crowd and the light was too much for me and so I moved on.

I walked along the Madison, hoping to see otters but no luck.  I really, really want to see otters!  And then went into West to make a phone call and take care of a technical difficulty.   So, I ate a bison burger while sitting in my car near the wolves at the Wolf and Grizzly Center.  Staff did come to check on me so good to know that they are watching after the kids.

Back in the park and heading east the phone rang again and so I pulled over so the call would not drop and found a bald eagle sitting in a snag.

For some reason, seeing the eagle on the Madison is special and a yearly treat.  Since I was talking on the phone, I set the camera to record a video and got him flying away.

I went on and stopped along the Gibbon River to take a quick hike, once again looking for otters but no luck.  Suddenly I heard the loud, high pitched chirping of the osprey.  But, the osprey are supposed to be gone!  Not this one.  Do you suppose he got left behind, is lost, migrating, or global warming has him confused?

Well, as if I had not driven enough I drove over to Hayden where there was one coyote milling about.  Forgot to mention that I did see a grizzly over there yesterday but way too far out.

These bison bulls were a long ways off but I was actually kind of excited to see them out there, kicking up dust and duking it out.  I captured some stills and some great video.  But, that was about it in Hayden – still quiet.  And, I checked the Yellowstone for otters, with no luck.

And so I went home without otters but pleasantly exhausted from a long, wonderful, warm day in Yellowstone.  The end is drawing near!