Tule Elk, Point Reyes National Seashore

Photo of a bull tule elk exhibiting the flehmen response.
Tule Elk near sunset, Point Reyes National Seashore; Love Is in the Air

This 7-point bull is exhibiting the Flehmen Response with its head and upper lip raised.  Certain species of mammals do this to increase their ability to detect and evaluate scent.  It’s a common sight during the mating season, but it can occur any time of the year.  This photo was taken in mid December, well past the end of the rut.

My Jackrabbit Friend

Profile photo of jackrabbit
Black-tail Jackrabbit, Marin County, California

A couple of months ago I spent some time photographing birds in our garden.  It didn’t take long before I noticed that a jackrabbit spent a lot of time there.   I had never noticed it before, but when you spend hours in one spot, without moving, you start to see things that you wouldn’t see otherwise.   I think it was a young jackrabbit because it loved to run back and forth across the garden, apparently full of pent-up energy.  I remember acting like that myself on occasion, but that was a long time ago.    My furry friend seemed very healthy.  It had no ticks in its ears as rabbits often do.  I haven’t spent any time in the garden photographing lately.  I hope my little friend is still there.

Tule Elk, Point Reyes National Seashore

A bul elk walks inside a corral at the Kehoe Ranch.
Bull Elk in Corral

As I mentioned in a recent post, the elk at Tomales Point are kept there by a fence that runs across the peninsula from Tomales Bay to the ocean.  However, occasionally they will go around the end of the fence.  I’ve seen bulls outside the enclosure, but never a cow.  Here is a bull that was inside a corral at the Kehoe Ranch on October 31.  Twenty minutes later when I came back from the Pierce Point Ranch area the bull was gone.  The gate was open.  I assume that’s how the bull got in.  Later, I realized that I should have told the people at the Kehoe Ranch and/or the Park Service that the bull was in the Kehoe corral.  Maybe it was an opportunity to get the animal back into the enclosure.

Tule Elk, Point Reyes National Seashore

A cow elk grazes near Pierce Point.
Tule Elk, Point Reyes National Seashore

This cow elk was spotted feeding near the former Pierce Point Ranch which is located on the Tomales Point Peninsula.  The Tomales Point Peninsula is where elk were re-introduced to the Seashore in about 1975.  They are restricted by a fence that was erected just before the re-introduction.  It runs across the peninsula from Tomales Bay to the ocean. The fence was installed to keep the elk out of the ranches on the Seashore.