Rocky Mountain Elk Rut Frenzy

This recording might feature the most intense elk rut in history. Ok, probably not, but it is very intense and special.

I started off the morning before dawn hiking to the edge of a mountain meadow that I scouted the night before. I knew this herd of about 200 animals spent the night in the meadow feeding, sleeping, and rutting. I also knew that as the next day began they would make their way from the meadow back into the ponderosa pine and lodgepole forest of the surrounding hills.

As the sun crested the horizon, I settled into a large stand of downed timber that intersected what I thought was the herd's daily migration route. Once I hit 'record', magic ensued.

The herd started about 400 yards away from me and immediately began to get worked up into a frenzy as daylight broke. Bulls worked hard to reorganize their harems which got disorganized during the dark of night. I estimate at least 30 bulls were in the meadow, with at least 5 being dominant bulls. The amount of bugling at this point was unlike anything I had ever heard.

After about 25 minutes I noticed the entire herd was headed directly toward me. This culminated with several bulls fighting about 30 yards away. One bull ended up chasing a cow directly behind me, passing within 7 feet of where I laid in the timber. 

Eventually the herd moved off into the hills, leaving me in awe of what I just witnessed. There's no way I can fully describe how special this moment was, but this recording captures it exactly as it sounded. It's truly a special moment, preserved forever. 

Habitat: Ponderosa Pine Forest/Mountain meadow

Species present: Elk,  Red Squirrel, American Robin, American Crow, Mountain Chickadee

Recording Length: 00:48:30

File size: mp3: 111 mb & Flac: 369 mb

Sampling Rate (kHz): 48

Bit Depth: mp3: 320 kbps & Flac: 1065 kbps

Recording Setup: Sennheiser MixPre 6 digital audio recorder and Audio Technica AT4022 omnidirectional microphones

Channels: Stereo

Recording type: Binaural

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