Friends, In the fall after his antlers are polished, this male elk runs the ridge top in search of a harem of cows.  Males lose these antlers in the late winter and grow a new and bigger set in the spring and summer.  The Rocky Mountain Elk have been transplanted to the park after being extinct from the badlands.  Now they thrive within the Theodore Roosevelt National Park where they are protected.

The fall grasses have lost their green and have cured to a straw color and bushes are turning into spectacular hues of yellows and oranges.  Elk are larger than the deer species and are harder to find in the vast acres of badlands.  The male in the bottom images is a smaller bull and is gathering his cows while keeping a watchful eye on the photographer. It is always a thrill to see elk in the wild and it makes my heart beat faster or maybe it is because i am chasing them uphill.    til Tomorrow MJ