Wildlife of Custer State Park and the Black Hills

Bison aka Buffalo

Custer State Park and the surrounding area of the Black Hills is known for it’s buffalo herds. The park is home to as many as 1,500 head of North American bison, more commonly referred to as buffalo.
Bison can grow to 6 ft tall and weigh more than 2000 lbs. They have a short tail with a tassel, a hump at the shoulders, curved black horns on the sides of the head, and dark brown or black shaggy hair around the head and neck that tends to look like a beard.
Once there were millions of bison but by 1900 it is estimated that less than 1000 remained on the entire continent.
To prevent overgrazing in the park there is a round up each year to adjust the size and structure of the herd based on the predicted availability of the grassland forage. The spring birthing season restores the herd size to the sustainable target of 1500.
Bison calves in Custer State Park are branded with a single digit number with an S underneath. The “S” stands for state . The number is the last digit of the year they were born. If the animal is kept for more than 10 years, the staff can determine the age by it’s appearance.

White-tailed Deer

A familiar animal to those of us in New England, white- tailed deer are also native to the Black Hills and Custer State Park. A white tail has white hair on the underside of it’s tail. When it runs, that signature tail flips up like a flag.

Mule Deer

Mule deer are named for their large ears. Unlike the white-tail deer, mule deer have short, narrow back-tipped tails that are carried down as the deer runs. The mule deer has a distinctive stiff-legged gait when it runs as if it were bouncing on springs.

Birds

Aa we discovered on our tour, Custer is home to a wide variety of birds that includes the Western meadowlark, Mountain blue bird, golden eagle, prairie falcon and other. Bird watchers can pick up a check list a the visitor center.

Elk

Ah, my quest to see and photograph an elk continues. Dan our tour driver told us about seeing a herd of elk on the ridge line at dusk but we didn’t have any luck on our daytime tour. Elk are shy and tend to bed down during the day.

Coyotes

We didn’t see them on our tour but Sandy spotted a pair running along the ridgeline while we were driving around. As the driver, by the time I was able to pull over to look, they were gone. The coyote is South Dakota’s state animal and thrives in the protected habitat of Custer State Park. The coyote is gray with a bushy, drooping tail an a pointed nose.

Burros

As I mentioned in yesterday’s post, the burros of Custer State park are not native to the Black Hills but rather are descendents of the domesticated herds that used to haul visitors to the top of Harney Peak. When the ride was discontinued the burros were released into the park where they have become a popular visitor attraction.. It would be wise to remember that these burros are now wild animals and care needs to be used when approaching them.

Mountain Goats

The mountain goat was not found in South Dakota until 1924 when it was introduced to the Black Hills. It has an all-white dense wool undercoat and a long outer coat of hair. Both males and females sport slender, black horns. In recent years the goat herd in Custer has been decimated by a disease of some sort. Until that is isolated and dealt with there are no plans to re-supply the park. At the time of our visit there were only a handful left in the area.

Big Horn Sheep

Often a subject of National Geographic specials, South Dakota’s bighorn sheep became extinct around 1922. Subsequently a herd of Rocky Mountain bighorns we introduced to the Park. Both rams and ewes have horns, the males carry the distinctive heavy curled horns that is their trademark. They also have a large white rump similar to the Pronghorn’s.

Prairie Dogs

The black-tailed prairie dog lives in the dry, upland prairie. It is a rodent. They live in large social groups called towns. Prairie Dogs get their name from their bark-like call.

Pronghorns

Pronghorns, often incorrectly called antelope, live mainly on the open grassland. Pronghorn are not related to the antelope of Africa but were described as being similar in appearance by the explorers Lewis and Clark. The name comes from the buck’s large pronged horns. If the female has horns , they are small and un pronged. Males also have a black streak on their jaw called a “chin-strap.

Pronghorns are the fastest animals in the western hemisphere capable of bursts of speed reaching 70 miles per hour for 3-4 minutes.

Tomorrow looking for fossils in Hot Springs, SD

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