End of the grazing season on BLM lands. Morgan Jones Canyon. Pleasantview Hills

There's a story here -- and I'm not sure what it is. Drought? Did all the meat-eating hunters and carrion scavengers leave before this poor steer? Not even enough moisture left for the maggots? Or have they visited and left the hide?

Do you mean seasonal in the annual sense?

Yes, I mean seasonal in an annual sense.

The livestock owners truck the cattle into the area in May and remove them in September.

Many conservation groups believe too many cattle are put in this hot and fairly dry mountain range.

Because the cows are hungry they sometimes eat poison plants. I have noticed a lot of henbane in the area.

This dead cow didn't decay. It just shriveled up in the heat.

Thank you! And thanks, too, for posting the link to your wildlife news collection and commentary! It's great!

Pennington,

I think maybe the maggots left just the hide. Dead cattle in this area don't seem to be scavenged. I have more photos.

A video production firm in Toronto bought one of my photos for a video they were making on black flies.