Circle of Life

Golden Eagle

For the past three weeks, Wayne and I have been watching an elk carcass slowly disappear. We noticed the dead elk on February 13 on the lot line between our back yard and the vacant lot to our north. It didn't appear to have been injured so we think it died of natural causes. Wayne asked a friend with a pick-up truck to drag it into the trees a little farther away from the house. It has attracted lots of scavengers including crows, ravens, coyotes, magpies, and a golden eagle. The bears aren't up from their winter naps yet so they haven't been around. If any mountain lions have come, we haven't seen them.

I find myself looking out the window several times during the day to see the scavengers. It's both gruesome and fascinating - the circle of life.

Coyote