It could have been our national bird, but instead became our national feast. That’s right, Benjamin Franklin petitioned for the turkey to be the national bird instead of the bald eagle. I photographed this one a couple of weekends ago when I was in Zion National Park in Utah and thought it would be appropriate today as the last post before the long holiday weekend. This guy was doing his strut, feathers out, trying to impress the five or so females that were in the area. Enjoy, and have a great weekend. I’ll be back on Monday with the next post. Nikon D800 with Nikkor 200-400mm lens (at 400mm) ISO 1600, f/4 at 1/125th of a second
Jacanas are odd birds to begin with. For one, they have enormous feet which enable them to walk on floating vegetation, like lily pads, without sinking. The females of the species are polyandrous — meaning they will take two or more (usually 4) mates at the same time. The males will incubate the eggs, while the females defend their various nests. But perhaps the most curious thing about certain jacanas, including this wattled jacana from Brazil, are the wing spurs. It remains uncertain as to what exactly the purpose of the spurs is. Nikon D300 with Nikkor 200-400mm lens (at 380mm) ISO 800, f/4 at 1/800th of a second
Dik Diks are the smallest antelope species in Africa. It’s hard to get a sense of just how small they really are in a photo like this because there is no frame of reference. That being said, the average height of a dik dik at the shoulder is about 13 inches. If you don’t get a clear look at one bounding through the grass, you might mistake it for a large rabbit. As to why this one was smiling at me like that, I couldn’t say. Nikon D300 with Nikkor 200-400mm lens (at 340mm) ISO 1600, f/4 at 1/160th of a second
There are twenty two different species of marmosets that live in South America. This black-tailed marmoset was photographed in the Pantanal region of Brazil. An interesting fact about these somewhat primitive primates — they have claws, rather than nails. Nikon D300 with Nikkor 200-400mm lens (at 400mm) ISO 1600, f/7.1 at 1/160th of a second
Sometimes, it’s nice to put the big lens down and go a bit wider to include the environment. In this case, the first rays of the Botswana sun were illuminating this tree and the three impala that were grazing beneath it, turning them all a deep red. Nikon D700 with Nikkor 70-200mm lens (at 70mm) ISO 800, f/2.8 at 1/4000th of a second
Here’s another one from our honeymoon in Santorini, Greece. This was taken in the small town of Pyrgos. I always like to find interesting ways to frame images when I can. For this composition, I was shooting through a small opening in the stone from another building. Nikon D800 with Nikkor 17-35mm lens (at 35mm) ISO 400, f/2.8 at 1/4000th of a second
Muskrats don’t get a lot of respect. For one, they are called rats, despite the fact that they aren’t really true rats at all. They also kind of look like little beavers but they don’t get to swim around with the cool tail. And in the early years of the 20th century they were widely trapped for their fur, but then passed off and sold as seal fur. I photographed this one a few years back at Cape May Point State Park in New Jersey. Nikon D300 with Nikkor 200-400mm lens (at 400mm) ISO 400, f/5 at 1/200th of a second
Black bears can be pretty agile climbers. This young guy was doing a bit of a tightrope act on a thin branch before looking up and growling at the sky. This is another one from my trip to Minnesota back in May. Nikon D700 with Nikkor 70-200mm lens (at 90mm) ISO 800, f/2.8 at 1/400th of a second
The indri indri is the largest of all the lemurs in Madagascar. It kind of looks like a small man wearing panda bear pajamas. They are known for their eerie, wailing calls which can be heard two and a half miles away. They are also known to be quite acrobatic in the trees and can jump great distances. I caught this one just before it catapulted through the air to another tree. Nikon D200 with Nikkor 80-200mm lens (at 165mm) ISO 400, f/5.6 at 1/60th of a second, Nikon SB-800 flash
One of my favorite sightings on our Kenya trip two years ago was this serval cat. It was our last night of a two week safari and we were on our way back to camp for the last time, quite satisfied with all that we had seen. We had already photographed the big five, including many rhino and a few leopards. This was icing on the cake and we almost missed it as we were packing up my camera gear for the night. Servals are a medium sized cat, but with long legs, and an unusually small head a top a long neck. This one had been crouching in the grass and was just getting up — most likely to go hunting. Nikon D700 with Nikkor 70_200mm lens (at 200mm) ISO 1600, f/2.8 at 1/80th of a second
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