Desert Destination: Wildlife in the Fields

Mule deer in alfalfa field

Sometimes I travel long distances to go look for wildlife, but today I didn't have to go far. Wildlife love coming to the ranch. They have lots of food, good cover, and of course, good company. So to celebrate some of our animal neighbors, here's a series of photos of these creatures saying hi. (Or saying get the heck out of here and let me get back to my business, but if they're saying that I'm just pretending not to understand.)

Canada geese flying overhead

Canada geese taking off from field

Ravens on fence next to corn field

Mule deer near pivot

Mule deer eating alfalfa

Group of pronghorn antelope in recently cut hay field--

sorry these are little specks, but the shadow of the airplane is cool, isn't it?

Mule Deer Buck

I had some fun testing out my new camera on this cooperative mule deer buck. Mule deer (Odocoileus hemionus) are found throughout western North America and are larger than their eastern cousins, white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virgianus). Mule deer have large mule-like ears and a black-tipped tail. 

They also have antlers that fork as they grow. The antlers begin growing in the spring each year and are shed after mating, from mid-January to mid-April. Many people scour the hillsides to pick up these shed antlers to make art out of them, particularly antler chandeliers, lamps, and fireplace tools. In locations where chronic wasting disease has broken out, like Colorado, many artisans choose to make their creations out of fake antlers.

This buck appeared to be enjoying some of the fall colors. He was not far from the road, despite it being hunting season. And he didn't even get up when we walked by. Question: Why would this apparently healthy deer be so tame?

Answer: We were in a national park, so this smart buck knew that he wouldn't be shot. If you're a hunter and reading this, don't despair, many nice bucks leave the national park and are shot outside of it. And the ones that don't leave produce offspring that go out and find new territory.

This buck probably weighs between 200-300 pounds. Females are smaller, and both eat a variety of vegetation. If a mule deer can escape predation by mountain lions or hunters, disease, and hunger from drought years, it is likely to live up to 10 years.

Desert Boy Plays with a Ball

Desert Boy saw some balls the other day and just had to go down and play.

The basketball seems kind of big for him, and he doesn't look too sure about it.

That's not an expression of fun, and he doesn't quite get the dribbling concept. Maybe he isn't going to turn out to be a star basketball player. 

Maybe he will be a bowler, letting the ball roll away from him.

Or perhaps he will be a star soccer player. It's good to see him explore all his options.

Desert Boy Walks in the Woods

I decided that it was time for Desert Boy to hike an entire trail, so we went to a half-mile long nature trail with an easy surface for him to walk on. He was excited to walk, and started out jauntily. He didn't want to hold my hand or be too close to me, he just wanted to walk.

Except that didn't last long. After a couple dozen steps, Desert Boy was ready to explore what was off the trail, especially if it involved water. He doesn't have much fear, or much common sense, so he will go off in a flash. 

Fortunately I was able to entice him to come back to the trail. And then he made a great find--a boulder next to the trail with a pool of water still on top of it. He immediately put his hand in it, even though his hand was already cold and the water was colder.

He splashed more vigorously, even getting his face wet. Mama made sure to be far enough away to escape the flying water. 

Apparently just splashing wasn't good enough, because in about a nanosecond Desert Boy was up on top of the boulder. I was telling him not to crawl in it and not to slurp it up. Yes, I have to tell him these things because they are favorite activities when water is around.

This time Desert Boy just wanted to do a little dance in the puddle. I figured it might help clean off the mud from yesterday when he did a little dance in a mud puddle.

And then it was time to go to the edge of the boulder and contemplate jumping. Except Desert Boy doesn't know how to jump, he just kind of leans forward and hopes you will catch him. Sometimes his timing is a little off and he goes splat. Still, the next time he will do the same thing, so I don't think he's gotten any sense knocked into him yet. Or perhaps he is just an eternal optimist. After getting off the boulder, it was time to move down the trail.

This twisted aspen made for a great game of peek-a-boo. It wasn't far then until we reached the stroller, completing Desert Boy's first hike that he did by himself. 

Fall Colors

Yesterday Desert Boy and I went in search of some fall colors, and we had wonderful success. We saw this beautiful butterfly on the leaves of a shrub. I was trying out my new camera and couldn't resist taking a photo. Hurray for 18x optical zoom--it is really easy to frame photos. This particular photo didn't need any cropping.

Later in the day we headed up high. We don't have many deciduous trees here in the desert, even in the mountains, so fall colors usually aren't especially dramatic. Nevertheless, the aspen trees provide little dashes of color amidst the dark green of the surrounding evergreens.

Aspen trees are often clones, so all the trees in a particular grove will turn the same shade of color at the same time. The scientific name for quaking aspen is Populus tremuloides. I've always liked the word tremuloides, which sounds sort of like trembling. The heart-shaped leaves are supported on small stems, so even the slightest breeze makes them rustle.

As we walked near the trees, a few leaves fluttered to the ground. The temperature was perfect, and it was a delight to be outside. Soon a yellow carpet will be covering the forest floor, and not long after that, a layer of cold, white snow will top the delicate leaves. 

For now, though, we just enjoyed the vibrant trees. They just made me feel happy! It was hard to leave and head down the mountain to home, but at least we have a few photos to remind us of nature's fantastic color show.