1309_3228 Pika
A Pika pauses from some late season harvesting in a rock pile high in the Canadian Rockies. Not rodents, they are related to rabbits and hares, and like the latter they do not hibernate. Needing a food source for winter sustenance as they move beneath the snow pack, they evolved to be little harvesters. During the summer months they collect edible plant matter and dry it in "haystacks" before stashing it underground. There are two North American species, the Rocky Mountain Pika, seen here, and the Collared Pika, found in Yukon and Alaska.
Photographed at Mount Edith Cavell in Jasper National Park, Alberta. Don't use this image on websites, blogs, or other media without explicit permission © 2013 James R. Page - all rights reserved.
1309_3228 Pika
A Pika pauses from some late season harvesting in a rock pile high in the Canadian Rockies. Not rodents, they are related to rabbits and hares, and like the latter they do not hibernate. Needing a food source for winter sustenance as they move beneath the snow pack, they evolved to be little harvesters. During the summer months they collect edible plant matter and dry it in "haystacks" before stashing it underground. There are two North American species, the Rocky Mountain Pika, seen here, and the Collared Pika, found in Yukon and Alaska.
Photographed at Mount Edith Cavell in Jasper National Park, Alberta. Don't use this image on websites, blogs, or other media without explicit permission © 2013 James R. Page - all rights reserved.