As common as they are, no trip across the prairie is complete without seeing the pronghorn. They bring a distinctively wild feel to the sprawling grasslands. You might see one, ten, or thirty. Last week I saw a group of at least a hundred, which is the largest group I’ve seen this year. They are often referred to as antelope, but with the development of dna research we have discovered that they are a completely unique species from the true antelope “Bovidae”. A last surviving member of the Antilocapridae family, they have roamed the North American landscape for a million years.

I love the prairie. I love the stillness, the simplicity. To me it symbolizes survival. Everything you see looks like it’s been through a hundred frigid winters, blazing hot summers, endless droughts, scorching winds…the lonely isolation… I am completely at home here.

Pronghorn, Pawnee National Grasslands