Unfortunately, the chicks were not large enough to be seen while we were there...
Black-billed magpies are common and frequently seen in both Yellowstone and Grand Teton...
This beautiful swan had traffic slowed to a crawl as it swam in the Fire Hole River...
Most traffic jams involved bison. If one is lucky traffic will proceed at a bison's walking pace. Sometimes they just stop, and when that happens, so does traffic...
Despite the inconvenience of being stuck in a jam, we still enjoy seeing bison and watching their antics and interactions with each other. These stately bulls are too dignified to mingle with the cows and calves...
This poor bison was lame in a front leg and something had chewed her tail off...
The bison were just shedding their winter coats during our visit...
As the temperatures rise the bison become more eager to be rid of their "wool"...
There is bison wool attached to the tree bark from the vigorous rubbing...
Sometimes a good brushing can reach those hard-to-get spots. Here the bison has backed into an evergreen tree and is gyrating it's backside on the branches to reach where it itches...
The bulls especially like to play in the dirt...
Additionally, I think it just feels good to roll around in the dirt...
Seeing the cows with their calves is an enjoyable part of a spring visit...
In the next photo a young adult is exploring the last vestiges of snow in the Hayden Valley...
This bison appears to be sporting dread locks...
This calf wanted to cross the road at the Gibbon River bridge...
No matter what time of the year that you visit the park, leave your temper at home...
Remember that the wildlife call this place home, we are only visiting...
Elk are giving birth now; this year two humans have been attacked by mother elk which thought the people were getting too close...
In the parks, and elsewhere, my weapon of choice is bear pepper spray, which is safer and easier to use than a firearm. Even though it is perfectly legal to have a sidearm in the park, I wish people would leave them at home...
This yellow warbler was one among many near the Madison River...
Here is a house wren that I found near the upper terrace drive at Mammoth Hot Springs...
We have seen many western tanagers during previous trips, but none has ever posed so nicely as this one...
While waiting for a grizzly bear to appear, we enjoyed the antics of this raven as it scraped a bit of food from the road...
One evening we encountered this beautiful cinnamon colored black bear in the Lamar Valley...
The mother of three cubs was feeding along the road, but she had left her cubs up a tree and out of camera range...
My first post from Yellowstone this year was about the grizzly bears known as Raspberry and Snow. Here is a fairly long range shot of Raspberry with her new beau in pursuit...
When we found Snow, she was hugging a log as a poor substitute for the comfort her mother had provided only a week earlier...
At Calcite Springs one of the overlooks provided the opportunity to look down at a bighorn sheep and her lamb...
This red fox is shedding it's winter coat, like most of the animals in Yellowstone...
One of the most anticipated events in Yellowstone is the opportunity to see a wolf...
This one was in the Lamar Valley...
While hiking with Cheryl, Kyle noticed these dung beetles doing what they do...
We are happy to have Kyle along as he takes a break from his graduate school studies at Brown University...
The sun has set on our 2018 visit to Yellowstone. Tomorrow we enter Glacier National Park...
Thanks for visiting, be well, and come back soon.
Beautiful brother
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