The gaur is the largest bovine native to Southeast Asia. It is also appropriately known as the Indian bison. I photographed these two in Kanha National Park in India. I liked the view from behind, but thought I’d show a front view as well. The top photo is an older, more mature male, while the bottom photo is a younger individual.
Top Photo: Nikon D300 with Nikkor 200-400mm lens (at 400mm) ISO 800, f/4 at 1/160th of a second
Bottom Photo: Nikon D300 with Nikkor 200-400mm lens (at 330mm) ISO 800, f/4 at 1/400th of a second

The treepie might not be the most colorful bird in India, but it is one of the most fearless. Or so the story goes. They share the same forest habitat as the Bengal tiger and are sometimes called the tiger bird or the tiger’s toothpick because they have been known to pick meat from the teeth of a resting tiger.
Nikon D300 with Nikkor 200-400mm lens (at 400mm) ISO 800, f/7.1 at 1/400th of a second

Peacocks can be pretty striking when you see them in their natural habitat — in this case, on a raised perch in a hardwood forest in India’s Bandhavgarh National Park. The Indian, or blue peacock as it is also known, is the species that we most commonly see running wild in zoos. You get so used to seeing them this way that you almost forget that they actually come from somewhere where they live in the wild.
Nikon D300 with Nikkor 200-400mm lens (at 200mm) ISO 800, f/7.1 at 1/125th of a second

The wolf snake is a very small snake that lives in India and other areas of southeast Asia. It is primarily nocturnal, and I found this one near our camp, shortly after eating dinner one night in India’s Kanha National Park. It is a non-venomous snake, but will bite if threatened. It gets its name from a set of rather large front teeth that resemble those of a canine. It uses those teeth to prey on lizards, frogs, geckos and other local delicacies. Being so small, I was able to photograph this wolf snake from directly overhead using my 105mm macro lens and a couple of flash units.
Nikon D300 with Nikkor 105mm lens, ISO 500, f/8 at 1/60th of a second, two Nikon SB-900 flash units on a RRS bracket

This is a gray langur, also known as a hanuman langur, and I met the little guy in Bandhavgarh National Park in India. I saw quite a few of these monkeys, including lots of mothers with babies. Langurs practice what is known as alloparenting, meaning that the infant is eventually given to other mothers in the group to raise as their own.
Nikon D300 with Nikkor 200-400mm lens (at 310mm) ISO 800, f/4 at 1/250th of a second

I’ve posted a few different shots of this particular tiger before so you might recognize her. Seemed appropriate today, however, to post one more as the Tigers and the Orioles square off tonight in Game 1 of baseball’s American League Divisional Series. Good luck to both sides.
Nikon D300 with Nikkor 200-400mm lens (at 400mm) f/4 at 1/160th of a second

As seems to be the case with many of our furred and feathered friends, having just one name isn’t quite good enough. There are three names to choose from when talking about these deer, which are common throughout India and surrounding countries. I was in Kanha National Park in central India when I photographed this pair. My guide was calling them chital, so let’s go with that.
Nikon D700 with Nikkor 70-200mm lens (at 200mm) ISO 200, f/2.8 at 1/200th of a second

This hanuman langur was hanging around outside my tent late one afternoon after searching for tigers in Kanha National Park in India (I was searching for the tigers, not the langur). These monkeys were easily the most common mammals that I saw in the two national parks that I visited.
Nikon D300 with Nikkor 200-400mm lens (at 360mm) f/4 at 1/2000th of a second

The gaur — also known as the Indian bison — is the largest living bovine species on the planet. This guy is a fairly young male. Those horns will become much more formidable as he ages. I took this photograph in Kanha National Park in central India and thought it would be appropriate today for all those Tauruses (or is it Taurii) out there.
Nikon D300 with Nikkor 200-400mm lens (at 200mm) ISO 800, f/4 at 1/100th of a second

Every country seems to have it’s scrappy canine. For us, it’s the coyote. For India, it’s a close cousin of the coyote, the golden jackal. I photographed this one in Bandhavgarh National Park, which is in central India.
Nikon D300 with Nikkor 200-400mm lens (at 400mm) ISO 800, f/4 at 1/400th of a second