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Monday 11 March 2013

Deer Family of British Columbia - MOOSE


Moose Antlers, Hoopy Lake, Kamloops, BC

To the first-time observer the Moose, Alces alces,  looks kind of prehistoric, clumsy, awkward and outright strange. Its head is not "cute" (by human standard ) like that of a deer, the snout is way too long and out of proportion, the legs are long and spindly for the large body that they have to carry, the hooves are too big ..... it would not make it in Holywood ...but ... why don't we take a closer look?

A couple of years ago, my camera and I found ourselves seated on the ground of a cold muddy ditch. We were pretty much in a swamp near one of the Kootenay Summits waiting for a whitetail deer to show up for his daily Salt'n Spa Treatment. 

The deer tiptoed in and I, hiding under a large umbrella and admired by clouds of black flies, was totally absorbed in my photography. Five minutes later, no longer able to withstand the flies, I shook my head only to see a large moose cow and her calf some ten meters away, enjoying the mud and salt as well. When did they show up? Two large animals like that and I did not hear them come! (Yes, I am semi-deaf, but still...)

Biting flies or not, I did not dare to move much; Big Mamma was too close and I did not dare to take a chance of upsetting her. You need to know that I paid for this picture with my blood regardless, for in the name of their next generation, the black flies sucked me dry before she decided to take her calf elsewhere.






It was not too bad for her to move through the swamp because the moose have hooves that can spread widely - that helps them move through mud and snow as if they wore snow shoes. 
Let me tell you - I tried to walk in and it was not so easy for me.







Their long, strong legs carry them well above the water or snow. They are excellent hikers and swimmers, well adapted to many different environments - deep forests, swamps, lakes and rivers.Their long snouts, with nostrils that can close when under water, help them reach the submerged vegetation or, when hiking, reach lichens suspended from branches high above. 

In its last stretch before Castlegar, Kootenay River does not look like an ideal moose habitat. It is too rocky and sterile because it had been dammed so many times. Yet during the fall, when aquatic plants thrive in some of the shallower bays, the moose come to feed. Not the huge moose bulls whose antlers we photographed in the Kamloops area. At least I have not had an opportunity and the privilege to meet one here. But on more than one occasion I did meet a moose cow on these shores, usually in late summer and fall and always after the sunset while letting my kayak glide on the glassy surface of the river. 


Last Stretch, Kootenay River just before its conjunction with Columbia River by Castlegar

Common Mergansers and mating insects, Kootenay River after Sunset


Anchored by the weeds I was observing a heron that landed on a dry tree above a beaver's lodge. A mother whitetail with her twins happened to show up competing for my attention. When I looked back the heron was gone. It was getting darker by the second and I decided to turn back and head home. 
Yet, before I even moved something that wasn't there before caught my eye - a boulder that seemed to be, somehow, out of place.








Elodea, Water Weeds


While the moose was feeding - completely in and out of water, a beaver swam by and all I could do in that falling darkness was to put away my camera, sit, watch and think how lucky I am to live a peaceful life in such an amazing part of the world.

As stated above, moose can completely close their nostrils and when they feed under water their long snout helps them to reach down and feel for for grasses.
The same long snout also helps the moose (mooses, meese .... TOEFEL studies ... couldn't help it ) reach up for twigs and lichens and buds; other favourite moose foods.






OK, I do realize that I haven't seen much when it comes to this species. I have only seen the cows and the young - the bull is apparently much larger and almost 2x heavier than cows. The antlers can be huge - the largest I have seen have been tossed in the grass by a cabin at a remote lake by Kamloops, BC.
There was another pair nailed to a log on a shed. No wonder that the male must be so much larger and stronger - to carry such weight.



Moose Antlers, Hoopy Lake, Kamloops, BC



Like every male in the deer family, the moose needs his antlers for advertising his condition, for fending off the rivals and for protection from predators. By the end of the rutting season it is time to shed the heavy weight (a good set of moose antlers could weigh 30 or more kilograms). The exhausted bull would only attract attention of predators not having much of a chance to beat his odds.
Rut happens in September  and October and the calves are born some eight months later. They will stay with the cow for the most of their first year of life. 



A Moose Cow and Her Young, Manning Park, BC




A bull moose shed his antlers. With the upcoming spring they will start anew. For now there are only two nubs on his forehead.
This photo was taken in the dark ages of pre-digital era (actually using a wonderful Fujichrome Velvia slide film) - it had been scanned on almost an equally old scanner at 1200dpi.






My most exciting moose encounter happened on Kootenay River several years ago. The darkness was falling so I put away my camera, keeping out only a small camcorder. 
Just in case. The moon would rise soon, perhaps I could record that.
I sat in my 2-meter kayak, parked on the rocky shore - more or less stuck between two boulders and quite immobile at a moments notice. All was quiet and the world came to a complete still. 
One of those magical moments, I thought.

Well, it was magic allright because as I lifted my head I was staring at a dark bulk of ... something. It seemed that IT was also staring at me. Neither of us dared to move (well, I better talk only for myself).
Another something stumbled onto the shore - much smaller than the heavy shadow that was towering above my shore-stuck-kayak-bound little being. A baby moose!
Oh boy!
Now what?
I whispered in my weakest, tiniest little voice ever: "Hi you." 
(or maybe it was something different, I do not remember).

 Thankfully, the big mamma moose was  in a tranquil mood, two steps and she would have easily shared the kayak with me. She nervously lifted her powerful hoof then turned back, unsure, glancing in my direction. 

Awwwwhhh, Great Mamma Moose, thank you for being a nice girl tonight! I shall not move or spook your little one, not make a sound (though the courage is growing equally with the distance between us and the camcorder is gently purring in my silly palm.) 


With a couple more glances they walked away skirting the shore, to find another spot.







I treasure this fear-soaked, awesome footage and it bugged me that I could not use it for the purpose of this blog (not yet - have to figure out how first)

But today it dawned on me that, perhaps, I could rip an image or two from the precious video.
Not only did it work (what would we do without the right mouse button?) the frames happily jumped into "My Documents" and saved themselves as a ".png"  file.
Dragged into Adobe Photoshop I adjusted the exposure and noise and saved as a .jpg  so I can finally share my greatest evening on Kootenay River with the rest of the world. 

And I am happy that I am still able to write about it too, for an angry mother moose is one of the most aggressive animals around. She is also so protective and so formidable that her young does not need the well known protective baby spots.






As she decided to walk away, she immediately placed herself (and her hooves) between her young and myself. Just keep on walking it that direction and, thank you very much for everything!








Monday 4 March 2013

TIMBER WOLF... and a photographer's rant




The Basic Rules of Nature Photography read somewhat like this:

Rule # 1: Have you camera near or ATTACHED to your body 24/7

Rule # 2: Check your camera settings the night before a trip.

Rule # 3: Have you batteries charged. Always carry a spare one.

Rule # 4: Carry your camera attached to a tripod.

Rule # 5: Check the memory card. Carry a spare one.

There is more but ... try to neglect only one of the above and your trip will end up as follows:



Yesterday we decided to take a trip to Halcyon Hot Springs near Nakusp, BC. Great. 

Monashee Mountains near Nakusp

So, the last night I placed my camera bag and the tripod onto the back seat of our vehicle to be ready (good girl).

Hopped into the car at 8 a.m. (OK timing) without even setting an eye on the bag on the back seat (bad girl). 

Somehow I did not believe that we would see any wildlife today (no comment).

The drive through Slocan Valley was beautiful as always and there were plenty of whitetail deer by the road but somehow I was too lazy to turn back, fish out a camera and set it on my lap (as I always do).

It was around 10 a.m. when ... a dog? ... a coyote? ... no, a wolf climbed out of the ditch adjacent to Arrow lake. 
A real, wild and pretty large gray (also called timber) wolf !!!! We have NEVER seen a wild wolf in nature before!

Now, where is my camera? 
Yes, safely zipped up in the camera bag on the back seat! The bag with all my equipment is beautifully laid parallel to the tripod waiting to be picked up and transferred to the front (and I am suffering from a pinched sciatic nerve so turning back shall be no fun)!
The wolf seems to be in no hurry - as soon as we pass, it steps onto the road. 
Meanwhile, I am frantically trying to reach back (rip the silly nerve in two if I have to), fighting not one, but a couple of sturdy zippers, pulling out the the camera with a 100 mm lens and finally (my torso twisted into a painful pretzel) managing to press the shutter: 
SHOOT first, see what you got later. Even through the rear window! Then try to get a better shot.
(Another rule)

As the car comes to a full stop the wolf pauses - a second or two. Then it resumes walking (not running) to the opposite ditch from which the forest climbs up the steep side of a mountain.
I have a feeling that the animal too, has a pinched nerve or a busted leg ... something does not seem to be right, as if he was favouring his hind leg.
I manage to get out of the car and take another shot - just when he pauses, one last time, among the trees.
The exposure seems to last way too long! 

Gone.Time to check the settings.

WHO on Mother Earth was playing with my camera? The F stop is at 29. ISO at 800! 
I swear I did not have anything to drink last night! 
In a way the ISO 800 saved at least one of my shots - the one through the rear window! 
But F 29 for a free hand .... well, I am afraid that I am too old for that.

So - the very first time we saw a wild wolf  I came home with 2 photos: 
1) A striped wolf
2) Picasso wolf
ENJOY

Striped Wolf
After talking to people at the Hot Springs we realized that the wolf, like us, was probably visiting one of the thermal streams that come down the mountain and into the lake.
It would only make sense for a hurting animal to utilize the Nature's Spa.



Piccaso Wolf
(Wondering how much they would pay me for this.)

To avoid further disappointments like this 
I promised to myself :

To buy a very large tube of Crazy Glue to make us (my camera and I) inseparable from now on.

Each and every night at 8 p.m. to check all the settings, batteries and filters in all the cameras within the 1 km radius..

To scrub each and every glass element on every lens I can find until it shines like a diamond.

To baby my tripod and carry it with me at all times.


(Yes, you guessed right: I just had a glass of wine.)






On a positive side: We saw a live gray wolf right here, in the West Kootenays and it was the sight that will always remain etched into my mind.

Slocan Valley


Gray Wolf, Canis lupus also called 

It is native to North America and Eurasia.

The wolf story is quite well known by now, fortunately the outlook  seems to be improving.
The North American wolves have been quite abused by the European settlers, and almost wiped out (ruthlessly shot, poisoned, trapped) in most of its former habitat in the
United States.
Canadian wolves were just a bit luckier, probably only thanks to the fact that the human population here is about 10x less than that of the USA.
European Wolves  shared a very similar fate.

Fortunately the attitudes are somewhat changing and there are increasing reports of wolf sightings.
As the understanding of their behavior and biology increases perhaps the fortunes of the wolf will turn for the better.




The wolves in my three photographs are not truly wild. They were born into captivity, used in the movies and when they grew older they could not be released anywhere in the wild. There is a Refuge for Wildlife at Grouse Mountain in West Vancouver, British Columbia that offered to take these wolves in. They live in a quite a large, protected area and it is a gamble to see them. We were lucky on one occasion when they seemed to enjoy a sunny day of  Spring.