Massive Herd of Elk in Montana
This video shows a huge heard crossing the road near Yellowstone. It’s located at Bozeman, MT. We have never seen such a big herd before. Poor little guy at the end. Luckily he finally caught up. What did you think of the elk crossing?
Elk migration in Yellowstone National Park is a fascinating natural phenomenon. Here are some interesting facts about it:
- Seasonal Movement: Elk in Yellowstone undertake one of the longest remaining land mammal migrations in the contiguous United States. They migrate between their winter range in the northern parts of the park and their summer range in the higher elevations of the park.
- Population Size: The northern Yellowstone elk herd is one of the largest herds in North America, with an estimated population of around 10,000 individuals.
- Altitudinal Migration: Elk undertake altitudinal migration, moving from lower elevation winter ranges to higher elevation summer ranges. During winter, they descend to lower valleys where they find milder temperatures and access to food.
- Breeding Season: Elk migration in Yellowstone is influenced by the breeding season, known as the rut, which typically occurs in the fall. During this time, the bulls compete for mating rights by bugling, displaying their antlers, and engaging in physical confrontations.
- Route Selection: The migration routes of elk in Yellowstone are not fixed and can vary from year to year. The selection of routes depends on factors such as snow depth, forage availability, and predator avoidance.
- Natural Barriers: Elk migration routes are sometimes impeded by natural barriers like deep snow or large rivers. These obstacles can influence the timing and success of migration, as elk need to find suitable crossing points.
- Predator-Prey Interaction: The migration of elk in Yellowstone also influences predator behavior. Wolves, Yellowstone’s apex predators, are known to follow the elk herds during migration, targeting weak or injured individuals.
- Ecological Impact: Elk migration plays a vital role in shaping the landscape and maintaining ecological balance in Yellowstone. Their grazing patterns can affect plant growth, and their movements help disperse seeds and nutrients.
- Human-Wildlife Interactions: Elk migration attracts a significant number of visitors to Yellowstone, providing them with opportunities to observe and appreciate this natural spectacle. Park authorities manage traffic and access points to minimize disturbances to the migrating elk.
- Research and Conservation: Scientists study elk migration in Yellowstone to understand the ecological processes and inform conservation efforts. Research helps in evaluating the impacts of climate change, habitat alteration, and human activities on elk populations and their migration patterns.
These fascinating elk migrations in Yellowstone National Park showcase the intricate relationship between wildlife, landscape, and the dynamic processes of nature.
Please let us know in the comment section below and remember to share the video and sign up for our free newsletter!
September 13, 2014 @ 1:05 pm
I was heartsick when that poor elk got in trouble. We humans are using up all the land – heaven forbid that we should leave these poor animals safe access to food and water.
September 20, 2014 @ 4:28 pm
Shirley,
It’s obvious you have never been to Montana! There is plenty of Food and Water here. Everyone needs to not move here though. Please stay away.
July 11, 2015 @ 4:42 am
We cracked Gimme4Free Blackhatworld Pinterest Bot. I have been boittng Pinterest.com for the past few weeks now & have seen some awesome results on account followers, traffic results & best of all, viral traffic with high conversion rates. Pinterest.com is a relatively new site and has boomed in 2011 when it gained over 13 million users. The site is based upon Pins . Pins can be images or videos. These images & videos also contain links to the page that the image came from. Users can also Like & Re-Pin your pins. If they choose to re-pin your pin the original link that you set for the image is also carried through the re-pin. Click in our nickname to download it.
September 11, 2014 @ 10:35 pm
Considering all the other comments, Elkhunter, yours was really funny. And that from a vegetarian.
September 11, 2014 @ 10:29 pm
All them Elk steaks YUM
September 11, 2014 @ 3:20 pm
This video was taken less than a mile from where I live in Bozeman, MT. I know this herd of elk. In recent years, the herd has come down from the mountains early primarily because of the rapid increase in the wolf population. Contrary to what people might have been told, wolves kill to kill, not just to eat. They pursue and kill elk for sport year round, but especially during the winter in deep snow. As a result, elk populations are down drastically throughout SW Montana. For protection and to find easily accessible feed, a number of elk herds spend winters down in the valleys or at lower elevations where the sun can melt off the snow. They prefer to congregate out in the middle of huge fields and open areas to protect themselves from predators and being hassled by humans.
September 20, 2014 @ 4:42 pm
Sometimes the fences and the houses nearby protect them from the wolves. Wolves are a serious problem for our elk herds. Good point Phil. Wolves do just kill to pass the time, and elk calves are an easy target. Montana was better without them.
September 21, 2014 @ 10:27 am
DITTO FOR COUGAR AND DEER
September 8, 2014 @ 3:57 am
What a beautiful sight. The last one had to be a youngster who hadn’t seen many wire fences but, he figured it out, and was smarter for the experience.
September 7, 2014 @ 6:09 pm
I felt sooooo sad for the last one.I hope it was a she I can’t imagine how the barbed wire felt on its genitals if it were a male
September 7, 2014 @ 12:13 pm
Great video. Brings tears to your eyes. When did this happen and are they all still together ?
September 6, 2014 @ 10:00 pm
Has anyone counted these beautiful creatures?!
September 6, 2014 @ 11:18 am
if at first you don’t succeed try -try again!
October 20, 2014 @ 12:08 pm
Here, here, Leapin’ Lizzi … moderation in all things !!
July 11, 2015 @ 4:45 am
I just survived my first witenr in Europe. An aussie girl, from sunny Sydney. They warned me it would be hard. They said Is this your first witenr here? Oh. But I never thought it would be as hard as it was. At first it was fun. Real snow falling from the sky! It made the city so light and beautiful. It made everything soft and ethereal. I discovered snow is only fun if you have the right stuff. Boots, socks, gloves, hats, scarfs, long underwear, coats, shovel, anti-freeze for engine, windscreen and locks, pram with snow tyres. The list went on and on. After a while, it was hard to have fun. My Australian family and friends were enjoying the heat, eating peaches, swimming, having prawns for Christmas lunch. Meanwhile I felt I was dying a slow death. A warm climate flower buried in the snow. Now I’m loving the European summer. My world has opened up again. I listen to friends and family moan It’s freezing here! and I know it is. But I’ll never feel the same way about the Australian witenr. I might still complain and resent the shivering mornings, the cold jeans and frosty windscreens. But I’ll also look at the sun, the grass and trees. I’ll remember that at least there’s life in the Australian witenr, and a beauty nothing can compare to. It’s a special place, that home of mine.
September 5, 2014 @ 8:51 pm
Look @ the trophy houses covering and fencing the elk herd’s winter range. Ancestors of those elk have come to that valley for thousands of winters, to try avoiding starvation until they can return to the mountains when snow melts. Almost every remaining area of quality winter range for elk and deer is @ risk of being subdivided into 5-acre ranchettes. If you care to help preserve the remaining winter range that elk depend on for their survival, google RMEF, the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation.
September 9, 2014 @ 3:06 pm
Thanks for that information, Mark
September 11, 2014 @ 4:31 pm
Sigh… We humans have cluttered the world and effectively crowded out every living creature but for those who will eat our abundant garbage. Aldo Leopoldo once wrote: “The penalty for an ecological education is that one lives alone in a world of wounds.” Indeed. The Internet offers some small consolation though… at least we can meet here on-line and grieve Nature’s mortal wounds together. Amen.
October 20, 2014 @ 8:34 pm
Sigh… Really Evi? So do tell, where do you live, and what sort of dwelling do you live in? I suspect you do not live in the woods under a tree you claim to hug. I also suspect you do not walk everywhere to get from point B to point A. So spare me the “we humans have cluttered the world”, sermon. Unless you practice what you’re preaching. Doubt it.
October 20, 2014 @ 8:51 pm
Good for you Evi. We all do what we can but to avoid the reality of the destructive practices we’ve practiced with rationalizations about ‘walking the talk’ is merely more avoidance and projection. It would be wonderful if we could overnight change the systems which are no longer working. And they are numerous. A closed mind is just that and is usually closed to anything but their own sense of entitlement. Change begins with each person opening their mind to new ideas and new behaviour which best serves the long term interests of humanity as a whole. We can learn from anything which crosses our paths; even sermons. SueMe would do well to open her mind to see the wisdom in what you’ve posted, even if she disagrees.
October 20, 2014 @ 9:52 pm
There is one draw back to being open minded … sometimes a person’s brains fall out.
November 20, 2014 @ 1:51 pm
Hey, SueMe, you don’t sound like you’re a tree hugger either. Sweep around your own back door before you sweep around someone else’s. Do you walk from point A to point B? I doubt it. Me, personally, I do. And what Evi said is true. We are taking away from the animals. Every time a new dwelling is built or a new mall, or something like that we are taking away the animals’ habitats. I’m sure you’ve done your part in taking the habitats away also. We all have.
September 20, 2014 @ 4:36 pm
Thanks Mark. Good info. RMEF is a great organization. I live just down the road from their headquarters.
September 25, 2014 @ 11:42 am
Thank you for this VERY important information! It is so disgusting to hear people complain about wildlife when it is WE who are taking away THEIR homes!!
September 25, 2014 @ 11:52 am
It is too bad when people complain about the wildlife. They too shall learn, in this life or the next. “There are none so blind as those who will not see.”
October 2, 2014 @ 12:12 pm
Why is it that humans are the only species on the planet that is “evil” when we adapt our surroundings to meet our needs? I guarantee you those elk would trample my vegetable garden, eat all my plants, and defecate all over my yard if it was their easiest path to survival and comfort. I saw some beavers change the flow of a stream and change the whole ecosystem of the area, as they modified their surroundings to help them thrive and be comfortable. Does that make them evil? BAD Beavers! You need to minimize your footprints! You should have thought about the coyote den that got flooded out as a result of your irresponsible building processes. Why can’t you go live in a yurt? Sigh, indeed, Evi. There is absolutely no basis in fact for your assertion . . “effectively crowded out every living creature but for those who will eat our abundant garbage.” . . . grieve mother Nature’s mortal wounds together – LOL. Overdramatize much? I’m just as entitled to my habitat (e.g., a house on five acres if I want one) as those elk are to their habitat.
October 2, 2014 @ 4:45 pm
Farley, your answer is the reason, mentality, and proof of why humans are leading the destruction of our planet. The idea that you’re entitled to what you want is the exact sort of individualistic greed that is hurting your community and the world around it.
You say there is “no basis in fact”. Not to diminish your education, but there are countless scientifically proven and peer-reviewed research conclusions based on factual information that support the claim of human’s destruction of our planet due to overdevelopment and all the negative consequences that come with it. Pretty much anyone that’s studied at any sort of reputable post-secondary institution in the world today will know this. Or if you just watched the world news every once in a while. You comment is utterly shocking, clearly uneducated, and disappointing.
But you prove Mark’s comment so it was nice to hear from you.
October 2, 2014 @ 5:04 pm
Thank you, Darren for articulating the facts for those who don’t understand the reality of Humanity’s paradigm of entitlement. People will almost always only see what they want to; what is most comfortable for them. That is exactly why the world is in the state it is in. From the environment through to human interactions, human beings can rationalize whatever they do. Yet we still have the resources and the superior minds to make our world a virtual Shangri-La. All it will take is human evolution, social evolution, education, and commitment. Let’s hope we have enough time to turn things around.
.
October 2, 2014 @ 7:36 pm
Wow. Where to start, Darren, where to start. “Not to diminish your education” Farley, but let me go ahead and do exactly that, because you’re too dumb to notice. Condescension, the last resort of the left. The reality is that since I don’t share your world view, the only conclusion you can rationalize is that I am stupid, or at best ill-educated, because if I were neither, I would absolutely HAVE to see it your way. What a special kind of arrogance. So don’t pay me no mind, Darren, I’m jus’ a simple lad, an’ I only hopes I kin dress muself in the mornin’. There are so many holes in your argument, sadly, it’s going to take more than one post to address, because I have a real job. I’ll be back, promise.
November 12, 2014 @ 8:15 am
What utter drivel. You could put all the people in the world into individual 700 square foot UN Agenda 21 approved apartments and they would all easily fit into a Western Canadian province like Manitoba and there would still be enough land left to grow enough food. Humans have barely scratched the surface. The only people saying otherwise are environmentalist hacks shystering for a buck from ignorant city core dwellers who think the world is paved and polar bears have no ice left.
January 5, 2015 @ 3:54 pm
I find it very disconcerting that most or the commenter here that cry about the habitat lost will stand for increasing population in this country via illegal immigrant and legal immigration. Population explosion, especially by ethnic groups that multiply at an alarming rate, and Muslims that multiply in order to enslave us by collecting entitlements are all OK with you right?
October 22, 2014 @ 2:26 pm
Farley Farley Farley… You know, a while back, people came to this country and had the same sense of entitlement as it sounds you have. And they felt that because the land was here, it was up for grabs. The only thing they chose not to reckon with was, there were already people living on it called NATIVE AMERICANS.
Now, I don’t agree with Evi, that we’re all evil for parsing land for US to occupy. But, Darren is definitely correct when he cites that there are species that are drastically and directly affected, by our simple occupation of the land they were already living on.
Due to people simply changing the landscape to put in a one car width road, has caused entire species to disappear off the Earth forever. Because that species habitat was ‘fragmented’. They didn’t have the instinctual capacity to cross that one lane road, even at the cost of their own peril and extinction. “Habitat fragmentation” is a genuine scientific and ecological reality. But habitat fragmentation is also caused by natural events such as earthquakes, floods, fires, and even volcanoes, not just by humans.
The flip side of that coin is another reality that most people are completely NOT aware of. Taking into account, literally, every single species that flourishes on the entire planet Earth today (ALL fauna, flora, as well, insects), makes up only 1.5% of all the species that have lived and already gone extinct in Earth’s four and a half+ billion year lifetime. Entire species are disappearing every single day, and we are incapable of saving each and every one. It’s that simple.
My point being, though we all want and need a place to hang our hat and call home, sometimes, we do have to consider larger consequences to our decisions. Though God did give us this planet to share with other species, whether as an individual, or collective choice, WE DO have to draw a line somewhere, for the benefit of our planet. And, perhaps most importantly, to leave this amazing ‘garden of life’ floating in space to our children, and their children (and so on). Hopefully, in ‘better condition’ then WE found it and have treated it.
I am familiar that the elk herds may be moving around more and/or earlier to survive, and to survive the wolves. But, in some cases, we did without wolves for many many decades and are just now, due to human intervention, re-populating certain areas with them. Areas they too once hailed as ‘their domain’ for thousands of years. Nature WILL find its own balance, but we can assist.
I hope I’m not sounding condescending or insulting to anyone, as that’s not my intent. This isn’t a right or left thing. It’s a human thing. And there are too many areas where we all have to choose to stand up for something, bigger than ourselves. If we consider ourselves so advanced, so smart, so tech-savvy, then perhaps we have a chance to find, at the very least, a better balance. Obviously, Native Americans did. And how long ago did they figure it out?
October 19, 2014 @ 11:58 pm
Don’t you fool yourself! We live on the edge of one of the wilderness areas which have hundreds of miles that are roadless and have low areas for them as well has high summer range. If you wish to conserve your elk and deer, get rid of the wolves which were introduced into areas that elk and deer roam free in for about 8 – 9 months of the year. I have deer sign in my yard every morning. But the scary thing is that not that far from my home, in school bus routes you will also find a LOT of wolf sign. And if you think they are afraid of humans, you’re dreaming. The wolves that were brought into Idaho, Montana, and beyond are Canadian wolves not the ones that were here originally. They multiply like rabbits and are also VERY savvy of the elk and deer habitat. Then add the grizzly that were brought back, same areas, same scenario. Maybe in your Disney films these guys are all warm and cuddly, but in real life they aren’t. And the killing is not only the wildlife, they devastate domestic animals also. If you live in the city, you probably don’t realize how many people depend on hunting elk and deer for their winter meat. It is not just a sport, it is a necessity for many. And these are killed a whole lot more humane than with the wolves and bear.
Then add to all the above, the forest fires that are kept burning or “prescribed burns” done by the forest service. What do you think that does to these animals? Are you trying to stop any of their foolishness? Not only are they devastating our forest animals, they are killing MILLIONS of board feet of timber rather than let it be logged! And the mess that is left behind just compounds the burnable debris left in the wake of the fires. Then comes the fall rains which washes the ash as well as erodes the terrain because there is no vegetation to hold the soil, into the rivers. Then we get into the river issues. If logging causes erosion of soil and blocks the fishes’ gills then what is a person to think when endless amounts of timber and all vegetation burn, leaving ash AND the erosion?
I know before any of you jump on the bandwagon, I am uneducated, but common sense tells me that balance has not shown up in any comments yet. If we don’t want to utilize the land masses on earth, then we need to quit having children so there is no need to spread further into the undeveloped areas. And those of you who don’t wish to use any of the forest, then I would hope you don’t hypocritically use any paper products, stick homes, wooden furniture, boxed goods, newspapers, magazines, the list goes on.
I am not looking for an argument but my opinion is that the pendulum swings too far each way. There appears to be too many people that are looking out for their own “good” so go crazy with their authority. If some common sense were added to the knowledge, it might help us all.
November 14, 2014 @ 6:41 pm
Leapen,
You may not have an impressive formal educated but you do have more common sense than most of the people on this page.
October 27, 2014 @ 9:39 pm
It’s not just Elk who are being cut off from their natural herding grounds by 5 acre ranchettes. It’s also massive 100,000 acre fenced in cattle ranches. And it’s every living wild animal we have that’s being effected by it.