It was first thing in the morning on Sunday when I was out searching for ocelots, hoping I might catch one as it headed home after a night of hunting in Laguna Atascosa National Wildlife Refuge in Texas. At the end of this long path, I spotted something moving and immediately got on the ground not wanting to scare away whatever it was. As it drew a little closer (in the above shot) I could finally make out the tell tale ears of a coyote. It came a little closer still before turning left into the woods. I stayed put and about ten minutes later it eventually reappeared much closer.

Just back from a three day weekend down in the Rio Grande Valley in southern Texas. I was hoping to find ocelots and jaguarundis (two of the most elusive cats in the United States — and the world for that matter). I didn’t really expect to see them, but there’s always hope. As with the Florida panther last weekend, I didn’t get any shots. But I did see the jaguarundi. Twice, in fact. Once running across the road in front of my car and the other time while hiking in the woods. I very nearly had a great shot while in the woods but as soon as I saw it, it saw me and was gone. I guess there’s a reason, the jaguarundi is very rarely seen and almost never photographed in the wild. What I did see were birds. Lots of them. Including this green jay. Extreme southern Texas is the only place in the country to see the green jay — although it is quite common throughout its range, which extends south along the Gulf of Mexico and into South America. With its blue head, green back and yellow chest, it’s certainly a beautiful bird. Not quite an ocelot or jaguarundi, but as far as birds go, it’s hard to beat.

This river otter allowed me to get incredibly close. I was laying on the edge of the pond, about 10 to 15 feet away as it dove several times and crawled back out onto the ice to eat its lunch. The place was Muscatatuck National Wildlife Refuge in southern Indiana.

Here’s another look at the bobcat I recently photographed in Irvine, California. It was stalking a few ducks in this photo and I thought I might get an action shot but the ducks eventually flew away. That short, stumpy tail is what gives the bobcat its name. In the sound file below you can hear what one sounds like growling:

Bobcat Growl

This was an all or nothing weekend for me down in Florida. I was in search of the elusive Florida Panther, one of the rarest creatures on the planet, and I spent all my time trying to find one. As you can see from the above photo, I was not successful. Instead, you’ll have to settle for this Florida box turtle. Not quite as elusive. Not quite as spectacular. But a much more patient and accommodating subject. I took this photo in the Big Cypress National Preserve in the southwest corner of the state, where both the turtle and the panther live.

This photo shows just how big polar bears can really be. It was taken in the town of Churchill, about a 30 minute flight south of the lodge that I stayed at (there were no motorized vehicles anywhere near the lodge). We had a few hours to kill before catching our flight back to the States, so me and a couple of the guys rented a car and decided to go out and explore. We found a place where they breed a rare species of dog. The bears would come around to eat the dogs’ food (bears will eat anything while waiting for the Hudson Bay to freeze so that they can go out and feast upon their true favorite, ringed seals).