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Emerald green waters
Silt and sunlight combine to
change brown waters into a remarkable
emerald green at the headwaters
of the Bow River.
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Elk: Giant Deer
of Banff National Park
On a bright spring morning in the Bow Valley,
just outside of Banff, the clues are everywhere.
Dark chew marks scar the trunks of aspen
trees. Pawing hooves have rubbed the snow
away, and left their tracks in nearby mud.
A few hairs here, some telltale droppings
there — all are evidence that there
are elk nearby.
Stay at least 50 metres away (elk hooves
can be sharp!), but have your camera ready.
Big, brown, white-rumped and stubby-tailed,
elk are the second largest deer in Banff
National Park (next to the mighty moose).
Of all large animals, including other deer
— caribou, mule deer, white-tailed
deer — they are the most numerous.
They are also the Park's main plant eaters,
and the main prey of predators such as wolves.
Sometimes known as "wapiti" —
a Shawnee word for "white rump"
— the elk of the Bow Valley are both
grazers and browsers. A steady diet of grasses,
plants and leaves fattens them up for the
fall mating season, while a woody ration
of dried twigs and bark sustains them through
the winter.
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The Rocky Mountain Whitefish
While it may be the high-profile
latecomers — the brown
and rainbow trout — that
attract sport fishers to the
Bow, experienced anglers know
that plucky mountain whitefish,
the river's long-time residents,
can also bend a rod and fight
a line.
Unlike the trout, which are
an introduced species, mountain
whitefish are native to the
Bow, and are the most abundant
sport fish in the river. Spawning
throughout its upper half, the
fish thrive on cold, clear water
pouring from the mountain glaciers.
Reaching an average size of
50 centimetres and 1.5 kilograms,
with a grayish blue back and
a dull white belly, the mountain
whitefish has a small, toothless
mouth. It is this delicate,
hard-to-hook mouth that provides
an exciting angling challenge.
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Barking and Bugling:
Elk can be surprisingly noisy, barking to
warn of danger, or maintaining two-way contact
between cows and calves with squeals, chirps
and mews. The whistling "bugle"
of a mature bull in breeding season attracts
cows to his harem and serves notice of his
size and prowess to other males.
Elk cows and bulls meet only during the
fall mating season. In early summer, cows
give birth to single offspring, closely
guarding their well-camouflaged spotted
calves in tall grass and thickets. Within
a few weeks, cows, calves and young bulls
join together in a summer herd, while mature
bulls feed alone, or in small bachelor groups.
An important part of the Park food chain,
elk are hunted by cougars, wolves and bears.
Cars and trains also play a part in elk
mortality, with several dozen dying each
year from human intervention. In recent
years, around the town of Banff, elk have
become drawn to urban habitats, endangering
both themselves and those who underestimate
their wildness.
 Animal
Alley: Preserving Wildlife Corridors
Searching for food, looking for mates, seeking
a place to nest or rest — the animals
of the Bow Valley depend on protected routes
that allow them to move safely between lowland
and mountain habitats. As railways, highways,
and urban development have closed in on
the lands of the Bow River Basin, government
and National Park officials have recognized
the need to restrict development and limit
human access in narrow — but crucial
— wildlife corridors.
 Large
carnivores such as bears, cougars, and wolves
need a well-forested travel route of at
least 250 metres in width, covering the
shortest possible distance between types
of habitat. Smaller animals reap the benefits
of a bypass free of human threat. Three
well-defined wildlife corridors around the
town of Banff help to keep elk and coyotes
from becoming dangerously tolerant of people.
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