Sunday 16 March 2008

Highway 22 wildlife

After a day of Snowboarding at Fernie, we stayed overnight in a motel in Fernie then headed back to Calgary early the next day.

The 1st 100kms of the return trip (being at dawn) was a constant Mule Deer spotting competition. They were at least as common as Kangaroos back home on dawn and dusk. They're as much of a danger to traffic as roos as well. Fortunately there weren't any elk, unlike the previous morning when I nearly hit a mob of 30. Elk are at least twice as big and if you hit one, it's like hitting a domestic cow.
After 100kms of mule deer spotting, a change. A female moose! She had a yearling calf with her and they were very skittish. Unfortunately this photo's a bit out of focus, but the light was bad and the animals were on the move.
These photos are bit more in focus. Unfortunately the Swamp Donkeys (as they like to call moose around here) had gone for the cover
  
Not far along the road after the moose, Shane spotted this coyote in a field.
We pulled over and I put the long lens to good use. The next photo is a better example. The overcast sky didn't help things again, but at least the subject was a bit more helpful.
The farmers hate these little scavengers and like to shoot them. I reckon they're pretty cool myself. This one was very well fed probably due to an abundance of rabbits, mice and ground squirrels on the prairies.
Coyotes are always looking for an opportunist's meal. Even though this one was watching me and looking for an escape route, he was still head down searching for a snack.