Sunday, October 19, 2014

Badlands Buffalo and Birds


























An unexpected visit to Theodore Roosevelt National Park allowed us to see and photograph great wildlife and scenery.  We were driving through North Dakota on our way to Glacier National Park.  Near Medora, North Dakota we saw the entrance sign for this park.  We unanimously agreed a quick visit was in order and a break from the rain would be welcome. This trip was filled with days of driving in the rain and though we were unaware at the time, more were in our future.  We decided to stay at a campground near the entrance.  We loaded the jeep with our camera and binoculars and were off on the adventure of this new place we had found.  This park is known as the North Dakota Badlands. The Badlands National Park in South Dakota is not green with trees and grass like Theodore Roosevelt Badlands. We loved our time here and I personally would love to see more of it and do more birding on another visit. We viewed prairie dog towns, coyote, Buffalo, feral horses, Pronghorn, White-tailed deer and Mule Deer. More than 185 birds may be seen in the park at different times of the year.  Most of the park's birds are migratory.  Some birds have adapted to the cold North Dakota winters and are found year-round in the park. The Coyote was a fun sighting and the Buffalo were happy to stay on the move paying no attention to us. The feral horses were beautiful.  They were far off the road so photos are not detailed.  We saw the Western Meadowlark standing in the road. I would certainly recommend this as a wonderful wildlife stop if you are in the area. Blessings!