elk adventure.

Here are some photos from our little elk adventure to Hardware Ranch with Daniel's family this past month, if you'd like to see!

And now for some elk trivia!

1. Elk, along with moose and caribou, are members of the deer family.
2. An adult make elk is called a bull, an adult female is called a cow, a baby is called a calf, and a yearling bull is called a spike because his antlers are spiky.
3. Only male elk have antlers, but both male and female caribou (a.k.a. reindeer) have antlers!
4. The elk's antlers (along with antlers of all other animals who have them) are made of bone! They fall off and re-grow each year. 
5. Horns are a different story. Horns are never shed, and they are made of the same stuff that our fingernails are made of.
6. New antlers are covered with a fuzzy skin called velvet. It has a lot of blood vessels running through it. Because antlers are made of bone, they need to have blood flow in order to grow! 
7. The elk's canine teeth are made of ivory.
8. Cows, calves, and yearlings live in herds for most of the year while bulls live alone. This means that a cow is usually the leader of the herd! Of course, this changes during the mating season.
9. If an elk feels threatened, they make a barking sound.
10. The elk's coat makes them essentially waterproof. 

And that is the end of my elk facts for the day. If you want to see one of these guys up close, I suggest you visit Hardware Ranch! We had a blast!