Calving season in Eagle County runs from mid-May through early June. During this time, mother elk, deer and moose give birth to calves and fawns that have very few defenses, and then must contend with the need to feed the newborns, the caloric challenges of nursing and the risk of predators.
Tracy Feldman and Chrissy Lundquist were hiking Adam’s Way trail in Eagle with Chrissy’s two dogs on June 2 when they spotted something out of the ordinary tucked into the sage near the trail.
As they got closer, they realized it was a baby ungulate, a deer or an elk, curled up, motionless but awake and breathing, with no visible injuries.
Even as the women and leashed dogs approached and then passed the animal, it did not react to their presence in any way.
Worried that the animal might be injured, the women placed a call to Layton Stutsman, one of Eagle County’s Colorado Parks & Wildlife district wildlife managers. Based on their description, he identified the animal as an elk calf and told them that the mother had likely left the calf temporarily and would return for it later. Under no circumstances, he said, should they attempt to move the calf.
Read the full story at VailDaily.com.