Patriarchs

A couple of bull elk (wapiti, Cervus canadensis) with their antlers in velvet, taking it easy. Telephoto view. In the headwaters of the Colorado River, Rocky Mountain National Park, Colorado, off US 34. These guys were part of a small herd, all relaxing in this meadow. The insets show some other views. The North American elk was formerly considered to be a subspecies of the European red deer, but it's now considered a separate species based on DNA studies (which have rearranged so much traditional taxonomy!)