A Few Shots of Critters from Glacier Nat Park

pathfinder

After seeing Anne's wildlife thread I decided to abandon this post, but I sobered up and decided to soldier on after all:D

Nightingale and I drove from Indiana to Glacier across the northern tier of states, and thus passed through the Bad Lands of the Dakotas on the way out, and returned via Theodore Roosevelt National Park. I shot a few frames in each of these places in addition to Glacier Nat Park and Waterton in Canada.

If you drive through the Dakotas sooner or later you will see one of Harry's favorite critters - I think he prefers them barbecued with honey and Corona.




That little prairie dog was lucky he did not meet this fella I captured in Glacier




We saw mule deer in the Bad Lands after sunset




And some white tail at the very end of twilight - it was much darker than this image looks




Of course, we saw pronghorn antelope




We saw elk in the rain in Yellowstone one morning




We saw pheasants in South Dakota along the Enchanted Highway.







We saw a muley buck in Waterton






I saw a magpie that killed this deer:D




But I most enjoyed shooting this little fella



I was disappointed in my shots of grizzlies and black bears - too far away and too flat lighting.

Comments and criticisms are heartily encouraged.

jdmphoto

Well done! I like #2 the most.

pathfinder

I like #2 also - the ONLY thing sharp in that whole frame is his eye, and I put it dead center in the image.

I wish I could say that capture was entirely due to my skill, but even a blind pig finds an acorn sometimes

It is not easy to get good closeups of prong horn either though.

dbaker1221

#2 for me also boy am I glad I have not come across a magpie:whew

leaforte

Nice work! Two is especially nice to look at.

DoctorIt

pathfinder wrote:

I saw a magpie that killed this deer:D

If any non-raptor bird could do it, it would be a magpie!

They are well known swoopers here in Brisbane. You have to watch yourself walking through city parks in the spring. Fearless and clever birds. Ours are a bit bigger and more crow-like than this one.

BTW, that mule buck leaping out of the water is a fantastic capture! Something a little bit out of the normal deer shot.

Ann McRae

Hi Jim

I also like the jumping mule buck - great action shot. And the coyotes are really nice too.

Is there something a bit hinky about your first elk? I can't really say why but there is something with their tails and rack that makes me think they are deer. Then I look at the body overall, and think elk. I dunno?

I only fond one pronghorn, and it was between Calgary and Edmonton afterdropping gluwater at the airport. Don't think he believes me that we have pronghorn here! But Christina can confirm.

ann

pathfinder

Ann McRae wrote:

Hi Jim

I also like the jumping mule buck - great action shot. And the coyotes are really nice too.

Is there something a bit hinky about your first elk? I can't really say why but there is something with their tails and rack that makes me think they are deer. Then I look at the body overall, and think elk. I dunno?

I only fond one pronghorn, and it was between Calgary and Edmonton afterdropping gluwater at the airport. Don't think he believes me that we have pronghorn here! But Christina can confirm.

ann

I agree that in that image it is hard to tell if it is a buck deer or an elk, but I was pretty certain that it was an elk when I saw it in the Bad Lands. It was about 8:30 PM or so, and we needed headlights to drive safely, and it was several hundred yards away, but it was the only elk I saw in the Dakotas ( unless I am mistaken and it is a deer in disguise:D )

The real wildlife shooters will set up straight tomorrow I am sure. It does have a white tail I see..... I have since re -edited that post and called that critter a white tail buck

Harryb

Great set PF and that second shot is marvelous.

pathfinder

Thanks Harry, but I thought you might prefer the ring neck:D

schmoo

I'm glad you soldiered on, Jim! These are fantastic. Amazing capture with the coyote's eye, no need to be so modest. The jumping buck is truly a fantastic shot as well. So sharp I wasn't even sure he was in motion there.

All of this wildlife work coming out of the shootout is making me wish I was a wildlife photographer. I can see the light!!

PrescottPhotog

pathfinder wrote:

After seeing Anne's wildlife thread I decided to abandon this post, but I sobered up and decided to soldier on after all:D

Pathfinder.. What a great mix of critters. It looks like you had them lined up waiting for you (but I know that wasn't the case).

All are wonderful shots but I'm with you, my favorite is the last one. His look definitely show why the are called "Wily Coyotes".

Maestro

The coyote photos are excellent as are the close-up buck pics. The pheasants hiding in the tall grass are quite good as is the chipmunk too! It looks like you had a great time.

JenGrace

That panning shot of the coyote is phenomenal to me.

I enjoyed the whole series...thanks for sharing!