American Pika II

Artist: Diana Treglown
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Card: US$3.99

American Pika II

The American Pika, a small flower-gathering relative of the rabbit, may be one of the first mammals in North America known to fall victim to global warming if heat-trapping emissions are not reduced soon.

American Pikas are typically found in rocky areas, called talus, within alpine regions of the western United States and southwestern Canada. Many hikers, while passing through pika habitat in these rocky areas, have heard these shy creatures call and whistle to each other.

Since food is difficult to obtain in winter in the alpine environment, Pikas cut, sun-dry, and later store vegetation for winter use in characteristic ‘hay piles.’ They are often called ‘ecosystem engineers’ because of their extensive haying activities.

According to research, global warming appears to have contributed to local extinctions of Pika populations. American Pikas may be the ‘canary in the coal mine’ when it comes to the response of alpine and mountain systems to global warming.

Information from WWF.
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After decades of living and exploring the mountains of Montana, Wyoming and Idaho…this is the ONLY Pika I have EVER seen!! And if what the above information says is true…this might be the only one you ever see, either!! I can’t tell you how excited I was to get a few seconds to capture this charming and elusive and endangered Pika…it was a moment I had dreamed about for years. ~ Diana

Aren’t his chubby little toes the cutest?!!?

American Pika II belongs to the following groups:

Current Issues, Environmental Awareness, Exotic Mammals and Gaia - The Living Planet

Bahoke, 9 months ago

Fantastic capture!!
Helen Bascom, 9 months ago

Fantastic image. Thank you so much for adding it to Current Issues. Global warming is affecting all life on the planet. I’m glad you shared this with us.
aphoto4you, 9 months ago

FABULOUS…......what lens did u use…
Diana Treglown, 9 months ago

Sorry…forgot!! ~ :o)

Olympus-510
f/4
1/200 sec.
ISO 100
200mm
Cheri McEachin, 9 months ago

Wow the clarity is awsome- amazing capture
lance leopold, 9 months ago

Awesome little creature,and shot,i have never seen an image of this cute little creature,and i do hope his kind can survive our mistakes,thanks for showing us this little “treasure”.
wanda lechene, 9 months ago

wow very sharp very nice i love it great shot.
Tanya B. Schro..., 9 months ago

It’s adorable! Thank you for shedding light on the pika’s plight, Diana!
sillygirl, 9 months ago

What a cute little creature.
Awesome capture and very interesting information.
Holly Werner, 9 months ago

Adorable and a truly great shot.
Jeff Burns, 9 months ago

Fantastic focus great clarity
Well done
AngelArtist, 9 months ago

Oh, what an excellent photo and what a cute creature! I never saw such a creature before..
Jennifer Vickers, 9 months ago

Very cute critter here. Great comp too.
bonniemonahan1, 9 months ago

Hi Diana,
Your storytelling is exceptional. I wish more people who even write a wee story. His chubby toes are cute, but I like his darling face better. This is also a better pic then the smaller 1 of the same American Pika.
Composition, DOF, fine details, color harmony, brightness & contrast, etc. are all excellent.
Take care, Bonnie
WesternDreamer, 9 months ago

Oh how CUTE… I’ve never seen these little guys in the wild… WOW… you were lucky to see this adorable little one in reading your notes!!! Glad you had that opportunity and can now share it!!
Michelle Boyer, 9 months ago

Adorable- well done
Nira Dabush, 8 months ago

So adorable, Diana..his eyes are fantastic…splendid shot..
Lisa G. Putman, 8 months ago

I loved this little pika the first time I saw him, and I still think he is amazing! You are so lucky to have found him and capture this treasure of an image!
SnapHappy, 8 months ago

what a cute capture!
Robert Elliott, 8 months ago

Beautiful capture
Ellen, 8 months ago

Just beautiful!
velveteagle, 8 months ago

Such a nea looking fellow.. great capture Diana…
MuscularTeeth, 8 months ago

cute
GerryMac, 7 months ago

excellent close up Diana! again fantastic detail! and enjoyed reading the information you supplied!
Michael Rowley..., 7 months ago

brilliant image well caught !
diffusion, 7 months ago

This is tooooooooo cute, great shot!!!
Caroline Bland, 7 months ago

Delightful
Hagen, 6 months ago

Beautiful
longlegs, 6 months ago

what a cutie .. thanks for sharing this picture with nature lovers like me.
whisperingruth, 6 months ago

Fabulous shot of the the little pika . . . wonderful writeup you have included . . . so beautifully done Diana . . .
EbonyKate, 6 months ago

Wow excellent capture, have never heard of or seen these little critters before, thanks for bringing it to our attention.
H. Lee, 6 months ago

They’re adorable!!!!
Dyle Warren, 6 months ago

I’ve seen them before and they are swift little buggers. You’ve captured this precious little guy just wonderfully!!
artsthrufotos, 6 months ago

what a great shot! very enjoyable.
Arlene Zapata, 6 months ago

We saw a nature special about these creatures on PBS a few months ago. I think it said they were already at the highest place they could move to in some places. They will just simply run out of mountain top + food.

Very sad…great pic though!
greenfrog153, 6 months ago

Awwwwwwwwwwwwwww
Rachel Leopold, 6 months ago

Well done, thanks for increasing our awareness!
Cheri McEachin, 6 months ago

Oh how cute—-
ccproductions, 6 months ago

how adorable – im all about exotic type animals – i have sugar gliders – id like to have one of those! very cute!
KevinH, 6 months ago

amazing shot, love his nosey look :)
joanna (jo) j..., 6 months ago

this is precious!~
berndt2, 6 months ago

Awww… very cute (how come I’ve never heard of a ‘Pika’ before??)
Caroline Bland, 6 months ago

Absolutely superb
Calvin36, 6 months ago

Who says art and politics don’t mix. Great shot and worthy sentiments.
Lucindawind, 6 months ago

awww what a cute little creature ! love it
Kathryn Potempski, 6 months ago

congrats on the feature Page Diana,perfect composition and very interesting subject,and cute to boot.
Moxy, 6 months ago

Exellent capture! Cute little guy.
Diana Treglown, 6 months ago

WOW!!! I can’t thank all of you enough for all your wonderful comments!! It’s enough to make a Lady blush…even at my age!!! ~ :o) Diana
Gary Beeler, 6 months ago

What a beautiful shot! If you’r ever around Cooke City, the NE entrance to Yellowstone, watch for them on the rocky slopes. Better yet, stop at Dan and Cindy Hartman’s gallery, and Dan might tell you where they are.
MDossat, 6 months ago

Awww, this has got to be the cutest little thing I’ve ever seen. Nice capture of a rare little being.
carpenter777, 6 months ago

awww so cute
vividsight, 6 months ago

nice capture his fur sits the right way
JessicaHowroyd, 5 months ago

This picture is so adorable. who knew a small animal like this would be so effective as a peice of art. well done amazing work.
genevieve m, 5 months ago

Adorable, what a cute little animal!
StephenCoyle, 5 months ago

Great Photo
DawsonImages, 5 months ago

Cute and crisp capture
digitalmidge, 5 months ago

This is so cute, I just want to cuddle him! I wish I could find one of these to photograph myself. How adorable, I went crazy when I saw this…such a super shot!!!
peyote, 5 months ago

Oh my giddy pika this is beautiful
Ive never seen one before until now :)
xXx
Dennis Gay IPA, 5 months ago

G’day Diana,

You have done this endangered li’l critter proud with your very fine photographic study.
Well exposed on good light, great use of depth of field, very sharp focus, wonderfully natural colours and contrasts and nicely composed.
The Pika’s pose is very good in that it shows the specimen well, especially its chubby furry toes. 8-)
Very good work that girl!

GB
Dennis
wanda lechene, 4 months ago

awwwww sooo cute i love it. great shot my friend
djlampkins, 4 months ago

Great shot…. skiddish little guys, too. You did well to capture one.
Amanda Zalewski, about 1 month ago

aww!!! adorable! I’ve never seen one of these before!! great pic!
Nathan Hobbs, 29 days ago

quite envious of this shot, seeing a pike is on my list as well!
great capture you had the right gear at the right moment for this one.
TREVOR IRWIN, 7 days ago

This is a excellent capture of a Pika. Ihave only seen them on doscovery challel. but to see s still image is so much better. Thank you for sharing this and all these precious creatures.

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