Two guanacos traverse a hill beneath the massive face of a mountain in Torres Del Paine National Park in Chilean Patagonia. Torres Del Paine is the land of the puma. Guanacos are their favorite prey and the park is filled with them. Nikon D500 with Nikkor 200-400mm lens (at 220mm) ISO 400, f/4 at 1/1600th of a second.
This is a male cherrie’s tanager that I photographed in central Costa Rica. The name has nothing to do with the bird’s coloring, but rather is in honor of naturalist — and friend of Teddy Roosevelt — George Cherrie. Nikon D200 with Nikkor 600mm manual focus lens, ISO 400, f/8 at 1/30th of a second, Nikon SB-600 fill flash.
I photographed this one quite a few years ago on the east coast of Florida. The nine-banded armadillo is a species that continues to push the boundaries of its range. It has been rapidly moving both north and east in the United States and is expected to reach New Jersey, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Connecticut before the trend slows down. I’m ready and waiting. Nikon D300 with Nikkor 200-400mm lens (at 360mm) ISO 400, f/5.6 at 1/800th of a second.
Also known as the Perinet chameleon, I photographed this Malagasy side-striped chameleon on my first and only trip to Madagascar back in 2007. This is a relatively small chameleon that we came across on a night hike in Ranomafana National Park, which is in the central part of the country. Nikon D200 with Nikkor 80-200mm lens (at 100mm with Canon 500D close up filter attached) ISO 200, f/22 at 1/60th of a second, Nikon SB-600 flash.
This image gets a little closer to showing a Galápagos giant tortoise in perspective. These guys are really big, weighing in at over 500 pounds. Photographed in the Santa Cruz highlands. Nikon D700 with Nikkor 200-400mm lens (at 400mm) ISO 800, f/8 at 1/160th of a second.
Yellow-necked spurfowl, also known as yellow-necked francolins are native to eastern portions of Africa, from Tanzania on up through Eritrea. I photographed this one in Samburu National Reserve in Kenya. The males will often climb to the top of termite mounds or large rocks to call to females. Or, perhaps, to get a better look at photographers. Nikon D500 with Nikkor 200-400mm lens (at 260mm) ISO 1600, f/4 at 1/125th of a second.
As you guys know, I generally don’t like to photograph or post captive animals, but this species is almost impossible to see in the wild. It’s the only other blue-eyed primate besides us. And it’s critically endangered without much hope of recovery — habitat loss being the main issue. I was at a free-range lemur park in Madagascar back in 2007. Among the many lemur species that were roaming free, there were a few in enclosures, including a pair of blue-eyed black lemurs. This is the female. The males are pure black, but have the same blue eyes. Nikon D40x with 18-55mm lens (at 55mm) ISO 400, f/5.6 at 1/60th of a second, Nikon SB-600 flash.
A pack of spotted hyenas stand on a ridge above a kill attempting to scare off a lion. The lion was holding strong while the hyenas were doing all they could to intimidate her. Photographed in the Masai Mara of Kenya. Nikon D500 with Nikkor 200-400mm lens (at 220mm) ISO 800, f/4 at 1/1000th of a second.
Also known as the South American gray fox, the chilla and the gray zorro, the Patagonian fox lives throughout southern South America. I came across this one in extreme southern Chile in Torres Del Paine National Park. He seemed particularly pleased with his scratching technique. Nikon D500 with Nikkor 200-400mm lens (at 400mm) ISO 800, f/4 at 1/500th of a second.
Here’s another photo from my ocelot encounter when I was in the Peruvian Amazon back in late October. This exposure seemed to be a bit brighter than the first one I shared. As mentioned previously, this was one of the more exciting sightings of my years in the wild — spotted along a river bank while heading back to the lodge late at night. I didn’t actually see the ocelot from the boat, but my guide did, so we set out on foot and after searching around for about five minutes, we saw it again in the rainforest where it posed for a few portraits. Note the three porcupine quills stuck in the ocelot’s right shoulder, no doubt a lesson learned. Nikon D500 with Nikkor 500mm PF lens, ISO 800, f/8 at 1/125th of a second, Godox V860iii flash on a remote bracket.
*Some wild cat experts saw this post and believe it to actually be a margay, an even more rare cat to see in the wild. It looks very similar to an ocelot, but smaller and with bigger eyes. The definitive way to tell the difference is the tail, but I didn’t get any shots of the tail.