After three days in Yellowstone National Park, we had yet to see a single bison. The American buffalo, also known as bison, is one of the most iconic creatures of the American west. Yellowstone is a great place to see these animals in their natural majesty. But in the summertime, few bison visit the western parts of the park, where we had been exploring rivers, geysers, and lakes.

So we packed our bags and headed east. We crossed over a spine of mountains, stopping at a few sights along the way, my kids complaining from the back seat that they could not get their tablet computers online. I smiled that there was no wifi or phone signal out there, knowing the kids would have to take in some of the scenery that was unfolding outside the windows of our rental car.

In three days of travel in western Yellowstone, we had heard accounts from other travelers who had seen a lot of wildlife on the plateaus and river valleys to the east. The day before, as we walked around a steaming mud pool in the park’s most active geothermal area, I had overheard a woman checking off a list of animals she had seen in the park so far.

It went something like “12 elk, 2 coyotes, 1 pronghorn, 1 bear, and at least 1,000 bison.” At the time, I thought nothing of it. But later, something about her list seemed strange to me.

As we neared the Lamar River, we began to see bison. First, there was one on a distant hill. Then we drove right up to about eight bison who crossed the road in front of us. By the time we reached the picturesque Lamar Valley, there were many hundreds of bison, more than we could count.

And one pronghorn.

Amid the seemingly endless bunches of dark brown, fuzzy bison was one sleek, beige and white antelope. Or was it an antelope? It grazed. It moved among the bison. It seemed to belong here in this large family of bison.

I suddenly remembered the woman who, a day earlier, had counted only one pronghorn sighting on her wildlife observation list. That was what had seemed strange. So this was the lonely pronghorn.

Photo credit: The pictures my kids took of this animal had sunscreen on the camera lens (same trip as that other one). This photo also shows exactly what we saw. It is from Creative Commons via Flickr by Brian Gratwicke.

Pronghorns are herd animals, right? Why was there just one? Where was its tribe? Had it become lost? Had the bison herd adopted it? It's not uncommon for these two animals to graze together, so this probably happens that just one or two pronghorn end up with a bison herd sometimes, but still this had the makings of a children's story: "The Pronghorn Who Thought He/She Was a Bison" or something along those lines.

But before this harmonious tale could continue, the magic spell was broken.

Two young bison stumbled over and aimed themselves at the pronghorn. It deftly avoided them, moving off at a distance to resume its grazing. Then another nearby bison noticed it and chased it off again.

Poor thing. This pronghorn seemed to be an outcast in its adoptive herd. But with bears, wolves, and coyotes in the park, this pronghorn knew its business. Life in the herd is safer than going solo, especially when that herd surrounds you with thousands of pounds of slow-moving buffalo meat.

Photo credit: American Museum of Natural History

Then again, today’s predators are no match for the pronghorn. Unless they surprise it immediately, this lightning-fast animal can outrun any bear or wolf or coyote.

Here are some amazing facts about the pronghorn:

A Pronghorn Can Out-hoof a Cheetah and Finish a Marathon in 45 Minutes

Pronghorns are the second-fastest land animal in the world after the cheetah. But whereas cheetahs can only maintain top speed for a few seconds, pronghorns are distance runners. They can keep up the pace for a long period of time.

If a pronghorn was running a marathon, it could finish in just 45 minutes, while the fastest human being might clock in at around two hours.

Long ago, the plains of North America were home to herds of pronghorn that were hunted by large predators of that age. Dire wolves (yes, they were real), American cheetahs, other large cats, short-nosed bears, and hyenas that could run were mega-fauna predators who could have given pronghorns quite a chase. Today’s wolves and bears are slow by comparison.

Photo credit: Creative Commons via Wikimedia by Janine and Jim Eden

Source: Petsfoto, licensed for public use

Here is an amateur video clip showing a group of pronghorns running at top speed.

Credit: Gil Lamb Advertising/Channel 6

Pronghorn horns are a horn-antler combination. This is the only animal that sheds its horns every year.

Antlers are bony material that is shed every year, while horns are more like dense fingernails and they are relatively permanent. A few animals, including pronghorns, have elements of both: bony structures with a horn-type covering made from specialized hair follicles.

As the U.S. National Park Service explains: “Horns are never shed and continue to grow throughout the animals life. The exception to this rule is the pronghorn which sheds and regrows its horn sheath each year.” https://www.nps.gov/yell/learn/kidsyouth/ahdiff.htm

Ah, that lonely pronghorn. Once again, it is so unique.

Pronghorns are not antelopes. In fact, they have no close relatives.

Pronghorns are more closely related to giraffes or goats than to “other” antelopes. They are the only species in their family, Antilocapridae. Back in Pliocene and Pleistocene times, there were many related species roaming the plains. But today, its main predators are gone and its close relatives have died out also.

Pronghorns are all alone on their own branch of the animal family tree.

Another bison pushed aside the pronghorn.

This time, it had enough of the bison. The animal trotted towards the spot where we stood and crossed the road right near one of my kids. On the other side of the road, the pronghorn found its own patch of grass and began to graze again. Alone.

Thumbnail photo credit: Pronghorn, Creative Commons via Wikimedia by Larry Lamsa

You can read more about them here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pronghorn