Camera Critters: The Thief Cometh To Kill And Destroy

The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: John 10:10 King James Version

Looking back upon the events of the past two weeks of the Pennsylvania rifle deer season, I couldn't help but think of a portion of a scripture verse and reflect upon how accurately it portrayed some of the events that took place.

It all began with the loss of the adult doe featured in last weeks Camera Critters post and gradually escalated until events reach a climax yesterday afternoon. During the course of events a beautiful fawn such as the one pictured below was shot through the head.


It was within plain view of the public road, which passes through the property, and was quite close to it. There was no chance that the shooter did not see the animal fall. It was a classic case of wanton waste (simply shooting the animal for spite, or the depraved joy of shooting it just to watch it fall). I do apologize for showing such an unpleasant scene, but I do feel it is important to show what some individuals are capable of doing.


This is not the same fawn as shown in the first photograph, but it was one of the same herd. I cannot find a good photograph of this animal while it was alive, so I substituted a photo of one of its' fellow herd members.

I have found where at least one other deer was shot and removed from this property illegally. Fortunately, I was on the scene on Friday afternoon when road hunters came to the area again.


Thanks to a prompt and efficient response from Pennsylvania Game Commission Conservation Officers and The Pennsylvania State Police, the violators were quickly rounded up and now face substantial penalties. At some point in the future I will share the events of that afternoon with you, but I must wait until the case clears the judicial system before doing so.

Sadly, I am convinced that they are not the only wildlife criminals causing problems in this area, and the herd of whitetail deer, which are featured often on this blog, still face a great deal of danger.

The fawn pictured today was discovered while engaged in apprehending the violators on Friday. This particular deer was not killed during that violation; however, but had been killed previously.

Ethical hunters and non-hunters alike, despise the acts described here, but unfortunately there are a substantial number of persons out there engaged in this type of activity.

For more Camera Critters photographs, click Here.

Remembering The Blue Skies Of Summer

As I write this post today, the skies are overcast and rainy, and the air has a bone piercing chill. At times such as this, it is good to remember more pleasant days, so my mind wandered back to our late August trip to Yellowstone National Park, and I selected two photos featuring much more pleasant weather and stunning scenery.

Both were taken at Norris Geyser Basin. Norris is comprised of several features such as Steamboat Geyser, but today we feature a valley known as Porcelain Basin.

Canon 30-D: Porcelain Basin

These areas are very beautiful, but can be deadly to the unwary. Regulations forbid straying from the marked trail, which is often a boardwalk. The earth's crust is thin in many areas and it is easy to break through resulting in severe injury or death from underlying superheated water.

Canon 30-D: The Gallatin Range From Porcelain Basin

Yellowstone and Grand Teton National Parks are spots the serious outdoors person should visit at least once in their life.

Camera Critters: An Old Friend Is Gone

The first morning of Pennsylvania's rifle deer season and every deer in this photography is a legal target--if a hunter has the proper tags and they are in an area where hunting is permitted. Fortunately these animals are safe, unless they stray from the posted sanctuary or a wildlife criminal drives by and shoots them from his vehicle.

It is unclear just what happened, but on the third morning of season, I realized that the large doe which is standing to the left side of the picture and looking to the left, was missing and most likely dead.

The First Day Of Season

This animal was born in 2000 along with a twin sister. At that time I was mostly shooting video and I recorded many beautiful clips of them. She had her first fawn in 2003 and has had one or two fawns each year since then. She was especially trusting of me, and often gave me opportunities to photograph her young. She was featured in a post a short time ago with one of her fawns from this year, which is a small doe.

With doe fawn from this year: November 15th

She was a stunning photographic subject when she was standing in a good position, but many readers were concerned about her health when they noted how thin and bony she appeared in many shots. This thin look was most likely a combination of genetics and a result of the strain of raising a large number of fawns.

With newborn fawn: June 2008

In Her Prime: August 2005

It is most likely that I will never know what happened to her. It is very possible that she strayed from the posted sanctuary and was legally killed, but I am leaning toward the view that she was taken by a road hunter, since I have seen some well known practitioners of this crime driving past since season opened.

As it stands, a favorite deer that has provided countless hours of viewing pleasure is gone. There is a remote possibility that she will yet return, but she never missed a day of putting in an appearance in the past, so it seems likely that she is gone forever.

Road hunting was one of the most common violations, which I encountered in my years as a Deputy Wildlife Conservation Officer.

For more Camera Critters photos, click Here!

Camera Critters: The Rut Winds Down

The whitetail mating season, or rut, usually peaks around the middle of November, but in recent years has often continued through Thanksgiving week and into Pennsylvania's rifle deer season, which brings it to a screeching halt.

This November was colder than those in the recent past and in fact temperatures were probably more in line with what they should be for this area. This resulted in the rut seeming to come to an abrupt end at the beginning of the week. Mature bucks were still looking for does on Sunday-at least the one in the photo below was- until he heard the frantic clicking of the 30-Ds' shutter.

Canon 30-D: 500mmF4

On Monday morning I photographed a 7-point which was still pursuing does, but since then I have seen only small bucks in Pennsylvania. The yearlings that I see on a regular basis, that have not yet dispersed from the herd, are less aggressive, and are more interested in feeding than chasing does. While it is certainly still possible to see a mature buck chasing does, with each passing day it becomes less and less likely.

Canon 30-D: 500mmF4

The same held true for Virginia when we traveled to Shenandoah National Park on Wednesday morning. We did see some large bucks by the roadside before day as we were driving to Big Meadows and saw a large buck with a broken right main beam after daylight.

Canon 40-D: 70-200mm f2.8

These animals were not chasing does, but were concentrating on feeding and regaining weight so they might better face the winter months to come.

For more animal photos, click Here.