Saturday, October 2, 2010

"Crazy Legs Jr." A Large Non-Typical Pennsylvania Bull Elk


I have not participated in Camera Critters since September 4th, but have devoted the blog since that time to writing about Pennsylvania's Elk herd and other items of interest about the area  that the elk  inhabit as this is the time of year that interest in the herd peaks. In addition, I was in Pennsylvania's  Elk Country from September 19th until October 1st,  filming and photographing the elk and researching various issues which I hope to address in the near future, so for the present the blog will continue to focus on the Pennsylvania Elk Herd.  I have been unable to reply to e-mails or post during this time as I did not have internet access in the field.

This was not one of the best trips I have had as elk are not particularly active on hot days and it was quite hot at times. Also there was quite a bit of heavy rain, which forced one to remain closer to the vehicle than I would have preferred.   I also concentrated primarily on shooting video, so many of the best still photo opportunities were missed, but in spite of this there were some outstanding encounters.  One of these was with a large  non-typical bull.

Non-Typical Bull, "Crazy Legs Jr." Pursues Cows: Canon 7D 500mmF4
For those who are not familiar with the Winslow Hill elk culture, there was once a gentleman who had a weekend home just off Dewey Road by the name of Claude Nye, who called himself Dr. Perk.(For more information read." Dr. Perk- A Controversial Figure", "Dr. Perk-The Story Continues",and "Dr. Perk-The Story Continues Part 3". He was quite a colorful character who fed the elk and named many of them.  There was an exceptional non-typical bull that frequented the area in the late 1990s that Dr. Perk called "Crazy Legs".  When I asked him why he chose the name, he answered, "we used to call him Steve, but now we call him Crazy Legs because he likes to travel", and travel he did because he was killed by poachers quite some distance from Winslow Hill in 2000.  In 2008 another bull appeared that had many of the same characteristics and it was immediately named "Crazy Legs Jr."

"Crazy Legs Jr". 2008: Canon 40D 300mmF4


It is not certain where that bull spent the rut of 2009, although many speculate that a large bull with deformed antlers was in fact this bull and that perhaps the antlers were smaller because of damaging them in an accident.

"Crazy Legs Jr." 2009?: Canon 40D 70-200mm F2.8
Whatever the case, the bull is back this year and he is an impressive animal.  I photographed and filmed him on numerous occasions, but the best encounter for still photography was early on the morning of September 22nd, at the Gilbert Viewing Area.

"Crazy Legs Jr." Pauses To Bugle While Chasing Cows: Canon 7D 500mm F4

For more Camera Critters photographs, Click Here!



Originally posted on Pennsylvania Wildlife Photographer by Willard Hill.

16 comments:

jabblog said...

He is a magnificent creature and though he may be non-typical he doesn't lack drive. I wonder how many of his offspring will resemble him.

Anonymous said...

Those antlers are so gorgeous! Great shots.

Rajesh said...

Terrific captures.

eileeninmd said...

Awesome shots, I wish i could be there to here him bugle.

Anonymous said...

WOW!!! Amazing shots!

Boom Nisanart said...

Outstanding Images of wild life !

Everyday Melbourne
Everyday Shot
Everyday Mr Puddy

Trish ~ ♥ ~ said...

amazing photos of an amazing creature

Kritter Keeper at Farm Tails said...

i was wondering where you were...wonderful pics! its funny how people name their animals wild or tame. i do the same with my deer as you know...

Anonymous said...

I've been loving your photos for awhile now! and I've been a 'fan' of Benezette for 30 years and visited frequently. Yesterday I visited and saw the visitor's center for the first time. I posted some photos at my blog: http://thenaturallife-donna.blogspot.com/2010/10/so-when-you-get-really-behind-whats.html

Brad Myers said...

Willard, the weather was not the best but the Elk and people are always fantastic no matter what. I had a great time again this year and am already looking forward to next year. I sure wish I would have seen and photographed this bull and Swi8nger while I was their.

Thanks for the good time again this year. I hope to see you whikle chasing some whitetails sometime soon.

Anonymous said...

This is another nice story, Willard. I enjoy looking and wish we had some elk in this part of Ohio. I wish I had millions of dollars. I would buy as much land as I could and let it return to the wild and hope it would become the home of wild animals of all sorts. Including relatives of Crazy Legs.

Misty DawnS said...

They always take my breath away. They are such majestic creatures. I'm afraid I'd be shaking too badly to photograph them, because I'd be so excited.

Gretchen said...

Absolutely stunning photos! I'm hoping to find a few tomorrow to photograph while we're in the area.

Camconative said...

I love "crazy legs jr" though I did not know his name before reading your post. I did get some decent shots of him last weekend...he is quite a magnificent animal
http://camconative.dotphoto.com

David said...

Thank you for posting these pictures. I first encountered this magnificent bull last huting season, first day of rifle season 2009. As such, I can assure you the questionable picture labeled "2009?" was either not in 2009 or a different bull altogether. There was no mistaking the antlers. Luckily my brother saw him the next weekend because nobody could believe the size of the bull I was describing.

And last Saturday I was fortunate enough to see him once again, this time on top of Winslow Hill. Other bull came out of the woods with cow as he bugled, but neither would even come close to challenging him.

And now I can show everyone the size of the bull that filled many day dreams out in the woods. Thank you!

Willard said...

David,

Thanks for your comment and shedding light on the situation.

He evidently did not spend the rut on Winslow Hill in 2009 or at least in the time frame that I or my friends were there, but your sighting confirms that he did have a large rack last year also.