Herd of Elk Feeding in Winter

A herd of about 300 elk cows and calves were feeding on a hillside in Lamar Valley. In the winter elk congregate at the lower elevations where the snow is shallower and the weather milder. Herds of cows, calves, and young bulls are led by older cows in their daily search for food. If the older cows decide to move on, the rest of the elk slowly coalesce into small groups, then string out in lines converging to the lead animal’s trails.
Moving up the steep slope they fanned out to get access to the snow-covered grass, some tried to stay in the existing trails broken by the leading cows which saved them a lot of effort.