We spent a few rainy days in the Pennsylvania elk range recently, and were rewarded with a number of elk sightings...
This is the time of year when elk breed, known as the "rut". For some unknown reason the elk congregate in the vicinity of Benenezette, a small town in Elk County...
The elk are completely free roaming. Hunting for them is strictly controlled and they appear to have no fear of people. This makes for great photo opportunities...
Every year around this time, the small town becomes a bustling community with elk watchers and photographers filling the campgrounds and lodging...
Seeing and hearing bulls bugle to attract females, and intimidate rivals, is a stirring experience...
Bull elk make scrapes very much the same as whitetail bucks...
The bulls pursue cows...
Always hoping to find one that is ready to breed...
Those large antlers come in handy for scratching an itch that couldn't be reached otherwise...
It is best to plan ahead if you wish to find lodging or a campsite in the area...
Thanks for visiting, be well, and come back back soon.
Great shots!
ReplyDeleteBeautiful brother.
ReplyDeleteTwo weeks ago there were few elk to be seen on Winslow Hill which was unusual. The consensus among long-time elk photographers is that the Pennsylvania Game Commission's elk management leaves much to be desired as the older breeding bulls are consistently killed during the open season and an unnaturally low pregnancy rate is the result. There appears to be a lot of unoccupied habitat and the PGC seems intent on keeping the population from expanding into that unoccupied habitat or increasing.
ReplyDeleteYou got some really good photos of the elk; unfortunately the habituated elk are not likely to survive hunting season.