Buenos Aires National Wildlife Refuge

A little closer to home, about an hour and a half away, is the Buenos Aires National Wildlife Refuge. It is here that I have had the best luck finding the endangered Sonoran Pronghorn (photos from last year). Interestingly, you cannot drive up US 191 through Southwestern Wyoming and not see pronghorn every couple of miles. And, Hart Mountain in Southeastern Oregon is the best place to see several hundred pronghorn as they gather together for the winter. The Sonoran Pronghorn, though, is a subspecies and estimates range from only 100 to 300 left in the United States. Like their cousins they have incredible eyesight, able to detect movement from 4 miles away! They are also the fastest animal in North American reaching speeds up to 60 miles per hour. So, finding them is a challenge, but getting close enough for a photo requires great patience and a lot of luck. Usually, your coming over a hill so they haven't been able to see you. Then it is stop, wait, watch, and move ever so slowly diagonally to get the photo. I love the coloration in the neck. It's like they have "dressed up" with a bow tie and cummerbund.