Jackson Hole Wildlife Eco-Tour Adventures

Join us for a winter wildlife sightseeing snowshoe tour.                      Sightings during past trips.        Rutting Big Horn Sheep, Moose, Elk, Bison, Prong Horn Antelope, Numerous Bald Eagles, Harrier hawks,   Mule Deer, Trumpeter Swans, Black Capped Chickadee, Ravens, Magpies, Clarks Nutcracker

   As the snow falls the animals start their struggle through the winter months.    Each species have their own way to cope with the cold temperatures and the accumulation of snow on the ground.       Elk are moving towards the National Elk Refuge.   The last count is 1200 elk on the southern portion of the refuge.   As the snow falls the elk move towards the lower elevations to find available forage.    Snow depth today (Mountains 29 inches)  Valley ( 4inches).     All summer long the refuge staff has been actively planting, growing and watering grasses to provide additional food for the elk.   As the snow increases in depth on the refuge the refuge personal will start to assess the winter grass availability.   Once the natural grass forage is no longer available (as the snow covers it) food pellets will be given to the elk to supplement their winter diet.   The Moose are in numbers now in the valley.    As the snow collects in the riparian habitats the moose are making their way to the sage flats.  The wind keeps the snow from collecting in these areas making travel easy.   One of the moose’s favorite winter snacks, the Antelope Bitterbrush, calls the sage flats their home.       

            The Bull moose are about to drop their antlers for the winter months.     The largest bulls will drop them first and then the younger males will drop theirs about a month later.    Why carry those large antlers all winter long as they can weigh up to 50 pounds.     Calories are precious in the winter time.   Moose will eat up to 40 pounds of vegetation a day in the winter.  Unfortunately the cottonwood branches, willow and other shrubs have very poor nutritional quality this time of year and do very little for the moose.   The moose have hollow guard hairs that help keep them warm and a thick downy under fur that helps conserve calories.    If the snow gets so deep and the temperatures so cold moose may bed down and not move for considerable time (hours to days and maybe longer), to conserve energy.       

       Join us for some winter adventure activities. 

       The bighorn sheep are starting to move towards their winter range.   We have seen some of the ewes  or females within the Jackson Hole valley.  It’s typical for sheep to have multiple seasonal ranges within their home range.  Males may have up to six seasonal ranges while females have up to four ranges…  Male’s ranges include the rutting range, a pre-rut range, a spring range, a salt lick range, a summer range, and a winter range.  Female’s ranges may include the spring range, the lambing range, the summer range, and the winter range.   If I had to make an assumption, the rams or males are on their pre rut range.  This range is off of the high country where there is less snow, as there is up to two feet of snow in the high country at this point.   The females are moving towards their winter range, which brings them into view here in Grand Teton National Park and Jackson Hole.   The older individuals lead the migration to the different ranges.   These different migrations happen quickly over the course of a few days and have been happening on the same paths for centuries.            

          As we near the holidays, the rams will start fighting for ewes in estrus.  To find out who is the dominant ram, the two competing individuals will run at each other and clash heads in combat.   The collision may be heard from a mile away and sound as a gun has fired..          

      Bighorn sheep migrated to North America during the early Pleistocene era, about two million years ago.    Our ancestral sheep reached North America about 1 million years ago where they evolved into nine sill existing sub species.   Beringia was the location where these sheep crossed from Asia to North America.    

           As the rut comes closer we will be taking tours to find the combating sheep…    We will keep you posted on the happenings..   Call for a park wildlife tour to remember.  We are permitted in Grand Teton National park and offer wildlife tours in the Jackson Hole Valley.    We are also offering  winter wildlife snowshoeing tours this winter season as well.

  Gildart, Bert. 1999. Mountain Monarchs Bighorn Sheep. Northword Press, Minnetonka, Minnesota

                                               Join EcoTour Adventures for a winter wildlife park tour to remember!                  The weather is changing.  Yesterday I woke up to rain mixing to snow.   As I drove up into Grand Teton National Park with guests on a wildlife tour we were engulfed in snow.    Driving by the elk refuge,  visibility was down to half a mile.     The refuge was covered in a fresh dusting of new snow.   It had snowed all night up in the mountains.  This snow is sure to put some animals on the move.   As the storm is raging the animals stay out of view and out of the elements.   My hope was that the clouds were going to part and we could witness the Teton Mountains covered in fresh snow.                       Crossing a creek we spotted our first large male (bull) moose.    Off in the distance it browsed on willow twigs.   We closely observed through a spotting scope and then talked about the moose antler and moose hide that I had brought along.   Did you know, Moose have long hollow guard hairs that help with their insulation and also help with buoyancy?   Earlier this summer I witnessed a cow moose swimming across Jackson Lake.  She was in the water swimming for 50 minutes!

The moose are exhibiting winter like behavior.   We witnessed 8 grouping up in the sage flats of the national park.    As snow dominates the forests and the river valleys the moose tend to prefer the sage flats.   A favorite winter food grows amongst the sage brush.   Antelope bitterbrush is one of the best food items on the moose’s winter menu.   Wind on the sage flats prevents much snow from accumulating, making travel easy for the long legged ungulates. 

    The elk hunting season is in full swing here in Jackson Hole.   Hunters are encouraged to leave the heads of the elk they shoot in boxes so Game and Fish can study the specimen.   One thing that Game and Fish does is monitors different wildlife dieses in the area.   Brucellosis is of concern in this area.  This is a bacterium that can affect pregnant female bison and elk.   First calfs are aborted and then proper antibodies are created.  The female will have healthy young after next year’s pregnancy.     The concern here is when these infected animals travel out the park and elk refuge and mingle with livestock and potentially transmit the diseases.  

                Chronic wasting disease is another concern.   There is no cure and no vaccination for this terrible disease.    Very little is known, what we do know it is always 100% fatal..  It has been found in our area for the first time in the wildlife just a month ago…   Biologists say that to stop feeding elk on the feed grounds would reduce the potential for a massive outbreak.           Come join EcoTour Adventures for a winter wildlife tour to learn more.  

Fall is a wonderful time in Jackson Hole and The Tetons.  The summer crowds are gone and everybody’s thoughts are directed towards the snow..    How is the skiing going to be?   Are we going to have an average winter snow  to melt and fill our rivers in the spring..        Is the snow going to be so deep that the wildlife will have a hard time and succumb to the harsh reality of winter…  Will we see wolves on the Elk Refuge this winter..    All questions in our minds at this point…   We had some of our first snow of the season over the Labor day weekend..    Another storm two weeks ago dropped over a foot in the mountains..   Its been beautiful and dry for a week now.   Highs in the mid 60s Lows in the mid 20s.                                   On tours we have been seeing Bison, Antelope, Moose, and Elk.   Most of the larger animals have completed their rut.   The mule deer are in the middle of theirs.   The dominant Buck will have breeding rights over the other males and is promiscuous with any mature female.     Bald Eagles have been seen over the Snake River, maybe they will winter here  or they might continue their migration to the south. .    We have lost most of our migrating song birds to more tropical climates…   Waterfowl are congregating on water ways staging to migrate or taking a layover break.                          Today we witnessed a flock of finches up towards the summit of Mt.  Leidy at 10,326 feet.                     Typical behavior for some finches is to flock up during the winter months.   These finches rely on the “Many Eyes” hypothesis to survive the winter months.  As they are feeding and spending their day, they can be a bit more relaxed knowing that their flock members are looking out for predators…    The benefit, more time to forage and less time spent watching for predators.           The Local Forest Service is setting controlled burns in areas that need to experience forest fires..   One fire on the west side of the Tetons, completely hid the high peaks from view today.   Fire has many great benefits.  For one, fires will help recycle the nutrients within an ecosystem..    As our climate is a dry one, things don’t tend to rot or decay at a quick rate.   Trees will die and then stay standing for decades.   Yes these snags are put to good use by nesting birds, however a healthy fire will recycle the nutrients back to the forest floor giving the opportunity for other vegetation types to grow.  Two, fires help control populations of insects.   Three, Forests tend to hold higher plant diversities two years after a burn.  Fires, Yes they are good for an ecosystem.. and there are a  number of reasons why they are beneficial to the plants and animals of the area.                 Eco Tour Adventures is offering winter wildlife tours that may also include an introduction to snowshoeing during the winter season.  Call for details.. 

The first moose calves and elk calves have been seen in the Jackson Hole  and Grand Teton area.   We are watching newly hatched ravens in their nests.  The bison are still caving while the numbers of Pronghorn Antelope are growing steadily as they migrate back into the valley…            Blankets of Larkspur Delphinium nelsoni  which is in the buttercup family blankets the floor of the Snake River bottoms.    This is a plant that we do not nibble on because of its toxicity.  It is very pleasant to look at, but quite poisonous.    There are alkaloids which are poisonous to cattle and wildlife.  Cows think the plant is tasty and will eat it causing death while the wildlife in the area knows better.   The wildlife will graze on this plant during the latter months of the summer season after the plant flowers and loses its toxic properties.           Finally the weather has broken and we are seeing the sun… How great it feels on the skin after months and months of being wrapped up in sweaters and Gore-Tex.   The snow line is still moving up the mountains creating a river of mud flowing down the Snake River drainage.   The temperatures will rise into the 70s today, we hope!   Going on a camping trip today to take advantage of the weather.. Will report back soon.   Craighead, John J., Frank C. Craighead and Ray J. Davis. 1963. A Field Guide to Rocky Mountain Wildflowers. Houghton Mifflin Co., Boston