Interested in seeing loads of images of Big Horn sheep roaming around the Zzyzx/Soda Lake Area?
Try any of these links:
Showing posts with label big horn. Show all posts
Showing posts with label big horn. Show all posts
Tuesday, November 12, 2013
For the Love Of Bighorn Sheep and Zzyzx Look Here!
by Steve Reiss (Dalmdad Landscape Photography - www.dalmdad.com and https://www.facebook.com/Dalmdad.)
We hope you enjoy these desert creatures as much as we do....
Saturday, October 19, 2013
Watching Over the Bighorn Sheep Herd at Zzyzx (Part V of Tales of the Bighorns)
by Steve Reiss (Dalmdad Landscape Photography - www.dalmdad.com and https://www.facebook.com/Dalmdad.)
May 11, 2013
So, lets end this whole Bigsheep watching trip with some views of the bosses. Here are some of the bighorns standing up on the rocks, in the sun, watching down on the action...
All photos available for purchase or license by special order. Contact steve@dalmdad.com.
May 11, 2013
So, lets end this whole Bigsheep watching trip with some views of the bosses. Here are some of the bighorns standing up on the rocks, in the sun, watching down on the action...
All photos available for purchase or license by special order. Contact steve@dalmdad.com.
Wednesday, October 16, 2013
Close-ups of Bighorn Sheep at Zzyzx (Part IV of Tales of the Zzyzx Bighorns)
by Steve Reiss (Dalmdad Landscape Photography - www.dalmdad.com and https://www.facebook.com/Dalmdad.)
May 11, 2013
How about some close-ups of seriously staring bighorn sheep at Zzyzx...
There is one more post in this series coming up...Ewes and rams looking down on the herd!
All photos available for purchase or license by special order. Contact steve@dalmdad.com.
May 11, 2013
How about some close-ups of seriously staring bighorn sheep at Zzyzx...
 |
| I smell SOMETHING! |
 |
| You call'in me? |
 |
| I need a break from this photographer guy. |
 |
| I have such great posture! |
 |
| So my bite is not exactly straight. |
 |
| This guy with the camera just will not go away. |
 |
| Left- What ya think? Right- No clue! |
 |
| Ho Hum. |
 |
| So, I can use a shave, they tell me. |
All photos available for purchase or license by special order. Contact steve@dalmdad.com.
Sunday, October 13, 2013
Prancing Bighorn Sheep at Zzyzx (Part III of Tales of the Zzyzx Bighorns)
by Steve Reiss (Dalmdad Landscape Photography - www.dalmdad.com and https://www.facebook.com/Dalmdad.)
May 11, 2013...
In our last two posts (lamb slideshow/lamb pictures) of the Zyzzx Bighorns, we focused on the 2 week old lamb that was doing its best to find some shade from the afternoon sun.
This post will focus on the prancing ewes and rams at ground level.
The next post in this series will focus on closeups of the ewes and rams.
The last post in this series will focus on the ewes and rams up on the rocks watching the rest of the herd.
All photos available for purchase or license by special order. Contact steve@dalmdad.com.
May 11, 2013...
In our last two posts (lamb slideshow/lamb pictures) of the Zyzzx Bighorns, we focused on the 2 week old lamb that was doing its best to find some shade from the afternoon sun.
This post will focus on the prancing ewes and rams at ground level.
 |
| Bighorn Prancing Across Soda Dry Lake |
 |
| Bighorn Prancing Across Soda Dry Lake |
 |
| Bighorns Prancing Across Soda Dry Lake |
 |
| Bighorns Prancing Across Zzyzx Road |
 |
| Bighorns Prancing Across Zzyzx Road |
 |
| Bighorn Prancing Through Salt Marsh |
 |
| Bighorn Making its Way Down the Rocks |
 |
| Bighorn Trying to not Slide Down the Rocks |
The next post in this series will focus on closeups of the ewes and rams.
The last post in this series will focus on the ewes and rams up on the rocks watching the rest of the herd.
All photos available for purchase or license by special order. Contact steve@dalmdad.com.
Tuesday, September 24, 2013
Bighorn Sheep Herd at Zzyzx (Part II of Tales of the Zzyzx Bighorns)(w/Lamb Pics)
by Steve Reiss (Dalmdad Landscape Photography - www.dalmdad.com and https://www.facebook.com/Dalmdad.)
The two lamb videos/slideshows in my earlier post about seeing the bighorn sheep herd at Zzyzx in May, 2013 did not come out all that well.
Seeing a 2-week old bighorn lamb within 100 feet or so, is pretty rare (although here is a ewe and 2 lambs from another sighting) and absolutely spectacular. This lamb deserved a more significant posting of its cuteness.
Bighorn ewes have a six-month gestation. In temperate climates, the peak of the rut occurs in November with one, or rarely two, lambs being born in May. Most births occur in the first two weeks of the lambing period.
Lambs born earlier in the season are more likely to survive than lambs born later. Lambs born late may not have access to sufficient milk, as their mothers are lactating at a time when food quality is lower. Newborn lambs weigh from 8 to 10 lb and can walk within hours. The lambs are then weaned when they reach four to six months old.
For your enjoyment, I present the raw images of a 2-week old lamb exploring his new world and searching for shade.
***
Part III of this post cycle/string (coming soon) will contain pics of the grown bighorns of this lamb's herd.
Note: All our bighorn sheep photos are available for licensing on very reasonable terms.
The two lamb videos/slideshows in my earlier post about seeing the bighorn sheep herd at Zzyzx in May, 2013 did not come out all that well.
Seeing a 2-week old bighorn lamb within 100 feet or so, is pretty rare (although here is a ewe and 2 lambs from another sighting) and absolutely spectacular. This lamb deserved a more significant posting of its cuteness.
***
Bighorn ewes have a six-month gestation. In temperate climates, the peak of the rut occurs in November with one, or rarely two, lambs being born in May. Most births occur in the first two weeks of the lambing period.
Lambs born earlier in the season are more likely to survive than lambs born later. Lambs born late may not have access to sufficient milk, as their mothers are lactating at a time when food quality is lower. Newborn lambs weigh from 8 to 10 lb and can walk within hours. The lambs are then weaned when they reach four to six months old.
***
For your enjoyment, I present the raw images of a 2-week old lamb exploring his new world and searching for shade.
 |
| Eventhough I am pretty young, I can gallop over these loose and jagged rocks! |
 |
| Looking for shade |
 |
| I think I found shade |
 |
| Hmm. Can I fit in here? |
 |
| Lookin' Good! |
 |
| Great shade!! |
 |
| I am really liking this spot!! |
 |
| Hey Dad...Look at this great spot I found! |
 |
| Time to head home |
 |
| Eventually I will learn to breath with my mouth shut! |
***
Part III of this post cycle/string (coming soon) will contain pics of the grown bighorns of this lamb's herd.
Note: All our bighorn sheep photos are available for licensing on very reasonable terms.
Saturday, August 24, 2013
Bighorn Sheep Herd at Zzyzx (Part I of Tales of the Zzyzx Bighorns) (Lamb w/video)
by Steve Reiss (Dalmdad Landscape Photography - www.dalmdad.com and https://www.facebook.com/Dalmdad.)
It was April, 2011 when I first saw the bighorn sheep crossing sign on Zzyzx Road, just outside the Desert Studies Center. However, in all my times exploring this area, I never actually saw any bighorns. That does not mean there may not have been any bighorns hiding up in the rocky hills, invisible to my poor eyesight.
In September 2011 I had my then-closest bighorn experience at Willow Beach, just below Hoover Dam in the Black Hills of northwest Arizona. Having bighorns so close made for an incredibly exciting day. I did not get this close to wild bighorn sheep again for a while, having to settle for seeing bighorns only at long distances at Anza-Borrego.
In early 2013, while recently doing some research on Zzyzx for other purposes, I was lucky enough to be placed into contact with someone very knowledgeable about the Desert Studies Center and Zzyzx area. On May 8, I asked him about the bighorn sign; asking him when was it actually possible to see any.
I almost hyperventilated at my desk when I read his e-mail saying:
"see them daily now along zzyzx road. Groups of 25-35 on a regular basis..."
25-35 on a regular basis? Wow!
So, off to Zzyzx I went that very weekend.
When I got there, I almost super-hyperventilated (if there is such a thing) when I saw the herds of bighorns roaming around at road level, standing on the rocky hills, and hanging out in a marsh. A feast for lovers of the bighorn.
Now, if this was not exciting enough, perfection followed. A lamb, maybe 2 weeks old, was making its way across the loose rocks of the hillside. It was followed by a ewe and tucked itself into a tiny cave in the hill.
More on the herd to follow...
It was April, 2011 when I first saw the bighorn sheep crossing sign on Zzyzx Road, just outside the Desert Studies Center. However, in all my times exploring this area, I never actually saw any bighorns. That does not mean there may not have been any bighorns hiding up in the rocky hills, invisible to my poor eyesight.
 |
| Looking north on Zzyzx Road (Hill to the left/Soda Dry Lake to the Right) |
In early 2013, while recently doing some research on Zzyzx for other purposes, I was lucky enough to be placed into contact with someone very knowledgeable about the Desert Studies Center and Zzyzx area. On May 8, I asked him about the bighorn sign; asking him when was it actually possible to see any.
I almost hyperventilated at my desk when I read his e-mail saying:
"see them daily now along zzyzx road. Groups of 25-35 on a regular basis..."
25-35 on a regular basis? Wow!
So, off to Zzyzx I went that very weekend.
When I got there, I almost super-hyperventilated (if there is such a thing) when I saw the herds of bighorns roaming around at road level, standing on the rocky hills, and hanging out in a marsh. A feast for lovers of the bighorn.
Now, if this was not exciting enough, perfection followed. A lamb, maybe 2 weeks old, was making its way across the loose rocks of the hillside. It was followed by a ewe and tucked itself into a tiny cave in the hill.
More on the herd to follow...
Tuesday, January 15, 2013
2012 Year-End Bighorn Sheep Re-Cap
by Steve Reiss (Dalmdad Landscape Photography - www.dalmdad.com and https://www.facebook.com/Dalmdad.)
We were so busy traveling around northern Arizona, southern Utah, this New Year that we forgot to post this...
We love big horn sheep (Ovis canadensis) here at our blog.
In 2012, we made the following posts about bighorns...
Bighorns of the Colorado River Wilderness...
We were so busy traveling around northern Arizona, southern Utah, this New Year that we forgot to post this...
 |
| Bighorn sheep (Ovis canadensis) |
In 2012, we made the following posts about bighorns...
Bighorns of the Colorado River Wilderness...
And, a 2010 post: Whitewater Canyon
We hope you can get the chance to look them over. We will try to post more about the bighorn in 2013.
Monday, December 24, 2012
Bighorns of the Colorado River Wilderness...
by Steve Reiss (Dalmdad Landscape Photography - www.dalmdad.com and https://www.facebook.com/Dalmdad.)
As we have written about before, spotting bighorn sheep can be a major challenge. The sheep stand on rock out-crops high in the mountains, safe from their predators. Typically, if you are lucky, at most, you will get to see one or two at a time.
That was why I was shocked one day, to see a herd of bighorns just "hanging out" in the wilderness of the Black Mountains of Arizona (the same Black Mountains referred to here) between US93 and the Colorado River, below Hoover Dam and near Willow Beach. I was able to drive up pretty close to them, but they were on the other side of tall earthen berm that I did not exactly feel comfortable trying to completely cross, especially alone and carrying my camera equipment.
It was in this very area, in 2011, that we saw a lonely burro, trying to hide in the shade on a hot day. Today, I waved to a passing car to tell them they should stop and see the bighorns, but apparently not everyone find the bighorns as interesting as us.
Though the sun was in an poor photographic position, the bighorns were not in the least bit shy.
As we have written about before, spotting bighorn sheep can be a major challenge. The sheep stand on rock out-crops high in the mountains, safe from their predators. Typically, if you are lucky, at most, you will get to see one or two at a time.
That was why I was shocked one day, to see a herd of bighorns just "hanging out" in the wilderness of the Black Mountains of Arizona (the same Black Mountains referred to here) between US93 and the Colorado River, below Hoover Dam and near Willow Beach. I was able to drive up pretty close to them, but they were on the other side of tall earthen berm that I did not exactly feel comfortable trying to completely cross, especially alone and carrying my camera equipment.
 |
| Note this one has an ear-tag for ID. |
Though the sun was in an poor photographic position, the bighorns were not in the least bit shy.
Thursday, September 13, 2012
Spotting our favorite desert creatures...
by Steve Reiss (Dalmdad Landscape Photography - www.dalmdad.com and https://www.facebook.com/Dalmdad.)
September 7, 2012: Near Yaqui Pass, Anza-Borrego Desert State Park, California
I tend to go on-and-on about how Anza-Borrego Desert State Park is a great spot to see bighorn sheep. We hoped to see at least one on our way down Montezuma Grade, which as I have written before, is a prime bighorn observation point. Indeed, in February 2009, while going up the Grade, we saw a huge bighorn ram watching over the valley.
This time, going down the Grade, however, we wound up seeing zilch and mainly only saw the fire damage from the late August 2012 wildfires.
At the base of the Grade, we drove through deserted Borrego Springs. This tourist spot was pretty dead and will have a totally different vibe come winter. No, it won't be filled with ski-bunnies and snow-boarders. But, with the winter temperature rarely exceeding the more tolerable 70F, the desert will be filled with hikers and off road vehicle drivers. Now, it is just still way too hot for anything.
At Christmas Circle, we swung south out of town on our way to Julian. Yaqui Pass is another place to spot the bighorns. However, as the pass is quite tight with almost no places to pull over, photography is difficult. We did spot a ram and ewe in this general area back in November 2008.
Now, I was sitting in the back seat of the truck, with Joanie and her mom sitting upfront when Joanie let out an "I saw one" scream. Of course, by that time, we went through an S-curve that totally blocked our view of the bighorn. So, at the base of the hill, she stopped, I took out my camera and the biggie lens and got back in the truck. It was hot and dusty out and the "closed for the season" campground had a sign warning that the closest open bathroom was in Borrego Springs.
We headed back up the hill, with no bighorns in sight. At the first turn-around, that is what we did, and we crawled down the highway, much to the chagrin of aggressive motorcyclists.
We finally spotted the ram way up on a ledge. How Joanie sees these things is incredible. We pulled over the best we could and I snapped away. Even eyeballing the ram way up on the ledge, we could see it was with an ewe. Between the idling truck, my unsteady hands, and the difficulty of hand-holding a 600 mm lens, I was kind of down on the whole sighting and not expecting much from the pics. I raised the ISO of the camera to 1000, hoping for a sharper pic.
As with the earlier ram sighting described above, these bighorns were in a terrible position for photographing; back lit. Post-processing the images to bring out the details made the colors somewhat unnatural, so I converted them to b&w.
Just as we pulled away to continue down the hill we were pulled over by a heavily armed, well armored cop of some type (there is a heavy Border Patrol at certain parts of the park). He reminded us that pulling over in this area was very dangerous (yeah), but let us go without a ticket.
Next stop was Julian and some ice cream.
For those keeping track or out looking for the bighorns on their own, here is a summary of our sighting locations and good places to start your search.
September 7, 2012: Near Yaqui Pass, Anza-Borrego Desert State Park, California
I tend to go on-and-on about how Anza-Borrego Desert State Park is a great spot to see bighorn sheep. We hoped to see at least one on our way down Montezuma Grade, which as I have written before, is a prime bighorn observation point. Indeed, in February 2009, while going up the Grade, we saw a huge bighorn ram watching over the valley.
 |
| February 2009 Ram Sighting - "King of the Desert" |
This time, going down the Grade, however, we wound up seeing zilch and mainly only saw the fire damage from the late August 2012 wildfires.
At the base of the Grade, we drove through deserted Borrego Springs. This tourist spot was pretty dead and will have a totally different vibe come winter. No, it won't be filled with ski-bunnies and snow-boarders. But, with the winter temperature rarely exceeding the more tolerable 70F, the desert will be filled with hikers and off road vehicle drivers. Now, it is just still way too hot for anything.
At Christmas Circle, we swung south out of town on our way to Julian. Yaqui Pass is another place to spot the bighorns. However, as the pass is quite tight with almost no places to pull over, photography is difficult. We did spot a ram and ewe in this general area back in November 2008.
 |
| November 2008 Ram and Ewe Sighting |
Now, I was sitting in the back seat of the truck, with Joanie and her mom sitting upfront when Joanie let out an "I saw one" scream. Of course, by that time, we went through an S-curve that totally blocked our view of the bighorn. So, at the base of the hill, she stopped, I took out my camera and the biggie lens and got back in the truck. It was hot and dusty out and the "closed for the season" campground had a sign warning that the closest open bathroom was in Borrego Springs.
We headed back up the hill, with no bighorns in sight. At the first turn-around, that is what we did, and we crawled down the highway, much to the chagrin of aggressive motorcyclists.
We finally spotted the ram way up on a ledge. How Joanie sees these things is incredible. We pulled over the best we could and I snapped away. Even eyeballing the ram way up on the ledge, we could see it was with an ewe. Between the idling truck, my unsteady hands, and the difficulty of hand-holding a 600 mm lens, I was kind of down on the whole sighting and not expecting much from the pics. I raised the ISO of the camera to 1000, hoping for a sharper pic.
As with the earlier ram sighting described above, these bighorns were in a terrible position for photographing; back lit. Post-processing the images to bring out the details made the colors somewhat unnatural, so I converted them to b&w.
 |
| September 2012 Ram and Ewe Sighting |
 |
| September 2012 Ram and Ewe Sighting |
 |
| September 2012 Ram and Ewe Sighting - View showing how close to the edge these guys can get! |
 |
| September 2012 Ram and Ewe Sighting |
***
Just as we pulled away to continue down the hill we were pulled over by a heavily armed, well armored cop of some type (there is a heavy Border Patrol at certain parts of the park). He reminded us that pulling over in this area was very dangerous (yeah), but let us go without a ticket.
Next stop was Julian and some ice cream.
For those keeping track or out looking for the bighorns on their own, here is a summary of our sighting locations and good places to start your search.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)