Summertime Deer

This is the first time in a long while that we have been home at this time of year. The wildlife of the Yellowstone region has always drawn us back. This year the Covid-19 threat is too great to risk becoming a statistic in the horrible pandemic that is gripping the land.
So, instead of grizzly bears and wolves, I am contenting myself with whitetail deer and birds; and I am thankful to be able to observe and photograph nature locally.

Fawns are the subjects I most like to see, but they have been elusive. Only in the first hours of the morning have I found them venturing out; always accompanied by their protective mothers...

I am lucky to have found an observation spot with a good vantage point of a well used crossing...

These images were taken over a period of several weeks from the same location. Always before sunrise. The water level may appear different due to rain, and the light can take on different qualities depending on if the sky is clear or overcast, and the amount of foliage on the surrounding trees...

When I leave the stream crossing I often drive past fields planted in various crops. I photographed a doe running through a hay field, although from the first two images she appears to be running across a mowed lawn that has turned brown from lack of water...

In reality, she was shoulder deep in tall grass...

Here is another example of what I call the "levitating deer" phenomenon...

One can see how tall these grasses are from the next image...

Meanwhile, back at the stream crossing, I was pleasantly surprised when some bucks came by...

At this time of year bucks tend to be in "bachelor" groups, where they will remain until fall and the rut approaches...

The bucks passed so near that I was able to obtain this portrait from my Jeep...

Watching the antics of the fawns when they frolic in the water is entertaining and also challenging; in order to stop their motion a high shutter speed is required (1/2000). Under the low light of early morning I often find my ISO set at 15000, sometimes even higher...

Yesterday morning, I was waiting quietly when the doe and fawns appeared...

Both fawns went into the grass, leaving the doe to browse on tender new growth...

Moments later, movement on the bank caught my eye...

A fawn rocketed from the bank...

She was hoping to nurse but I don't think the doe obliged...

Instead, she led the fawns up-stream and out of sight...

Thanks for visiting, be well, and come back soon.