A gentoo penguin looms in the background as a dolphin gull walks along the shoreline. Photographed on Saunders Island in the Falklands. Nikon D800 with Nikkor 200-400mm lens (at 350mm) ISO 800, f/5.6 at 1/1250th of a second.

Technically not my best photographic effort, but this one has amusement value. On certain of the Falkland Islands, the domestic sheep seemed to be as common as the penguins. This Magellanic penguin appeared to have something to get off his chest and was bending the ear of whoever would listen. Nikon D800 with Nikkor 200-400mm lens (at 360mm) ISO 400, f/5.6 at 1/2000th of a second.

Here’s another one from Carcass Island in the Falklands. A blackish oystercatcher. Not much to say here, it’s an oystercatcher and it’s, well, blackish. Nikon D800 with Nikkor 200-400mm lens (at 400mm) ISO 400, f/4 at 1/1000th of a second.

Male southern sea lions live up to the name with their rather large and furry heads — at their furriest best when blown dry by the sub-Antarctic winds. This guy was enjoying the weather on the southern tip of Carcass Island in the Falklands. Nikon D800 with Nikkor 200-400mm lens (400mm) ISO 400, f/8 at 1/500th of a second.

Of the five species of penguin that I photographed in the Falkland Islands, the Magellanics were the only ones that live in burrows. All the others live in open colonies. Entire hillsides were covered with holes courtesy of these guys. They were also the most skittish of the penguins I saw, likely due to their more solitary nature. Of course a skittish penguin is still pretty bold in comparison to most wildlife. Nikon D800 with Nikkor 200-400mm lens (at 340mm) ISO 800, f/6.3 at 1/640th of a second.

This king penguin colony looked like a gathering for an outdoor music festival. But with penguins. There was certainly a lot of activity going on. The growing chicks (all those wearing brown coats) were in various stages of molting — you can see all the white feathers on the ground — while the parents were busy feeding their demanding brood. Nikon D810 with Nikkor 70-200mm lens (at 98mm) ISO 400, f/8 at 1/400th of a second, graduated neutral density filter.

Of the five species of penguin I photographed in the Falklands, I only saw a few of these macaroni penguins. They were always mixed in with the rockhoppers in the rockhopper colonies — no doubt lost, but also able to fit in with the very similar looking rockhoppers. In this photo, only the two closest to camera are macaroni penguins. Nikon D810 with Nikkor 17-35mm lens (at 25mm) ISO 800 f/5.6 at 1/160th of a second.

I spotted this rockhopper penguin (or she spotted me) through the chaos that is a typical day in a rockhopper penguin colony. This one was on Saunders Island in the Falkland Islands. Nikon D810 with Nikkor 200-400mm lens (at 260mm) ISO 1600, f/5.6 at 1/125th of a second.

This striated caracara (locally known as a Johnny Rook) was guarding a gentoo penguin egg it had snatched from a nearby colony. With that little curve at the end of its beak, the caracaras struggled with actually cracking the egg and would end up rolling them up and down the beach before finally breaking through. Photographed on Saunders Island in the Falklands. Nikon D800 with Nikkor 200-400mm lens (at 200mm) ISO 400, f/5.6 at 1/1600th of a second.

The tentativeness of penguins can be an amusing thing to behold. Even in this shallow inlet, this gentoo penguin seemingly had to psych himself up before finally making the plunge. Photographed on Saunders Island in the Falkland Islands. Nikon D810 with Nikkor 200-400mm lens (at 200mm) ISO 800, f/5.6 at 1/1600th of a second.