Tag: gardner river canyon

Hawk

Osprey, Yellowstone National Park

Photo of an osprey taking flight above the Gardner River Canyon.
Ready for Takeoff!

It’s hard to write a blog while visiting Yellowstone in the spring because there is light until 9:00 p.m. and it takes an hour to get back to Gardiner where I’m staying.  Then there is dinner and downloading images.  I’m writing this while my car gets an oil change.

When people visit Yellowstone they’re looking for mammals, especially bears and wolves and they large herbivores they prey on.  But the park has a lot of interesting smaller animals, including birds.  I found this osprey in the Gardner River Canyon.  I’ve checked on four active nests in and around the park.  No eggs have hatched yet.  I haven’t seen any nests near the Gardner River.

Birthing among the mammals is well underway.  I’ve seen a few baby pronghorn.  Yesterday was the third day in a row that I’ve seen and photographed an elk calf in its first day of life.  I stopped at the Mammoth Visitor Center yesterday and there was an elk calf being born right next to the building on the lawn.  It stood up 45 minutes after being born.  I’m looking forward to seeing my first bighorn lambs of the year.

Bighorn

Bighorn Lamb; Gardner River Canyon, Yellowstone National Park

Photo of bighorn lamb jumping.
For the Joy of It

My favorite time to be in Yellowstone is the spring.  Why?  The babies.  One of the reasons I like them is that they are so full of life.  They run around and jump in the air just for the joy of it.  The ones that run and jump the best are the bighorn lambs.  And they do  it on steep terrain.  Most herbivore babies are kept in hiding for the first couple of weeks until they can keep up with their moms.  Not lambs.  It is reported that they  climb as well as their mothers when they are only one day old.  I guess that lamb in the last post walked out of there the next day.

Notice how well this little lamb blends into its habitat.