I took a drive out to the Ripley Waterfowl Conservancy in Litchfield, Connecticut today. The conservancy was founded as a “breeding facility focused on maintaining genetic diversity of rare and endangered species.” I don’t usually post captive animals, but I was really impressed with the mission of the conservancy and hope to do some marketing work with them. They have waterfowl from all across the world, including three species of eider. This is the king eider, which I’ve yet to photograph in the wild. Nikon D500 with Nikkor 500mm PF lens, ISO 500, f/5.6 at 1/1250th of a second.
Hamerkops aren’t very colorful, but they make up for it with style. The two species of hamerkop can be found throughout most of sub-Sahara Africa. They are medium-sized wading birds with eating habits that can best be described as “generalist.” In other words, they aren’t too particular about what they eat, although they have a penchant for fish and amphibians. I photographed this one in the Masai Mara of Kenya. Nikon D500 with Nikkor 200-400mm lens (at 340mm) ISO 400, f/4 at 1/3200th of a second.
The African wildcat looks almost identical to a common house cat — except they live out amongst the elephants and giraffes. They are, in fact, relatives to the domestic cat, they are mainly nocturnal and they hunt mice, rats, birds, reptiles and insects. I photographed this one in northern Botswana while on a night safari. Nikon D800 with Nikkor 200-400mm lens (at 400mm) ISO 800, f/4 at 1/60th of a second, two Nikon SB-900 flash units.
It’s been a slow couple of months at the camera traps in my backyard. But I can always count on the deer to make an occasional appearance. Nikon D810 with Nikkor 20mm lens, ISO 500, f/14 at 1/250th of a second, Cognisys camera box, trail monitor and three remote flash units.
The lar gibbon, also known as the white-handed gibbon, is an endangered ape from Southeast Asia. They are endangered due to many factors, the most pervasive being the continued loss of their habitat. I photographed this one on the Malay Peninsula of Thailand. He was swinging from that tree while calling to his mate. Nikon D500 with Nikkor 200-400mm lens (at 330mm) ISO 800, f/4 at 1/1600th of a second.
Giant river otters certainly live up to their name. They can grow to almost six feet in length. Their size was most apparent when I saw them out of the water, like this one running along a riverbank in the Pantanal of Brazil. Nikon D300 with Nikkor 200-400mm lens (at 450mm with 1.4 TC attached) ISO 800, f/5.6 at 1/4000th of a second.
Here’s another of the pygmy marmosets I photographed while in Peru back in late October. They like to suck the sap out of holes in tree trunks, making the occasional tongue shot possible. Nikon D500 with Nikkor 500mm PF lens, ISO 800, f/5.6 at 1/200th of a second, Godox V860iii fill flash.
These two king penguins were resting together on the beach during a bit of a sandstorm. When they both pointed their beaks into the sand, I thought they were just doing it to help as they stood up — a behavior I had observed earlier in my trip to the Falkland Islands. But instead, they kept their beaks down until the gust of wind and sand subsided. I too, was down on the ground doing my best to shield the sand from my face and gear. Nikon D800 with Nikkor 200-400mm lens (at 200mm) ISO 400, f/5.6 at 1/640th of a second.
This northern hawk-owl was the main attraction on my trip last weekend to northern Minnesota. Unlike most owls that are nocturnal, or crepuscular (active at dawn and dusk), northern hawk-owls prefer mid-day to do their hunting. This was taken at about four in the afternoon with the moon slowly rising in a cloudless blue sky. Nikon D500 with Nikkor 500mm PF lens, ISO 400, f/32 at 1/60th of a second.
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I took a drive out to the Ripley Waterfowl Conservancy in Litchfield, Connecticut today. The conservancy was founded as a “breeding facility focused on maintaining genetic diversity of rare and endangered species.” I don’t usually post captive animals, but I was really impressed with the mission of the conservancy and hope to do some marketing work with them. They have waterfowl from all across the world, including three species of eider. This is the king eider, which I’ve yet to photograph in the wild. Nikon D500 with Nikkor 500mm PF lens, ISO 500, f/5.6 at 1/1250th of a second. 
