Pronghorns...Such A Strange But Wonderful Little Animal!

[the spank]

Came across this small herd of Antelope yesterday around Luseland, SK on our way home from a trap shoot in Kindersley. They were standing still looking at us as we pulled off the highway and I threw my 300mm lens on my Nikon for a few pics. I took a couple shots then they took off full throttle after a few seconds. I thought for sure they would head out over the hill and out of view but suddenly they turned and just started burning figure 8's in front of us covering about 500 yards from one end to the other but never getting more than 250 to 300 yards from us at any point. After about two minutes of this I finally put down the camera and continued on our way as were receiving tornado watch alerts on our phones and the skies were starting to look a little ominous and telling us it was time to keep moving!

 

[mildot]

NIce pics, Cheers

 

[StoneHorse]

There are trees in southern Saskatchewan?

Joking aside. Nice pictures. The high speed figure 8's is interesting. My guess is they became confused as to which way to safety? Combination of your presence, the approaching storm and perhaps a unseen by you a nearby predator. Like I said, just a guess.

 

[J.Hancock]

Maybe they knew a tornado was bout to drop too?

 

[DGY]

Nice pictures! I’ve never seen one in the flesh, they are sure intriguing me!! I would love to go hunting for them one day! But being in the Yukon that might not happen anytime soon( no money for an outfitter lol)!
I need to read more on them regarding how to hunt them!
Thanks for the post!!

 

[handofzeus]

I haven't been out that way in 30 years. I forgot how "big" the sky is. I envy you your location.

 

[remington jim]

Very Kool pics Thxs for sharing ! I want to get to Wyoming for a speed goat hunt some day soon ! RJ

 

[Potashminer]

We used to occasionally see them as far North as Zone 46 in Sask - so West and North of Unity - usually small herds got wiped out by passing trains, when caught on the rails between snow banks - but they almost always came back - maybe just for a "look-see"?

From valley top, of Frenchman River valley, in what is now Grasslands National Park - would see herds of them in valley bottom - the white butts looked like they were "floating" across the grassland! They did not seem to bounce or "stutt" like the mule deer would.

 

[mikeyb]

Amazing creatures! Nice pictures. They're a beautiful animal and make for a potentially challenging hunt and great harvest - the meat is excellent. Especially if they've been eating in the nearby farms.

 

[mineguy]

They are wonderful animals. Not much meat but make a great jerky with the meat you get.
These are around Coronach SK in the south. Will not get that close during hunting season unless you are fortunate to see where they bed down the night before.

 

[the spank]

There are trees in southern Saskatchewan?

Joking aside. Nice pictures. The high speed figure 8's is interesting. My guess is they became confused as to which way to safety? Combination of your presence, the approaching storm and perhaps a unseen by you a nearby predator. Like I said, just a guess.

A friend of mine told me today the figure 8's and circles are a common defence they use. He said they run in circles then stop to see if they are being chased. That is what they kept doing never once getting more than 300 yds from me as I shot them with the camera. It was hilarious to watch. Its almost as if they would look and say oh hes still on our tail then turn and run back where they had just come from and keep repeating it.

 

[the spank]

We used to occasionally see them as far North as Zone 46 in Sask - so West and North of Unity - usually small herds got wiped out by passing trains, when caught on the rails between snow banks - but they almost always came back - maybe just for a "look-see"?

From valley top, of Frenchman River valley, in what is now Grasslands National Park - would see herds of them in valley bottom - the white butts looked like they were "floating" across the grassland! They did not seem to bounce or "stutt" like the mule deer would.

I think 46 is where these guys would have been or possibly 45? They were on the Lloyd side of Luseland. I have seen them north of the river in 47 near Paradise Hill on occasion and a few north of Lloyd a few miles on both the SK and AB sides.

 

[KMG Canada]

Thanks for posting the pics, just finishing up our bookings in Wyoming, cant wait to chase em!

 

[4star60]

Years ago I was amazed during commuting between Regina and Winnipeg. One evening a guy going west flashed his lights and I thought cops! But it turned out there were about a dozen of those guys dancing around on the highway, going nowhere. Quite a sight. Maybe 10 minutes or so and then they wandered off.
Did the commute earlier in the day for a few trips.

 

[Brutus]

Tasty little buggers too.
I only got 33 pounds of meat off the doe I got 1995.
Between me and my wife and two young daughters, every last scrap of it was consumed in four days.

 

[Scott_N]

They are really interesting animals and one of my favorite hunts. When they hit the throttle, man they can go fast and cover some distance.... fastest land animal in North America!

 

[Brutus]

Speed goats with 8X magnification.
Something like 270 degrees of vision??

 

[DFarmer]

A friend of mine told me today the figure 8's and circles are a common defence they use. He said they run in circles then stop to see if they are being chased. That is what they kept doing never once getting more than 300 yds from me as I shot them with the camera. It was hilarious to watch. Its almost as if they would look and say oh hes still on our tail then turn and run back where they had just come from and keep repeating it.

When we hunted them in Montana 30 years ago, we saw the circling also.
You would come over a rise and they would see you and take off, but sometimes they would do a wide circle and come back near their original location.

 

[SomebodyTookMyName]

We used to occasionally see them as far North as Zone 46 in Sask - so West and North of Unity - usually small herds got wiped out by passing trains, when caught on the rails between snow banks - but they almost always came back - maybe just for a "look-see"?

From valley top, of Frenchman River valley, in what is now Grasslands National Park - would see herds of them in valley bottom - the white butts looked like they were "floating" across the grassland! They did not seem to bounce or "stutt" like the mule deer would.

I've seen em in Zone 30 myself, not half an hour north of Saskatoon. Not as far north as 46/47, but surprisingly far east.

 

[BlackRam]

Very neat animals, and great pics!

Have read that in many instances, antelope will return to their original location within a certain amount of time after being spooked. They are territorial creatures. May be a pronounced behaviour during the mating season??? So for the bachelor herd, may have nit been a factor???
They are very curious animals, so can be lured in with decoys, white flags, as long as you stay out of sight. Have watched them get closer to coyotes to keep tabs on them as they move about close to the herds in less than totally flat terrain.
Winds can make animals do strange things, and with the changes in barometric pressure before/after storms/tornadoes may have had them agitated too.