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American Bison


American Bison
Photo Information
Copyright: Cathy Hampton (luvsdogs3) Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Note Writer [C: 108 W: 0 N: 184] (586)
Genre: Animals
Medium: Color
Date Taken: 2004-07
Categories: Mammals
Camera: Canon Powershot S1-IS
Exposure: f/4.5, 1/60 seconds
Photo Version: Original Version
Travelogue: Alaska Adventure
Date Submitted: 2005-08-25 23:23
Viewed: 2040
Points: 29
[Note Guidelines] Photographer's Note
Another one of the large mammals I saw on my Alaska vacation. They live on a wildlife preserve where they were rasied after being abandoned as calves. The largest, named Big Boy, now weighs more than 1 ton.

The history of the American Bison is one of sadness. Nobody knows how many bison inhabited North America before the coming of the Europeans. Most estimates range between 50 to 100 million animals. They were, however, the economic cornerstone of the Native peoples of the plains who utilized almost every part of the animal to provide food, shelter, weapons, utensils, and ornamentation. Shooting bison for their hides was a favorite frontier sport in the 19th century. Hunters practically eliminated the bison by 1890. Today, approximately 200,000 remain in the United States. Of those only 16,000 roam in the wild. Yellowstone National Park has the only population of truly free-roaming bison.

American Bison
Bison bison
Long hairs of chin form long beard. Hips and hindquarters are much smaller and without long hair thus forming a distinct slope from hump to tail. Some stand six feet at the shoulder and weigh as much as a ton. The shaggy winter coat falls off in patches in spring; color is dark brown in winter, lighter in summer. Grooming is an important daily activity. They scrub heads, necks, and sides on trees, branches and tree trunks. Also, they like to wallow in dust or mud.

Among the predators, only the grizzly bear is strong enough to kill an adult bull. Bison are equipped with a keen sense of smell which is capable of detecting odors up to a mile away. They also have excellent eyesight and are quite at ease in the water. They have been known to live for up to 40 years.

Bison eat grasses and sedges, moving continuously as they eat so that they do not overgraze an area. They live in herds of 20 to 50 animals. The females, or cows, lead family groups. Bulls (males) remain either solitary or in small groups for most of the year. Bison can reach speeds of up to 30 mph.


Information from National Park Service
sAner, liquidsunshine, chiliu, Comandante, TAZ, dew77, dsidwell, annagrace has marked this note useful
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To Pesky_Polecat: Thanksluvsdogs3 2 08-28 04:36
To dew77: Thanksluvsdogs3 1 08-27 21:47
To TAZ: Thanksluvsdogs3 1 08-27 21:43
To sAner: That's trueluvsdogs3 1 08-27 21:21
To ellis49: That's trueluvsdogs3 1 08-27 21:15
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Critiques [Translate]

Very nice shot of these magnificent animals Cathy. The look in their eyes is intense. I like the composition and the way the one on the left is looking at the others. Nice exposure and depth of field too. These bison make me think of Yellowstone, my favorite place on earth. TFS!

Nice shot, Cathy.
The exposure are very good. Good details and nice colours.
Little tight to the left.
Very well done.

  • Great 
  • sAner Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 1490 W: 72 N: 1427] (4744)
  • [2005-08-26 1:52]
  • [+]

Hi Cathy,

This is a good shot. Well exposed and the pose is interesting. It's just too bad that you couldn't get the left animal fully in the frame. Composition is very nice. Well done & TFS!

Regards,
Pieter

Great shot Cathy
Good detail and great POV. Well composed. Good colours & framing. Very good exposure and notes.
Early morning rush!
Well captured, thanks for posting

Nice colour and exposure. As has been said, it's a shame the left hand animal isn't quite complete in the frame. There also seems to be quite a lot of coloured noise in the darks, maybe something like Neat Image (www.neatimage.com) would remove this?

  • Great 
  • manyee Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 3067 W: 231 N: 6167] (21074)
  • [2005-08-26 2:13]

I love the feeling of tension between those two huge bisons. The mood is fantastic. Great POV. A great capture. : )

Hi Cathy,
Very nice colour, and excellent depth of field.
TFS!

Hello Cathy!
Wonderful scane.Details,colors and sharpness are perfect.Thanks for sharing.

  • Great 
  • TAZ Gold Star Critiquer/Silver Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 2241 W: 47 N: 3167] (10926)
  • [2005-08-26 4:25]
  • [+]

I am impressed by these Bisons. In France, Bison is a part of american dream... Colors and sharpness are good. Thanks for sharing Cathy.

  • Great 
  • dew77 Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 4774 W: 294 N: 4020] (13209)
  • [2005-08-26 9:43]
  • [+]

Hello Cathy!
Very nice composition.Lighting,details,POV,colors and composition are excellent.Maybe left side of frame is a little tight,but it's a minor nit.Very well done.TFS...:-)

Nice juxtaposition of these two animals, Cathy. Very lovely tones here, too. I like how the photo looks as if they are threatening one another.

  • Great 
  • livios Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 2156 W: 322 N: 4258] (16906)
  • [2005-08-27 18:30]

Cathy, once more, probably due to things we've already talked about, quality is not the best.

Anyway, I'm sure you're now using the best resolution in your camera.

Apart from that, I do enjoy your shot. This is a great moment, and the animals are very nice. No doubt the shot is worthwhile posting.

Great capture with both front and rear views, LOL!! I liked your note a lot, I posted a pic of a bison from Yellowstone, the last of the free ranging herds!

Thanks for sharing and educating us.

Alli

Very n ice shot.
I really like it.
Well exposed and the pose is very good.
Nico.

Hi Cathy, the composition really is great in this photo. Yes its a shame the left hand bison isn't fully in the frame but there is a real sense of movement in the spatial relationship between the two which I like. Well done :)

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