Elk: a two-minute wildlife lesson

Deer and Antelopes · day 2 of 7

Five facts

1. A bull elk's bugle can reach 4,000 Hz, unusually high for a big animal. He makes it by blowing air through his nasal cavities.
2. Elk antlers are bone that can grow 2.5 cm a day. While growing, a soft skin called velvet covers and protects them.
3. Bull elk dig holes called wallows, then urinate and roll in them. The smell soaks into their hair and attracts cows.
4. Elk calves are born with spots, which fade by late summer. At six months old, a calf is already the size of a grown white-tailed deer.
5. Greater Yellowstone elk walk up to 270 km between summer and winter homes, the longest elk migration in the mainland United States.

The quiz

1. What does a bull elk blow air through to bugle?

• His antlers
• His nasal cavities (correct)
• His tusks
• A throat pouch

He blows air through his nasal cavities, making a bugle that can reach 4,000 Hz.

2. What covers and protects elk antlers while they grow?

• Fur
• Mud
• Bark
• Velvet (correct)

Elk antlers are bone that can grow 2.5 cm a day. While growing, a soft skin called velvet covers and protects them.

3. What are the holes bull elk dig called?

• Wallows (correct)
• Burrows
• Craters
• Warrens

Bull elk dig holes called wallows, then urinate and roll in them. The smell soaks into their hair and attracts cows.

4. By six months, elk calves are as large as what?

• A newborn moose
• A small goat
• An adult white-tailed deer (correct)
• An adult wolf

By six months, an elk calf is already the size of a grown white-tailed deer.

5. How far do Greater Yellowstone elk travel between their summer and winter homes?

• Up to 3 km
• Up to 2,700 km
• Up to 27,000 km
• Up to 270 km (correct)

They travel up to 270 km, the longest elk migration in the mainland United States.

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