Elk

(Cervus canadensis)

Male North American Elk make one of the craziest sounds in the animal kingdom. It’s called “bugling” (like playing a bugle). It is a horrible screeching scream combined with deep bellowing grunts and can be heard for miles! The call is used to assert dominance and to attract cows to their harem.

Bugling elk photographed bugling at sunset in Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming by Hal Brindley

To get an idea of what bugling elk sound like, listen to this recording I made in the Smoky Mountains of NC: Bull Elk Bugling: Collection of Audio Recordings from Smoky Mountains

And here is a video clip of a bugling elk in the Smoky Mountains.