Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
might see them eating aquatic plants in the still ponds of the Lamar Valley or around Obsidi-
an Creek. Their cone-shaped lodges look like beaver lodges but are less substantial.
The wide lawns at Mammoth Hot Springs or the meadows near Roosevelt Lodge are full of
the holes and burrows of
Uinta ground squirrels
(Spermophilus armatus).
Ground squirrels
are half the size of marmots (only about 1 ft / 30 cm long) and disappear underground for
much of the year. In July or August, adults go into a sort of summer torpor called estivation,
which may lead directly to hibernation, leaving them only about 90 days of activity.
Uinta ground squirrels
Larger mammals
he
pronghorn
(Antilocapra americana)
is the smallest but by far the fleetest horned animal
in Yellowstone. There's no point in chasing one. It can sprint up to 60 or 70 miles per hour
(about 100 km/hr) and cruise at 30 to 40 mph (50-60 km/hr). In the world of animals, it's
second only to the cheetah in sprinting speed and may be faster over longer distances. It's a
very shy animal and will run at the slightest provocation.
The park herd lives between Mammoth Hot Springs and Cinnabar Mountain northwest
of Gardiner. Fewer than three hundred have been counted in recent years, and the gradually
diminishing herd poses a particularly difficult dilemma for the National Park Service. Since
current wildlife management policy favors letting natural processes run their course, should
the pronghorn be allowed to die out, with the possibility of having to face a costly reintroduc-
tion program in the future? Or should measures be taken to prevent this?
