Share this photo on Twitter Share this photo on Facebook

Elk in History

Posted by
B. Thomas (Arlington, Texas, United States) on 11 July 2012 in Animal & Insect and Portfolio.

Elk series

A young male prances as he nears a herd of female elk.

Elk have played an important role in the cultural history of a number of peoples. Pictograms and petroglyphs of elk were carved into cliffs thousands of years ago by the Anasazi of the southwestern U.S.

More recent Native American tribes, including the Kootenai, Cree, Blackfeet, Ojibwa and Pawnee, produced blankets and robes from elk hides. The elk was of particular importance to the Lakota, and played a spiritual role in their society. At birth, Lakota males were given an elk's tooth to promote a long life. Young Lakota males who had dreamed of elk would have an image of the mythical representation of the elk on their "courting coats" as a sign of sexual prowess.

The Lakota believed that the mythical or spiritual elk, not the physical one, was the teacher of men and the embodiment of strength, sexual prowess and courage.

omid from mashhad, Iran

very nice & so beautiful!
Lovely!

11 Jul 2012 5:31am

Anina Botes from Auckland, New Zealand

Oh wow! This is beautiful. Wonderful light and silhouettes

11 Jul 2012 5:32am

arvin from sari, Iran

Very beautiful, a great shot

11 Jul 2012 5:35am

Jerry from Aberdeen, United States

I like this Barbara, its different and yet so typical of the way an elk will prance.

11 Jul 2012 5:57am

Nigel from Avening, United Kingdom

Excellent silhouette

11 Jul 2012 6:52am

Brat | RCA from Xiamen City, China

nice catch..great job indeed!

11 Jul 2012 7:01am

Bruce from Tacoma, United States

Almost looks like a statue. Very nice capture and I like the backgound.

11 Jul 2012 7:06am

Olivier Paillet from toulouse, France

Nice catch ! well done !

11 Jul 2012 7:52am

Anna de Vries from somewhere on Mother Earth, Netherlands

Gorgeous capture, Barbara!
Love the silhouette...

11 Jul 2012 8:03am

yo from Ile de France, France

Comme une silhouette de métal découpé ! Belle prise !

11 Jul 2012 9:43am

Tamara from Aarschot, Belgium

Very beautiful silhouette effect, a fantastic composition Barbara ! Have a lovely day :)

11 Jul 2012 9:43am

Marie LC from Entre montagnes et Bretagne, France

Just magnificent !

11 Jul 2012 10:06am

Williams from East LaHave, Nova Scotia, Canada

Stunning, 5***** Bravo!

11 Jul 2012 10:28am

Akbar&Armaghan from gorgan, Iran

excellent shot

very beautiful photo

11 Jul 2012 10:31am

Basile Pesso from Paris, City of Aminus, France

Wonderful contrasts and B and W !

11 Jul 2012 10:33am

@Basile Pesso: Thanks. It is actually a color shot, with a very heavy and overcast gray sky but it does look B&W.

Jason Politte from Conway, AR, United States

Perfect, Barbara! 5*

11 Jul 2012 11:27am

Stephen from Canberra, Australia

Majestic silhouette - this is magnificent, Barbara!

11 Jul 2012 1:44pm

Slackwater - Don from Spokane, United States

A great silhouette. I like his apparent "prance" as he moves along.

11 Jul 2012 3:19pm

Sam from Chennai, India

Wow. Wonderful silhouette. Great light and composition. :)

11 Jul 2012 5:44pm

Ruthiebear from Titusville, NJ, United States

WOW! I love this image. Such a perfect silhouette.

11 Jul 2012 6:06pm

Eric Cousineau from Sherwood Park, Canada

A beautiful silhouetted portrait shot Barbara! Well done! ;-)

11 Jul 2012 6:10pm

Loner from Wörgl, Austria

A great silhouette - very well done !

11 Jul 2012 8:01pm

RBL from Oxford, United States

Fantastic silhouette and capture!

11 Jul 2012 8:38pm

Steven from Chicagoland, United States

Stunning silhouette that you've captured of this elk!

11 Jul 2012 9:14pm

john4jack from Corvallis, Oregon, United States

outstanding silhouette

11 Jul 2012 10:20pm

J.R. from Urasoe City, Japan

Good job on this silhouette. Your wildlife stuff is cool. You need to do a picture story book:)

11 Jul 2012 11:04pm

@J.R.: Thanks, J.R. Great idea. I have done several little Shutterfly books just for fun.

Baldwin VW from Bejuma, Venezuela

Fabulous silhouette !!! Great shot and interesting information ...

12 Jul 2012 1:10am

Don Levesque from Saint John, Canada

Beautiful silhouette! I like the tones of the sky!

12 Jul 2012 1:25am

Viewfinder from Bradenton, FL, United States

This would be my lifetime shot - it's a spotlight image, or should be. This is great!

12 Jul 2012 1:42am

@Viewfinder: Thanks Glenn!! You must be psychic. ;-) It made it to Spotlight.

maryam from tehran, Iran

a beautiful and perfect shot

12 Jul 2012 8:04am

Marilla from Turku, Finland

Magnificent!

12 Jul 2012 2:39pm

Basile Pesso from Paris, City of Aminus, France

Congrats for the spotlight !

12 Jul 2012 7:34pm

@Basile Pesso: Thank you!

Alireza from Tehran, Iran

Excellent
Wonderful B and W

12 Jul 2012 7:47pm

Ronnie 2¢ from Atlantic Shores, United Kingdom

Congrats on the Spotlight - I feel you deserve it for the whole series, really !

12 Jul 2012 7:59pm

@Ronnie 2¢: Thanks so much, Ronnie. I appreciate it, especially after all of the grief I give you. LOL!

LauraS from Chico, United States

This is fantastic, Barbara! I really love it, and how you caught his posture with that elegant lighting. Wonderful in b/w!

12 Jul 2012 9:46pm

LauraS from Chico, United States

And, Congratulations on the Spotlight! Well deserved!

12 Jul 2012 9:47pm

@LauraS: Thanks, Laura!

Evelyne Dubos from Le Mans, France

Beautiful silhouette effect, bravo for the spotlight !

12 Jul 2012 10:13pm

@Evelyne Dubos: Thank you, Evelyne!

Steven from Chicagoland, United States

Back to congratulate you on your Spotlight!

12 Jul 2012 10:22pm

@Steven: Thanks, Steven!

Josep from Barcelona, Spain

Splendid light, wonderful criature of nature. Congratulations

12 Jul 2012 10:31pm

@Josep: Thank you, Josep!

Baldwin VW from Bejuma, Venezuela

Congratulation on the Spotlight !!!

12 Jul 2012 10:51pm

@Baldwin VW: Thanks!

Jason Politte from Conway, AR, United States

Congrats - not surprised at all to see this as a Spotlight. Well done!

13 Jul 2012 12:18am

@Jason Politte: Thanks, Jason.

Don Levesque from Saint John, Canada

Congratulations on the Spotlight!
Well deserved!

13 Jul 2012 1:07am

@Don Levesque: Thank you, Don.

Elaine Hancock from Rockville, United States

Gorgeous silhouette! Congratulations on the Spotlight!

13 Jul 2012 1:08am

@Elaine Hancock: Thank you, Elaine.

Shelle Singer_StarDog Photo from Washington State, United States

beautiful and magical.

13 Jul 2012 3:14am

@Shelle Singer_StarDog Photo: Thank you!

Stephen from Canberra, Australia

Congrats on your Spotlight, Barbara!

13 Jul 2012 3:58am

@Stephen: Thanks, Stephen.

Steve Rice from Olympia, United States

Beautiful! Congratulations on the Spotlight!

13 Jul 2012 5:43am

Aubélia from Kortrijk, Belgium

Congratulations on the spotlight!

13 Jul 2012 7:37am

@Aubélia: Thanks!

Laurette from Johannesburg - Fourways, South Africa

Excellent capture! Congratulation on the Spotlight.

13 Jul 2012 7:40am

@Laurette: Thanks, Laurette.

anne fleurent from Bois-le-Roi, France

I love it ! congrats !!!

13 Jul 2012 7:48am

@anne fleurent: Thank you, Anne.

Tamara from Aarschot, Belgium

Congratulations on your well deserved spotlight Barbara, well done ! Have a nice upcoming weekend :)

13 Jul 2012 8:42am

@Tamara: Thanks, Tamara!

Curly from South Shields, United Kingdom

Marvellous silhouette Barbara congratulations for the recognition.

13 Jul 2012 8:56am

@Curly: Thank you, Curly.

Doug from Burnham-on-Sea, United Kingdom

This is stunning Barbara, congratulations on the spotlight

13 Jul 2012 10:57am

@Doug: Thank you, Doug.

Nitin from Shanghai, China

Stunning picture. Exceptional capture and amazing composition and framing. Truly well deserved spotlight - one of the finest pictures I've seen recently. Cheers!

13 Jul 2012 1:55pm

@Nitin: Thank you!

Mehdi Monadi from Tehran, Iran

Congrats for the spotlight

13 Jul 2012 1:56pm

@Mehdi Monadi: Thanks.

yo from Ile de France, France

Félicitations Barbara !

13 Jul 2012 2:53pm

@yo: Merci!

Michelle from Elverson, United States

Fantastic! Great Spotlight!

13 Jul 2012 2:54pm

@Michelle: Thanks, Michelle.

Sue-Ann from Quebec, Canada

nicely captured ... congrats for your spotlight...

13 Jul 2012 3:05pm

@Sue-Ann: Thanks, Sue-Ann.

Judy aka L@dybug from Brooksville, FL, United States

This is beautiful, Barbara, and I'm sad I missed this when it was first posted. It deserves its Spotlight!

13 Jul 2012 11:45pm

@Judy aka L@dybug: Thanks, Judy.

Saeed Rasoulof from Tehran, Iran

Nice shot :)

14 Jul 2012 9:28am

@Saeed Rasoulof: Thanks. ;-)

Sam from Chennai, India

Congratulations on the spotlight. Richly deserved. :)

14 Jul 2012 6:13pm

@Sam: Thanks, Sam.

Céline from New York, United States

Cool contrejour!

14 Jul 2012 7:33pm

David from ELLEMFORD, United Kingdom

Everything is perfect.

14 Jul 2012 10:04pm

Christine from Ellemford, United Kingdom

Fabulous, very interesting info too, a well deserved spotlight

15 Jul 2012 7:31am

franz from Baden, Austria

brilliant silhouette and perfect for the spotlight! belated congrats, barbara!

15 Jul 2012 3:45pm

ehsan from tehran, Iran

Excellent

15 Jul 2012 4:02pm

Lalin from Santa Marta, Colombia

Very nice!

16 Jul 2012 3:22pm

StarCosmosBleu from Bedford.Qc, Canada

Wonderful silhouetted capture...very nice

17 Jul 2012 11:44am

MiKa from France

effet ombre chinoise très réussi ! et quel sujet ! bravo

18 Jul 2012 11:16am

C. Intempor'elle from Paris • Alma Andaluza •, France

Such a graceful moment !!!! Very charming.......

19 Jul 2012 8:05am

JCJ from Troyes, France

superbe!

19 Jul 2012 1:42pm

Donna Lee Michas from New York, New York, United States

So majestic. So proud. Bless her. And you, for getting this one for all of us to see.

2 Aug 2012 9:39pm

Henri from paris, France

Superbe. Belle lumière et contre-jour.

27 Nov 2013 6:03pm

fatemeh from tehran, Iran

lovely ....
perfect.....
*****:)

5 Jan 2014 6:26am

This image has been featured in 2 Remix collections.

Fabulous creatures by Josep

Extraordinary Animals | Birds by Donna Lee Michas