With Wild Abandon - Pronghorn

Fine art reproduction printed in-house with professional-grade inks on archival, cruelty-free cotton paper. Open Edition and signed by the artist. Ships flat in a rigid kraft mailer with sturdy acid-free backing board for easy framing.

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Many years ago when I was just a baby naturalist I drove 12 hours to Yellowstone National Park on a whim without having ever properly camped before. I was not raised to love the natural world, so coming home to it has been hard-earned. Yellowstone remains one of the formative experiences that pushed the door open a little wider for me, and when I think back to visiting the park I don’t think of the geysers, the wolves, the bison, or any of the iconic scenery.

I think of Pronghorn.

Early one morning I was driving through the park and noticed a small herd of bodies in front of me on the road. As I got closer I could make out the white bars on their necks and short, dark horns: Pronghorn! I barely knew these animals existed at the time, let alone thought I’d ever see them. As I watched them stride across the road I noticed a straggler left behind. The herd stopped and waited while the lone Pronghorn sidled up to a low patch of sagebrush and used it to get a real deep ear scratch in, leaning deep in with what I can only imagine was pure pleasure. After a moment the Pronghorn shot off across the road to meet its family, giving me my first glimpse of such powerful speed.

I gave this guy a branch of sage so he always has a good scratchin’ stick.

Species featured are Pronghorn, Bog Sagebrush, and Balsamroot