Marine iguanas seem to be everywhere in the Galapagos Islands. While snorkeling one day, I came across these guys, sunning themselves while their tails dangled in the water. Marine iguanas have longer tails than their land counterparts, allowing them to easily move through the water.
Nikon D800 with Nikkor 17-35mm lens (at 35mm) ISO 400, f/10 at 1/500th of a second, Ikelite housing with 8 inch dome port
The very first macropod that I saw in Australia was a pademelon (never thought I’d write that sentence, but there it is and I kind of like it). Macropods — if you didn’t know already — are all of Australia’s kangaroo-like marsupials, including wallabies, kangaroos, tree kangaroos and, of course, this young lady and her joey — the pademelons. Pademelons are the smallest of the macropods and a full grown adult isn’t much more than two feet tall.
Nikon D200 with Nikkor 600mm lens, ISO 200, f/5.6 at 1/200th of a second
This is an old one — from 2002 when I lived in my car for a year and traveled to all 50 states. Very simple. Just sand, sky and sun, but that’s what I like about it. I was searching for desert kit foxes at the time in White Sands National Monument in New Mexico. I came across quite a few fox tracks, but no foxes. This was taken before I had my first digital camera when I used to shoot slides — so I don’t have all the specific camera data. I do know that I was using a Nikon F100 camera with a 17-35mm lens, I was shooting Fuji Provia 100 speed film and was using a small aperture (probably f/22).
Like just about half of all lemurs, the white footed sportive lemur is nocturnal. I photographed this one on my first of many night walks in Madagascar back in May of 2007. Contrary to the name, the white footed sportive lemur is quite inactive. This is an adaptation to its low-energy diet. In order to survive on the small amount of leaves that it eats, the lemur’s metabolic rate must be kept low.
Nikon D200 with Nikkor 80-200mm lens (at 130mm) ISO 200, f/4.5 at 1/60th of a second (-1 stop ev) Nikon SB-800 flash
I captured this short eared owl just as it was about to land on those sticks in the ground. It had been out hunting for voles (and sparring with the northern harrier hawks). Click below to hear its call.
Nikon D800 with Nikkor 200-400mm lens (at 400mm) ISO 800, f/4 at 1/1000th of a second
Short Eared Owl Call
There are about 20 species of bandicoots in Australia, all at least partly nocturnal. I saw a few when I was there back in 2006. This guy was spotted on a night walk in the Atherton Tablelands in Queensland. I had to be quick as the bandicoot only posed for a couple of shots before scurrying back into the bushes.
Nikon D200 with Nikkor 600mm manual focus lens, ISO 200, f/5.6 at 1/60th of a second, Nikon SB-800 flash, + 1.2/3 stops ev
The silver fox is a melanistic form of the red fox. They can be almost completely black, more silver in appearance, or even a bit bluish grey. Their skins have historically been the most sought after by fur traders and were fashionable to nobles in Russia, western Europe and China. In the wild, they occur alongside the more commonly colored red red foxes, and they are born into mixed litters. I came across this silver fox late one afternoon while hiking in Mount Rainier National Park in Washington.
Nikon D300 with Nikkor 200-400mm lens (at 400mm) ISO 800, f/5.6 at 1/400th of a second (-2/3 stop ev)
Brown pelicans are fairly common throughout a large part of the Americas. This one was patrolling the coastline of Santa Cruz in the Galapagos Islands, searching for fish. They dive at high speeds, submerging themselves completely in the water before surfacing, spilling the excess water from their throat pouches and swallowing their prey.
Nikon D800 with Nikkor 200-400mm lens (at 200mm) ISO 400, f/5.6 at 1/5000th of a second (-1/3 stop ev)
This was the first glimpse that I had of a wild tiger while in India last year. I was pretty far away and kept hoping for a clearing in the trees to get a decent shot. This was it. The tiger would eventually make its way out of the trees and into the open but I kind of liked the way that it was framed by the characteristic Bandhavgarh National Park environment.
Nikon D300 with Nikkor 200-400mm lens (at 400mm) ISO 1600, f/4 at 1/400th of a second (-1/3 stop ev)
Snowy owls can have pretty comical faces at times. This female was moving her head back and forth, showing me a little attitude before flying off.
Nikon D800 with Nikkor 200-400mm lens (at 400mm) ISO 500, f/4.5 at 1/1000th of a second