The Babies Are Here!

We knew we would see them soon, but were delighted to see them in the meadow today.  Who is "them"?  The elk calves, of course.  

See how easily they disappear behind the tall grass?  I was standing up in the passenger seat with my upper body sticking out of the sunroof to get these pictures.  Rest assured I was safe.  Every car was stopping to take pictures.  Around here traffic slows way down for the elk (they are huge after all) and it come to a complete stop for the babies.

There were at least 15 calves that were darting in and out of the tall grass calling to one another.  They are so well camouflaged that my camera had a difficult time focusing on the little guys.

The red building over in the upper left of the picture is the school that SugarBear, LoveBug and HoneyBunny attend.  Can you imagine being able to stay focused on the teacher when herds of elk and deer cross by the window?  It is an almost daily occurrence for them.  

This little guy kept trying to nurse, but his mom kept on the move only allowing him a sip or two.  Here it looks like she is giving him a little kiss on the cheek of reassurance and encouraging him to try the grass.  He did start grazing, but stayed very close to his mom.