Today the wildlife activity in the park seemed to pick up a lot. We saw all sorts of animals. We started out with a small coyote who crossed the road in front of us only to soon disappear into the snow.
We also saw some more coyotes later in the day. One of which had found what appeared to be a large elk bone and was chewing on it for quite some time.
We also were able to see some buffalo fighting on a snow bank. One was clearly the victor and the other left in a huff. It was really interesting to watch but a little scary having a fight so close to the car. They were locking horns and butting heads for a few minutes in front of us.
Even more exciting was what we spent the majority of the day doing; following around a little fox. Foxes are one of my favorite types of animals and I think one of the most beautiful wildlife species to be found in Yellowstone. I have photographed a fox before, but this fox was different. He had so much fur and color that made him look fantastic.
At first I had seen him a very long way away in Lamar Valley hunting. I predicted that if I waited long enough he would come closer to the road where I could get a decent shot of him. So I nestled down into the snow and sat out in the valley and waited for him for about an hour. I almost gave up to go find another animal because I heard wolves howling nearby when sure enough he popped up right where I thought he would be. He came trotting along and quickly made his way across the valley and yet again disappeared from view. I got a shot though so it was ok. Then we left and came back about an hour or two later and found him again on the other side of the road. We quickly realized he was going to cross the road at some point so we waited diligently for him to take action.
Sure enough he began to quickly head to the road and we followed him.
After he crossed the road he sat down on the snow embankment to watch all the people who were frantically trying to capture his beauty in a snap shot. He was awe-inspiring with his cat-like looks and beautiful red fur. He also had amazingly puffy feet that made him look slightly lopsided and funny when he walked.
He was a perfect example of the amazing wildlife that Yellowstone has to offer.
After the fox disappeared off into the snow covered valley we got to see many other animals like some more big horn sheep, deer, and prong horns. It was a really good day in the park. Still no wolves however and tomorrow is our last day in the park. I really want to get some good shots of a wolf, so hopefully we will get to see them before we are gone.
Tags: big horn sheep, bison, fox, pronghorn, snow, yellowstone
Wow, great fox! All of them. Good specimens today.
Did you notice that the top coyote is tagged?
Yes, he has two tags, one in each ear red and green. I think he also had something in his jaw because it looked weird and I think that is why he was eating snow.