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Bull on Fire
American Prairie, Montana
2022

After rolling in the dirt and then shaking off the excess dust, this bull appears to be smoking.

Stir It Up
American Prairie, Montana
2022

Bison roll in dirt to remove loose fur and to rid themselves of fleas and other insect pests. And probably because it just feels so good to have your back scratched.

Nickel Posing
American Prairie, Montana
2022

The buffalo nickel has my vote for the best-looking coin ever minted in the U.S. This bull seemed to be trying to imitate the bison profile featured on the coin. He wasn’t quite there, but his pose was a good approximation.

Checking the Weather
American Prairie, Montana
2022

This bison bull seems to be standing on the hilltop checking out the weather in the west. In spite of the look of the clouds, it did not even sprinkle that day.

Staying Cool by Staying Put
American Prairie, Montana
2022

In spite of my nosing closely around it’s puddle, this snake showed no interest in actually leaving the water for safety in the nearby brush. Maybe I wasn’t really making it nervous–although it’s squirming seemed to indicate otherwise. Or maybe he was sure I wasn’t going to wade out in the mud to actually try and grab it.

Deep Drought
American Prairie, Montana
2022

I wonder if the extent of a drought can be measured by the depth of the cracks that form as mud dries out. More likely it is a function of the soil makeup (clay vs sand vs loam) as anything. Certainly if it had been mostly sandy soil the cracks would have been minimal to nonexistent. Whatever the case, these were pretty impressive.

Summer’s Last Water
American Prairie, Montana
2022

Trying to reach the Buffalo Camp campground at American Prairie in June, we were foiled by too much water on the roads, turning them into mud pits. We finally made it there last week though and excess water is not a problem now. There’s still some around but it’s getting sparse. Hopefully some fall rain will help fill the creeks and ponds.

Corner Still Life
Bozeman, Montana
2022

A rather lovely still life image that I had only a minor part in creating. Most of the credit goes to the Fashion Queen for the choice of vessels and flower arrangement, but also to the morning sun for providing the lighting effect.  All I had to do once I noticed it was grab my camera and click away.

Spent Beauty #54
Bozeman, Montana
2021

The same plant as yesterday, but photographed before I turned on the light tablet.

Spent Beauty #53
Bozeman, Montana
2021

I took this photo just about a year ago, when I was messing around with a light tablet I had recently purchased. For some reason I never got around to working with those images until now.