My favorite time of the day on Sea Lion Island in the Falklands was just after sunset when the last of the penguins were heading in from the sea, the orcas were patrolling the shoreline for sea lions and seals, and the receding surf created saturated reflections of the gentoos as they scurried back to their respective colonies.
Nikon D810 with Nikkor 70-200mm lens (at 70mm) ISO 1000, f/2.8 at 1/200th of a second
These two fine looking birds are the only true feathered locals in the Falkland Islands. Both endemic to the Islands, they don’t live anywhere else. The steamer duck possesses very short wings and is incapable of flight. They make up for it in personality, however, and were fun to watch as they waddled along the shoreline. The Cobb’s wren was also quite personable despite its rather plain appearance. On Carcass Island, where I photographed this one, they are very tame due to a lack of predators (there are no rodents or foxes or any other small ground carnivores on the island). Along with the tussacbirds (who you’ll meet in a future post), they would literally fly right up to me, even hopping on the front of my lens a few times.
Steamer Duck: Nikon D800 with Nikkor 200-400mm lens (at 380mm) ISO 400, f/6.3 at 1/2500th of a second
Cobb’s Wren: Nikon D800 with Nikkor 200-400mm lens (at 400mm) ISO 400, f/4 at 1/800th of a second
Last week I posted a Magellanic oystercatcher. This guy is the other species of oystercatcher that I photographed in the Falkland Islands — the appropriately named blackish oystercatcher. I didn’t see nearly as many of these guys but was able to get a few good looks. I liked this one against the similarly blackish background.
Nikon D800 with Nikkor 200-400mm lens (at 400mm) ISO 400, f/4 at 1/640th of a second
There’s something very West Side Story to me about this one — the Sharks vs. the Jets — or in this case, the Magellanics vs. the Kings. Looks like the three Magellanic penguins on the left mean business while the three kings on the right can’t believe the audacity of their shorter rivals. It’s about to get ugly and only a matter of time before all six break out in song and dance.
Nikon D810 with Nikkor 70-200mm lens (at 116mm) ISO 800, f/11 at 1/250th of a second
The twelve different species of oystercatchers are widely spread throughout the world. I’ve always been a big fan of these birds and have photographed them on several continents. This guy is the Magellanic oystercatcher — along with the blackish oystercatcher — one of the two species that live in the Falkland Islands. Magellanic oystercatchers can get pretty feisty and I saw them continually dive-bombing a caracara (eagle-like raptor). The caracara must have been too close to a nest that was on the ground. Whatever the case, it gave me a good opportunity to capture flight shots as the two oystercatchers kept circling before diving down.
Nikon D800 with Nikkor 200-400mm lens (at 400mm) ISO 400, f/5.6 at 1/3200th of a second
Penguins kiss a lot. In this case, the kissers happen to be gentoo penguins… in a wind storm… on the beach… on Saunders Island.. in the Falkland Islands (of course).
Nikon D810 with Nikkor 200-400mm lens (at 400mm) ISO 400, f/7.1 at 1/1600th of a second
There was no Africa trip this year, and I didn’t get out with the camera with the frequency of some previous years, but 2014 was still a great year for me and wildlife. The time that I did spend in the field yielded some excellent sightings, even when I was only able to get away for a day or two. The following photos represent some of the highlights of the year — all new shots that I haven’t shared yet. Enjoy, and thanks for continuing to check out my posts on a daily basis.
Things started a bit slow in Yellowstone back in February. I’ve been to Yellowstone many times, still hoping for better looks at wolves. It didn’t happen this time, but I did have some great opportunities with bighorn, pronghorn, bison and all the other usual suspects. This ram was working hard to find grass beneath the thick bed of snow.
Nikon D800 with Nikkor 200-400mm lens (at 380mm) ISO 800, f/4 at 1/8000th of a second
I went to Costa Rica for a long week in March, hoping to photograph tapirs and photograph tapirs I did. In fact this one I photographed from only about a foot away, as I remained very quiet, on the ground, with my wide angle zoom.
Nikon D800 with Nikkor 17-35mm lens (at 17mm) ISO 3200, f/2.8 at 1/320th of a second
In May, Karen and I took a five day trip to Tulum, Mexico. It was mostly a beach holiday, but I got away one afternoon and headed to the Punta Laguna Nature Reserve where I was able to photograph spider monkeys.
Nikon D800 with Nikkor 200-400mm lens (at 310mm) ISO 1600, f/4 at 1/640th of a second
In June, I headed out to the great parks of southwestern South Dakota. Badlands is one of my favorite parks in the country and never seems to disappoint. It was the time of year for baby prairie dogs and I saw many of them.
Nikon D800 with Nikkor 200-400mm lens (at 400mm) ISO 400, f/4 at 1/400th of a second
In July, I had to be in Los Angeles for business. I was able to get away for a night over the weekend so I headed to Anza-Borrego Desert State Park. This was the 122 degree day that I’ve talked about in several posts. I love photographing black-tailed jackrabbits and have posted a few from this trip. My mother had asked about whether or not their ears are ever down. Well, here you go. When relaxed and at rest, the ears are down, but when they hear something or are on alert, the ears stick straight up.
Nikon D800 with Nikkor 200-400mm lens (at 400mm) ISO 400, f/4 at 1/1000th of a second
And finally, my big trip of the year was to the Falkland Islands in October/November. I’m still going through all the photos from this trip — two awesome weeks with five different species of penguin and assorted other creatures. I photographed these four king penguins at twilight at Volunteer Point, on the main island of East Falkland.
Nikon D810 with Nikkor 17-35mm lens (at 35mm) ISO 800, f/4 at 1/320th of a second
One more to take us into the holidays. This gentoo penguin colony was just outside the front door of the lodge on Sea Lion Island in the Falklands, making it quite convenient for early morning, sunrise shots. Most of the penguins were sitting on eggs that would eventually hatch a few weeks later. Hope everyone has a great holiday. I’ll be back Monday with new posts.
Nikon D810 with Nikkor 17-35mm lens (at 17mm) ISO 400, f/22 at 1/60th of a second
Here’s another imperial shag (also known as imperial cormorant), this time showing a bit more detail of the blue eye and orange nasal knob. In the breeding season, they also have those nice white whiskery things above the eye. This guy was obviously taking a bit of a rest — a difficult task I would imagine amidst all the noise of the rockhopper penguins and other shags.
Nikon D810 with Nikkor 200-400mm lens (at 400mm) ISO 800, f/4 at 1/250th of a second
I took a lot of photos of different penguin prints in the sand. I kind of liked the curve to this gentoo’s journey as it headed back to the colony after an afternoon of fishing.
Nikon D810 with Nikkor 17 to 35mm lens (at 17mm) ISO 800, f/11 at 1/250th of a second