Elk: The Animal Whose Name Actually Means Moose

The majestic elk (Cervus canadensis) is one of the largest species of Cervidae, or deer family, in the world. Natively found in North America and eastern Asia, their great adaptability has lead them to threaten some endemic species and ecosystems in countries they have been introduced in, including Australia, Argentina and New Zealand. There are currently one overall subspecies (Cervus canadensis canadensis) found in North America, with eight groupings, two of which are extinct. Those groupings include:

• Roosevelt Elk
• Tule Elk
• Manitoban Elk
• Rocky Mountain Elk
• Altai Wapiti Elk
• Tianshan Wapiti
• Eastern Elk (extinct)
• Merriam's Elk (extinct)

Male elk in Rocky Mountain National Park

In North America, their historical range covered most of the United State and Canada, but several subspecies went extinct at least 100 years ago due to possible over hunting and habitat fragmentation, resulting in a modern range now limited to mainly the mountains of the west. Of all North American subspecies, there is an estimated number of over 1 million individuals. Prior to European colonization, there was an estimated 10 million individuals.

The Rocky Mountain elk subspecies has successfully been reintroduced in small populations in the Appalachian region of the United States, including North Carolina, Tennessee and Kentucky. Those populations have now migrated and expanded to patches in Virginia and West Virginia. Elk have also been reintroduced in small populations to Pennsylvania, Michigan, Wisconsin, and two islands in Alaska.

Male elk in Rocky Mountain National Park in late July. Notice the soft, velvet layer on the antlers.

Male and females show sexual dimorphism; where males grow antlers, females lack. Males start growing their antlers in the spring and shed them each winter. While actively growing - as much as 2.5 centimeters per day - antlers are covered with a protected velvet, a layer of vascularised skin. The velvet is shed after the antlers are fully developed, usually towards the end of summer. Antler retention is actually connected to testosterone levels in male elk. When testosterone levels drop after the breeding season, this triggers the shedding of antlers in late fall/early winter.

Three male elk grazing in an alpine meadow located in Rocky Mountain National Park

Adult elk usually roam in single-sex groups till mating season. Formally know as a rut, the mating season occurs in late summer through fall, where mature males (bulls) perform some intense and... interesting... behavior. Bulls will join female (cow) groups and will try to defend and ward off other males. Opponents will bellow bugle calls (see below) and parallel one another, basically sizing the other up. If a bull doesn't back down, they will lock antlers, which can sometimes lead to serious injury. To attract females, bulls are known to dig holes in the ground, urinate is said holes, then roll in said urine. This urine soaks hair gives them a distinct oder which attracts cows. Bugling is also often associated to attracting females, where they gravitate towards males that bugle the loudest, longest and most often.

Elk's bugle call


Interesting Tid-bits

• Elks migrate with the changing of seasons, moving from higher country in warmer weather, to lower elevations during colder months.
• Elk are ruminants, meaning they have a four-chambered stomach. Elk will graze on grasses and shrubs, regurgitate the semi-digested plant matter, known as cud, and chew it again.
• The name elk actually is the early European name for moose, which comes from Old Norse elgr and German elch, which all refer to moose. When early European settlers came to the Americas, they thought the animal resembled a moose. Elk are not moose, but the name is still used in North America, while the name elk is still used in Eurasia for the moose (confusing... I know).
• Elk are also known waapiti, or wapiti, meaning white-rump in Shawnee and Cree. To try and help with the whole elk-moose fiasco, the name is mostly used for the Asian subspecies, since elk in Eurasia means moose! What a pain in my waatipi.
• The extinct Irish elk is actually not a member of the genus Cervus, therefore are technically not an elk at all, in modern terms.
• The gestation period for young is typically 240 to 262 days and offspring are born at the ripe weight of 33-35 pounds. Calves are actually as large as an adult white-tailed deer by the time they are six months old!
• Elk are a highly sought after game species, prized for its lean and flavorful meat.

House Finch

House finches, Haemorhous mexicanus, are one of my favorite bird feeder birds. The general curious nature and spark of color provides an enjoying viewing experience. They tend to collect at feeders in small groups and sit perfectly still while they shell seeds with their large beaks, making them great birds for children and adults alike to sit and watch for extended periods of time.

Male house finch harvesting some food

House finches can now be found across the continental United States, however, that is not their natural range. They are actually native to the deserts, grasslands, shrub lands and open forests of the western United States. In 1870, they were introduced to Hawaii from San Francisco and became abundant on all major island by the early 1900s. In 1940, a small group house finches was released on Long Island, New York, where they spread quickly and have now become a staple siting at feeders. They are commonly found in city parks, backyards, and urban centers across the continent. They are so prevalent, scientists predict there is somewhere between 260 million and 1.4 billion individuals across North America!

Two male house finches

House finches show sexual dimorphism, meaning males and females are noticeably different. Males have a beautiful rosy red coloration on the head and breast, while the females are a plain gray-brown. All birds, however, can't make their own red and yellow colorations directly. Male house finches actually get their red color from the pigments contained in its food during molt. The more pigment in the food, the redder the male. The redder the male, the sexier, for females typically mate with the reddest male the can set their eyes on.

Interesting tid-bits

• Nestling's diets are not supplemented with insects, but instead are fed only plant materials. This is a relatively rare behavior compared to other bird species.
• Male house finches are known to feed their female counterparts during courtship rituals
• Usually breeds 2+ times between February and August.
• To combat casualties due to nest mite infestations, the mother will often lay eggs of one gender for each brood, increasing the chance of survival.
• A victim of Brown-headed Cowbirds, a brood parasite, but since cowbirds require a supplement of insects in their diet, the young rarely survive in house finch nests.

Hummingbirds: The Little Birds That Could

Probably one of the most sought after bird family and probably the most recognizable, hummingbirds are almost a thing from a fantasy faerie world. The majority of hummers fall into the pint-size category between 3-5 inches, however, the Bee hummingbird is a ridiculously scant 5 cm in size, making it the smallest extant bird species known. There are 17 known hummingbird species within North America, 356 world wide and 51 of them are endangered.

Broad-tailed Hummingbird © Matt Brincka

For being so small, they are packed with an arsenal of adaptations. They are able to hover in mid-air while beating their wings an exhilarating 12-80 times per second (depending on the species). They can reach speeds of nearly 35 mph and are also the only known group of birds that can fly backwards. That's right... backwards!

Broad-tailed Hummingbird © Matt Brincka

Since they are so small, they have an amazing heartbeat of roughly 1200 beats per minute and have the highest metabolism of all animals (except insects); a necessity to support the rapid beating of their wings. A high metabolism requires a lot of food, in which they consume more than their own weight in nectar each day, visiting hundreds of flowers to get the needed food. It is said hummingbirds are always hours away from starvation... so what do they do when food is scarce? What do they do during the night? Hummingbirds are capable to go into a state of torpor, a hibernation-like state. Topor is not hibernation, but it is similar. When going into topor, a hummingbird can lower their metabolic rate to nearly to 1/15 of its normal rate, with a heartbeat of only 50-180 beats per second.

Broad-tailed Hummingbird © Matt Brincka

To attract these beautiful litte buggers, go grab a hummingbird feeder at your local store. Don't, however, buy the dyed humming bird food. It is much healthier (no artificial dyes) and easier to make your own.

Fool-proof hummingbird food recipe

4 cups of water (filtered if possible)

1 cup of white sugar

1. Bring water to a boil
2. Take water off of heat
3. Add sugar and stir to dissolve sugar
4. Let nectar cool to room temperature
5. Place in a clean humming bird feed

***Make sure you check your feeder for mold periodically. If mold is found, dump food and disinfect with warm water and soap. Rinse thoroughly with fresh water once clean.

Interesting tid-bits

• The Aztec god Huitzilopochtli is often depicted as a hummingbird.
• They are able to assess how much sugar is in the nectar they eat, and often reject flowers with less than 10% sugar.
• Hummingbirds don't only eat nectar! To meet their needs for protein, amino acids, vitamins and minerals they prey on insects and spiders.
• Many hummingbird species make their nests out of spider silk.
• Longest recorded lifespan is 12 years.
• Some hummingbird species in North American are known to travel hundreds of miles during migrating. The ruby-throated humming bird actually flies non-stop over the entire Gulf of Mexico!

If you need a larger version of this very interesting infographic, click the picture or find an even larger version here.

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Record your sitings and help with hummingbird conservation at National Audubon's Hummingbirds At Home website or phone application and at eBird.

An interesting website to learn anything from hummingbird first aid to hummingbird stories is the World of Hummingbirds. Enjoy!

Pictures in this post were taken with a Samsung Galaxy SII... only proving you don't need a $10,000 camera to get awesome pictures. You just need brave wildlife!

Mount Evans: The Casual 14'er

Hiking a 14'er isn't for everyone. The term 14'er is used to identify a 14,000 foot mountain in the Rocky Mountains. I will admit, some of them can be a rough hike depending on your physical shape and/or if you are coming from lower elevations. Even coming from 5,000+ feet in Denver it can be a literal "breath taker" while going up (I'm here all night people... my jokes are hi-larious). Once you're up at the summit of one of these gems, you have a front row seat to miles and miles of "breath taking" views (like I said... real knee slappers). With that being said, I would recommend to anyone, and everyone, to go up at least one 14'er in your life.

"But I'm not as young as I used to be" you say? "I'm only in Colorado for two days, there is NO WAY I will be adjusted to the elevation in time to go up a 14'er" you explain? "I just don't have the time" you affirm? "Uh..... BABIES!" you declare? (I take it you mean you have a or multiple babies... unless you... are a baby?)

That doesn't have to stop you! Thanks to relatively-modern-ish engineering you can experience a 14'er by driving to the top! This is a great opportunity for anyone and everyone, even if you are physically able to climb a 14'er but don't have the time to do one.

View of Summit Lake from the peak of Mount Evans

This marvelous high peak of Colorado is called Mt. Evans (you can also drive up Pike's Peak, but if you ask me, it costs too much cash-$$$ and the view doesn't come close to that of Mt. Evans). When you turn onto Route 5 by Echo Lake Park south of Idaho Springs, CO, you'll come across a typical gift shop where you can find anything from shirts to books (except you can't find any good picture magnets... and being a picture magnet collector myself, that was highly disappointing).

When you go past the gift shop you come to a typical pay booth you see at so many recreational areas and national parks. The nice thing about this booth, however, is you can completely skip it if you want! That's right... free access! There is a catch though. Along the way up to the peak, there are three "developed" areas, which include a nature center, Summit Lake (which might be worth $10 alone) and the Peak itself. In order to park and enjoy those features, you have to pay a $10 user fee. Otherwise, driving on the road and using the un-developed pull-offs are completely free of charge. Honestly, the entire fee goes to maintaining this wonder, so you might as well pay the equivalent to two coffees at Starbucks and get over it. It is going towards a good cause.

But I digress...

As you drive down Colorado Route 5, you will pass a nature center run by the Denver Botanical Society. The center is small itself with a room with some diagrams, but it has some hiking trails and the Walter Pesman Alpine Garden are attached to it with some ever awesome bristlecone pine trees (known to be the oldest living things on earth). I suggest stopping and checking it out on the way down the mountain.

Bristlecone pines (right) at the nature center on Mount Evans

Once you get past the nature center you are beyond the tree line and it is all view after view after view.

View east from the road going up Mount Evans

When you find a pull off, make sure you stop and get out of the car to walk around. If you are visiting in June-July, make sure you check to see if the alpine wild flowers are in bloom. There are dozens of species, all hugging the ground so they don't get ripped up by the wind. To preserve this beautiful habitat, make sure you only walk on rocks and don't step on any vegetation. A single step could kill the plants in this fragile ecosystem.

Spring bloom in the alpine

The next developed site you will pass is Summit Lake. You can either hit this on the way up or down. I prefer doing things in reverse order, so I suggest hitting it on the way down (especially if you are there early in the morning; you will want to get to the top before the crowds come). Summit Lake is beautiful and is a great opportunity to get some amazing photographs. The Summit Lake drainage is an alpine marsh land. The summer melt seeps into the still frozen soil (called permafrost) where the melt water then pools towards the surface. Since Mt. Evans can experience freezing temperatures throughout the year, this constant melting and freezing of the summer melt and permafrost layer creates a very wet, undulated landscape, which has in turn provided lots of road damage for visitors to navigate. :)

Summit Lake Mountain Park

Before you leave Summit Lake though, make sure you at least take the short walk to the Chicago Lakes overlook. Summit Lake and the immediate surroundings is a great place for Rocky Mountain goats and bighorn sheep, so keep an eye out!

Mountain goat at the peak of Mount Evans

Twinnies playing near the peak of Mount Evans

You can't technically drive all the way to the summit, but there is a parking lot at 14, 130 feet. To get to the summit, you have to walk the last 134 feet on a 1/4 mile switch-back trail. The views from the top are just breath taking. There are a few landmarks by the summit parking area. The Crest House was originally built in 1940 and was at the time the highest structure in the world. It was designed to resemble a star with giant windows overlooking the Denver area. Sadly, in 1979 a propane explosion destroyed this piece of history, leaving only it's rock wall ruins behind. Now, it has been converted into an look out and is widely used as a wind block for visitors. The other landmark is the University of Denver telescope observatory built in 1996.

View north-east from the peak of Mount Evans overlooking the observatory and Crest House ruins.

Mount Evans can be hiked, instead of driven, for those who would rather climb this great mountain. Even if you are only walking the last 1/4 mile trail, maybe people who are not adjusted to the altitude will experience altitude sickness, so drink lots of water and take it easy.

If you only have a short visit to the Denver area and want to get up a mountain to see 360 degree views but don't have time to hike a mountain or just physically can't, go check out Mount Evans... you won't be disappointed.

Rocky Mountain Goats

Mountain goats grazing on alpine vegetation

Goat? Nay. Not even close actually. The mountain goat (Oreamnos americanus), also know as the Rocky Mountain goat, is actually a member of the antelope family. Yup, "home on the range" antelopes. This large-hoofed mammal is only found in the subalpine to alpine zones of western mountain ranges in North America. Predators aren't a problem due to extreme alpine conditions during the winter, but they have to be wary when the snow melts. Thanks to sure-footedness from pliable hooves with rubbery pads and muscular forequarters, these mountain champions can conquer craggy rock surfaces where predators cannot follow. More mountain goats actually die from avalanches and rockslides than predation. Being herbivores, they spend most of their time grazing herbs, grasses, lichen, sedges, ferns, mosses, twigs and leaves. A double layer fur coat helps it survive extreme cold temperatures at high elevation over winter, with the overcoat molting and falling off during warming months.

Mountain goats typically live in herds, which they change seasonally after mating. Nannies (females goats) tend to herd together for most of the year with their kids (yes, baby mountain goats are called kids), while males, known as billies, either go lone-wolf or travel in groups of 2 or 3. In summer, herds tend to be smaller and travel between salt licks and water sources. Nannies can be extremely territorial, fighting other nannies within the herd over food.

A nanny with her twinnies

Nannies in a herd typically undergo synchronized estrus in October to December, which means they all go into "heat" at the same time and are ready to mate. Knowing sexy-time is around the corner, mature males join the female herds at this time. Males often go through mating rituals that includes staring at the females (I mean, who doesn't), digging ruts in the ground with their hooves and showy fights with other males, often involving locking horns. Both males and females are highly promiscuous and will mate with multiple individuals over the course of the entire mating season. However, males will often try to fend off other males from mating with females they've already mated with.

Gestation takes around 150 to 180 days, or 5 to 6 months. After separating itself from the herd, a nanny typically gives birth to a single kid, with twins (called twinnies) typically a rarity. After birth, kids are expected to get on their feet within a few hours before the nanny heads back to the herd. Kids stay with their for about a month, with some staying as long as till the next breeding season. If the kid is still around by the following breeding season, the mother will chase it away. When observing a herd, one can often see kids playing and jumping around with each other.

Month old twinnies resting at midday

Interesting tid-bits

• After the age of 22 months, you can tell how old a mountain goat is by counting the number of rings on its horns
• Can jump nearly 12 feet in a single bound.
• Both males and females have horns.
• Both sexes are not sexually mature till 30 months, old compared to other hoofed megafauna.
• Eagles may occasionally try to chase a kid off of a cliff for a meal. 

Black-billed Magpie

Black-billed magpie seen at Cub Lake, Rocky Mountain National Park

Corvids are extremely, if not obnoxiously, smart; being considered the most intelligent of birds and among the most intelligent animals we know. Corvidae members include crows, ravens, magpies, rooks, jays, nutcrackers, jackdaws, treepies and choughs. With a brain-to-body mass ratio equal to great apes, many have shown signs of self-awareness in mirror tests and demonstrated their ability of tool-making.

Black-billed magpies (Pica hudsonia) find themselves in this unique family of birds. Almost strictly found in the western United States and Canada (saving a few wandering souls), black-billed magpies have a wide-ranging diet, eating just about anything they can get their beak on. They'll consume basic songbird/passerine  diet materials, including fruit, grain, and insects (evening flipping cow dung to find a tasty snack). However, they don't simply stop there. Oh no they don't. They will kill small mammals, such as mice, voles and squirrels. Carrion is also a staple in their diet (and the fly maggots that find their home on carrion), even stealing meat from kills of coyotes, fox, and wolves (puppy dogs even).

However, I can't even stop there. Black-billed magpies are often given the nic-name "camp robbers" due to their habit of stealing food from campers, and will even tease a dog to give chase just to fly quickly back and grab some food out of the dog bowl. When they come across a relative food abundance, like all corvids they are known to cache food for short periods of time.

Black-billed magpie seen at Fern Lake Fall, Rocky Mountain National Park

You typically find magpies among meadows, grasslands and sagebrush plains in the west. They are often associated with barnyards and livestock areas because there are readily available food sources where livestock roam (who would give up a free, easy meal?). They stay relatively close to cover and can be found on forest edges, but almost never in dense thickets or woods.

Black-billed magpies pairs are known to mate for life (unless one dies) and will remain with each other through the year. When nesting, they are quite different from many other birds. Both sexes seem to choose a nesting site together, but sometimes disagreeing and begin building two separate nests. Their nests are large domes with an average size of 30 inches high and 20 inches across and are typically found by a source of water, be it streams or small ponds.

Black-billed magpie seen at Pikes National Forest

Black-billed magpies ofter have a clutch size of nine eggs, but due to asynchronous hatching (not all the eggs hatch at once) late hatchlings often die from starvation, resulting in a usual yield of 3-4 fledglings (a young bird who just got its flight feathers). After 3-4 weeks of being feed by both parents, they will fledge and fly with the adults for about another 2 months, feeding with adults and learning some tricks of the trade before flying off to join others their age.


Interesting tid-bits:

• Lewis and Clark reported that magpies were caught entering their tents to steal food
• It typically takes a magpie pair 40-50 days to make their nest
• The longest-living magpie recorded is 9 years, 4 months.
• Indulges in "anting" - placing ants on their plumage to aid with the cleaning process