A Wattle and A Snood

As I drove around the Elk and Bison Prairie recently, there were flocks of wild Turkeys foraging in the meadows. Most were off in the distance, but several were close enough to photograph. I cropped one image that caught my eye. I don't know why but a Turkey's brightly colored head has always been fascinating to me. His wattle, the fleshy skin that grows under his throat, is pink and bright red at the end. I read blood pools in the wattle when a Tom wants to attract a hen.

I read that Turkeys are a form of pheasant. I also read that the Tom's gobble while the females make a clicking sound. Also, that fleshy skin that grows above their forehead is a snood and also pools with blood when Tom is on the hunt. It appears from my photo, that Tom is definitely on the hunt for a lady. A new week is upon us, and need I say it, a new season is around the corner. Oh, Fall where art thou. Please bring us cooler temps soon. ENJOY!

A Photographer's Favorite

A large Bison stood motionless taking in the heat of the day at the Elk and Bison Prairie at Land Between the Lakes earlier this week. The hustle and bustle of small calves, nary a few months old, rustling around him didn't make for even a stir. As I snapped images with my long lens, I noticed him standing quietly in the fray. It was obvious he knew the daily routine of the Bison herd. Of all the images I captured on that day this one stood out. The sun gives his dark black and brown fur a warm, rich sheen. A tiny weed grows in front of this huge beast. The most delicate and the most beastly exist in harmony. What a contrast. To read more about the Elk and Bison Prairie, click here. Have a great weekend all. ENJOY! 

Bison Loom Large

After you enter the Elk and Bison Prairie at Land Between the Lakes in Kentucky, you travel on a three and a half mile loop, in a 700 acre enclosure, where the Elk and Bison roam free. The prairie is a natural grassland with ponds, woods and creeks scattered throughout.

I found the Bison herd crowded together near the end of the loop road. Some were rubbing large boulders while others were headed to a large dust pad nearby. The first image is the matriarch, the very largest Bison in the herd. He was huge. 

There are about 60 Bison in this herd including the calves which are born in May. Breeding season is July to September as was evidenced by the males stalking the females throughout the herd. I even witnessed the matriarch as he attempted to mount a female unsuccessfully. She moved off and he fell off.

These are American Bison or Buffalo. The Bison is the largest land mammal in the United States and the national mammal. Bison graze, rest and chew their cud in two hour intervals and then move to another location to graze again. Perhaps that explains why the Bison always seem to be roaming.

Just before I left the prairie, I saw this little fella nudging his Mother who finally complied. So adorable now, but imagine his size all grown up. The heat and humidity made for heavy breathing for some of the larger Bison. I enjoyed this visit more than my last, as I planned my arrival a tad later in the day, in hopes of catching a glimpse of the Elk grazing in the meadow. ENJOY!

Linking to Scoop 339

Elk Watch

At the Elk and Bison Prairie at Land Between the Lakes, if you plan a trip very early in the morning or late in the day, you can view the Elk as they munch on grasses in the meadow. They stay hidden in the tree line in Summer during the hotter climes of the day, so plan accordingly if you want to see them.

The Elk and Bison Prairie is almost dead center in Land Between the Lakes in Golden Pond, in the very remote southwest corner of Kentucky. It's a pleasant drive from Nashville on a major highway. The countryside you see in Kentucky along the drive is really beautiful with lots of gorgeous farmland. On this visit, I waited patiently for the Elk, and finally was rewarded as this guy ventured out of the woods. He was munching on the grass and eventually tugging at the leaves of a low hanging branch. Then he noticed his gal was missing and slowly made his way across the meadow in hot pursuit.

This gal surely is the apple of his eye. She came out of the woods and began to graze, slowly making her way across the meadow, and finally disappearing into a thicket. The bull wasn't far behind following her in hot pursuit.

Such beautiful, amazing creatures. The huge rack on the bull, covered with its new layer of velvet, was gorgeous. It's extremely hot here in Tennessee. We're in the Dog Days of Summer, although it feels as if we have been there all Summer. There's high heat and humidity daily with afternoon thunderstorms. I am waiting for Fall to bring cooler temps. ENJOY!

Linking to The Scoop 339

The Best of 2015

As the year draws to a close, I wonder just where it went. Taking a look back at the images I have posted, I thought choosing a few of the best of the best was in order.

Left to right. We begin with five images from Great Smoky Mountains National Park in Tennessee and North Carolina with an Elk at Oconaluftee Visitor Center, Fall along Newfound Gap Road, rushing waters along Oconaluftee River, a beautiful Red Maple and an overlook along Newfound Gap Road. Then we have the Juvenile Wood Duck found at Murfree Springs Wetlands in Murfreesboro, Tennessee, a Bison at the Elk and Bison Range at Land Between the Lakes in southwest Kentucky, a Muskrat and Yellow Crowned Night Heron at Murfree Springs Wetlands in Murfreesboro, Tennessee, the beautiful Tulip Gardens in bloom at Cheekwood Botanical Gardens and the Ring Necked Duck at Radnor Lake, both the gardens and the lake are in Nashville, Tennessee. I hope you enjoyed a walk down memory lane as much as I did. ENJOY!

Fallow Deer, Land Between the Lakes

My favorite image of the Fallow Deer I photographed at Land Between the Lakes a month ago. ENJOY!

Beast of Burden

There is no other way to describe one of the largest mammals on North American soil.

Another view of the Bison at the Elk and Bison Prairie at Land Between the Lakes. ENJOY!

Bison, Land Between the Lakes

BIG! BROWN! BISON!

As you drive your car around the route in the Elk and Bison Prairie at Land Between the Lakes, you begin to see glimpses of Bison up ahead. Taking in all of the Bison up ahead, you notice they are scattered throughout the fields, the pond, the side of the road. Some are even laying in a dust bowl hoping to rid themselves of insects on their large backs.

What a treat! Approaching the main herd in your car, you notice there are several large Bison standing right in the middle of the road. You have to stop the car and wait. Your head goes up as you see movement in your rear view mirror. You see him. A very big Bison lumbering up the middle of the road directly behind your car. He is going to have to pass right by your car to get to where he is going. He does. As he lumbers past your driver's side door, you hold your breathe and say a prayer, and you don't move a muscle.

Finally, thankfully, he makes it past your car, meanders into the herd of Bison just ahead, and stops right in the middle of the road. Now there are several large Bison right in the middle of the road. Five minutes pass. Ten minutes pass. Fifteen minutes pass. Finally, the two large Bison in the middle of the road slowly move to the side of the road. One of them lays down just off the pavement. Now is your chance. You slowly move your car down the road past all of the Bison. As you pass the last one, you began to breathe regularly again. This is the Bison at the Elk and Bison Prairie at Land Between the Lakes. ENJOY!

Elk, Land Between the Lakes

While visiting the Land Between the Lakes Elk and Bison Prairie, I wasn't sure I would even see the Elk as it was the middle of the day. Elk tend to come out early in the morning and later in the afternoon or early evening. The first drive through the prairie, I captured this image of an Elk resting near a thicket of trees and brush not far from the road. This was the only Elk visible at that time.

On my second visit, the same Elk was still resting in the same place I had left him about an hour and a half before. As I approached the area in my car and pulled into a parking lot, the Elk popped up and walked gingerly over to the brush. He munched on leaves from the brush and trees for a bit which allowed me to capture a few images. There are about 55 Elk residing in the prairie right now. I can only attest to there being one as that is all I saw.

Normally, when I see the Elk in the Smokies they are grazing on grasses in the meadow so it was rather nice to get to see them doing something a bit different. They are such huge animals. When meandering my way through the Bison a few minutes earlier, an Elk had gotten too close to the Bison and was ran off by several of them. I don't know if it was this Elk. My guess would be it was a different one.

It has been a wet Friday here in Nashville. It is supposed to clear up by mid day tomorrow. I have a few images of the Bison to share with you. It goes without saying that I have been working really hard since I moved to Nashville. So it has been nice to get out the past few weeks and pay a visit to Fall Creek Falls, Cheekwood and the Elk and Bison Prairie at Land Between the Lakes. Have a great weekend. And to those who lost their lives in 9/11 and those who survived to live on in their name, God Bless You. ENJOY!

Fallow Deer, Land Between the Lakes

Land Between the Lakes is a patch of land that sits between Lake Barkley and Kentucky Lake in the southwestern part of Kentucky. It runs north to south between the two lakes. It is only about an hour and a half from Nashville. I decided to visit recently before the cooler temperatures drifted in and the leaves began to change color. I especially wanted to visit the Elk and Bison Prairie.

After a brief visit to the Elk and Bison Prairie, knowing I would stop back before heading home, I drove a few short miles to Hermatite Lake. This is a small lake that sits on the eastern side of Land Between the Lakes. I had hoped to captured images of the Lotus flowers there, but after a short hike realized they were not in an easy spot to photograph.

As I was leaving Hermatite Lake, four White Tailed Deer wondered into the parking area. Except one of the Deer was very very light in color. A quick 'Google' search determined I had encountered a Fallow Deer. The one lighter colored Deer was a Fallow Deer. Fallow Deer are indigenous to Asia and Europe and were imported to the United States back in the early 1900's. There are as few as 150 Fallow Deer remaining in Kentucky at Land Between the Lakes.

They are considered an endangered species and hunters are prohibited from hunting them. Beside being much lighter in color, the other distinctive marking that sets the Fallow Deer apart from their counterpart, the White Tailed Deer, is their large flat antlers. Their antlers resemble a Moose's antlers although I am not sure if they are as large. You never know what you are going to find when you venture out. Amazing find. Back soon with images from the Elk and Bison Prairie. ENJOY!