Colorado Animals

The following pictures are a sample of the interesting animals we have had encounters with while on our mission in Idaho Springs, Colorado.  Disclaimer--we saw a cougar, but I the one pictured here was actually a stuffed mountain lion.  Other than that, I took the pictures and this is what we had the privilege to witness with our own little eyeballs.

This rare white deer made her appearance close to the LDS Chapel outside of town.  We finished cleaning the building and were rewarded with an "up close" experience with her.  We never saw her again.

She wanted me to take the side view.  So vain. . .

She traveled with  another doe and a fawn. Notice the contrasting colors of the deer.

"No Hunting!"  The smartest deer in Colorado. Do you see that doe sticking out her tongue at us? One word:  Jerky.

                                                                        Buck in the velvet.

Elk early in the Spring.  We keep watching for them--we'd like to see them now!

 

Very odd cow.

Wait--is that a ...

Go Cougs!

Unfortunately, there have been a few fatalities here in the Rocky foothills where these big kitties have killed children.  People around here are cautious but quite protective of these mountain lions.

This little chipmunk found a red M&M on the trail. He just beat me to it.

Regular accesory on the lawn of a family in the Branch.

Cute, but dumb as the post he thinks he is hiding behind.

Marmot:  these are generally large ground squirrels who live in high mountains.  They live in burrow, often within rockpiles, and eat moss, lichen, roots, flowers and grasses.  Weirdly, they whistle really loud to communicate with each other. They looked like little bears with long black fingernails.

That's marmot, not varmit.

Pica.  Cute little tiny animal found at high altitudes.  It is also known as the "whistling hare" due to its high-pitched alarm call when diving into its burrow.  They are lightning fast!

Mountain Goats are funny animals.  Playful, hearty.  I call them four-wheelers on the hoof.   They have inner pads that provide traction and cloven hooves that can be spread apart as needed. Also, the tips of their feet have sharp dewclaws  to keep them from slipping. (Thank you Wikipedia.  You are never wrong.)

We wondered why these mountain goat and sheep seem to lick the rocks.  They lick the lichen from the stone!  Also, you can find the mountain sheep (these pictures are of goats) along the freeway in the spring licking the rocks along the road to find the salt that the highway department dumps on the asphalt for ice control. The mountain GOATS are too proud to be seen close to the highway. Nice digs, huh? That is what I call a room with a veiw!

The nannies travel in pretty big herds, tending the little babies.  They are very attentive moms.  They better be--you should see the cliffs those kids play on. The steepness of the terrain is their best defense against their enemies.  They can navigate steep cliffs that their natural enemies don't dare attempt.

Mount Evans is over 14,000 feet in elevation.  That is where these animals love to be.  It snowed a few flakes on us on July 23rd so you know they do not mind the cold.  They have two layers of wool to insulate themselves from the fridgid temperatures.  They are shedding the top layer in these pictures.

These little kids were adorable.  They reminded me of our grandchildren--playing, teasing, climbing over each other, wiggling, getting into mischief constantly! (My grandchildren NEVER get into mischief.) They gathered in groups and played and teased each other the entire time we watched them.  The nannies would occasionally try to break up the fun, but the kids would be right back at it.

I tried to get a shot of them while they were still but they would knock each other off the ledge and one of them was always scrambling to get back on top.

This was the game "I'm the King of Bunker's Hill."  Finally, one of the nannies came over and tried to knock all of them off the very steep rock and show them who was boss.

Breathtaking scenery!

Of course, we have daily contact with domestic animals:

Everyone in the Foothills has at least one dog, or two, or three.  These we called this bunch  "the Guardians of the Porch."  Early on, we started carrying doggie treats to make friends with our contacts' animals.

These dogs had a great place to live.

Where's my doggie biscuit?

And of course you have to have cats to annoy the dogs.

The queen upon her throne. It really wouldn't be a bad life as a cat at this mountain cabin unless you remember they are always being threatened by coyotes, wolves, bears and cougars.  It's good they have nine lives. That darned old chain of life thing. . .

Hummingbirds can hover in mid-air, fly backwards, and exceed forward speeds of 34 miles per hour. But they can't figure out how to fly back out of an open garage.  That is one of nature's greatest mysteries.

We hope to get some pictures of some more animals before we leave for Utah, but it rained so hard today we didn't get out on the road, so I took the opportunity to blog some of these pictures.  Maybe I will eventually figure out how to download a short video segment so the "King of Bunker's Hill" game with the mountain goat kids can be published.