Taken by: Lauren Beall

My camera roll has always been full of photos and videos from my day to day life. I have found that capturing these moments helps me keep those memories in-tact. When I decided to work a summer in Yellowstone, I bought a new phone solely to take higher quality photos of this new adventure. My camera roll quickly filled up with photos of geysers, bison, friends, and hikes. I soon learned that to really capture these moments to the level I wanted, then a “real” camera was in my future. After I came to the conclusion that my one season in Yellowstone was going to turn into multiple, I decided to invest in my lumix camera.

This photo of a baby bison, also known as a red dog, is one of the first photos I took on my new camera in Yellowstone. I remember the exact moment that I had taken the photo. Dan and I decided to take a drive up to Lamar Valley in the northern part of the park in search of the new year of red dogs. It was late April and the valley at that point was filled with bison of all ages. I remember rounding the corner right as the view opened up to a vibrant green landscape dotted with 100’s of bison and plenty of red dogs running around. As we passed the Lamar Ranger Station, we got stuck in a classic Yellowstone bison jam. Often a herd, or a single bison will cross or walk in the middle of the road (or just stop and/or sit) thus causing a traffic jam. Utilizing this standstill, I sat up in the BMW and focused on red dog standing to the right of our car with his mom. As soon as I snapped the picture traffic started moving again. I sat back in my seat and looked at Dan to say “I think this is my favorite photo I have ever taken”.

Bison mating season — or “The Bison Rut” of Yellowstone — takes place in August. During this time all of the bison (aside from some males that think they’re too old for the rut) migrate to Lamar and Hayden Valley. The male bison during this time are even more aggressive than any other times of the year. Please take extreme caution when hiking these areas in August. I love to go to Lamar during this time to just watch the bison instead of hiking. They are a lot more active and vocal during this time, so its entertaining to just sit and watch. Bison are pregnant for 9 and half months and eventually give birth in April/May. When they are first born they get the nickname red dog as their fur is more red than their brown. They lose their red coat at around 2 months.