Mating Call Bull Elk

The North American Continent is full of wonders and one of them is the Elk. Once elk was a plains animal, just like the bison. Human pressure like hunting and expanding agriculture and farming made this impressive creature choose the forest as its habitat. An amazing change, because the size of its antlers makes it difficult to move and run among the trees and the sometimes dense undergrowth.

I am not the only one who classifies the elk as his favorite deer species (moose might be the second one). Like many of my fellow artists I don’t get tired of painting this majestic animal.

My favorite place to spot elk is Yellowstone National Park in Wyoming. In the fall, when Aspen turns bright yellow, with the typical clear blue sky of the Indian summer, the scene starts to vibrate when the terrifying sound of a bugling elk is heard in the distance. It is one of those amazing things that happened millions of years ago on our wonderful planet. How privileged we are that we can witness such incredible moments and how privileged I feel that as an artist I can paint such wonder.