Southern Madagascar is known for its spiny forests that grow in the dry soils of the region. The tree branches look like giant pipe cleaners and pretty much everything, including the tree trunks seem to have prickers and thorns. Living in this challenging environment is the Verreaux’s sifaka lemur, fully adapted to thrive amongst the spines. Nikon D200 with Nikkor 80-200mm lens (at 200mm) ISO 400, f/3.2 at 1/250th of a second.

A couple of habituated common brown lemurs allowed me to make a close approach on my trip to Madagascar back in 2007. Nikon D200 with Nikkor 17-35mm lens (at 35mm) ISO 200, f/5.6 at 1/60th of a second, Nikon SB-600 flash.

This photo was taken back in 2007 on my first and only trip to Madagascar. It remains the place I want to return to more than anywhere else. I can best describe it as the only place in the world that doesn’t feel like anywhere else in the world. Especially with creatures like this — a leaf-tailed gecko. Usually these guys are quite camouflaged, but this one must have felt threatened and began to display that ferocious-looking, but harmless mouth. Here’s hoping I get back for a visit sometime soon. Nikon D200 with Nikkor 17-35mm lens (at 17mm) ISO 400, f/4.5 at 1/60th of a second, two Nikon SB-600 flash units.

I’ve never posted this before (mainly because I find it to be just an average shot of a lemur — I should have gotten all the way onto the ground and positioned myself for a cleaner background). That said, it’s the shot that would later become the silhouetted ring-tailed lemur icon in my logo. I was scrolling through my old files and came across it and thought I’d share it now. I think it was about eight years ago when I first started using it in my logo, but it was taken back in 2007 in southern Madagascar. Nikon D200 with Nikkor 80-200mm lens (at 200mm) ISO 100, f/3.5 at 1/1250th of a second.

I met this Parson’s chameleon at what was billed as a “reptile farm” while traveling through central Madagascar. It allowed me to get some macro shots of these colorful creatures I’d been seeing on night walks in the forest. Back then I was using a close-up filter screwed to the end of my 80-200mm lens. It worked well in a pinch when not carrying a dedicated macro lens. Nikon D200 with Nikkor 80-200mm lens (at 200mm with Canon 500D close up filter attached) ISO 100, f/6.3 at 1/8th of a second.

These lemurs exhibit behavior that has one of the great names in nature — cathemerality. It means they have no regular pattern of sleep, or daily activity. They are randomly active during every 24 hour cycle. I only saw a few white-fronted brown lemurs in my trip to Madagascar back in 2007, all on the island of Nosy Mangabe. Nikon D200 with Nikkor 600mm manual focus lens, ISO 400, f/5.6 at 1/200th 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.

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 Coquerel’s sifaka lemur eyes the next branch to leap to. Like most lemurs, they are quite acrobatic as they move through the forest. Coquerel’s sifakas live in the dry forests of Western Madagascar where I photographed this one in Ankarafantsika National Park. Nikon D200 with Nikkor 80-200mm lens (at 200mm) ISO 100, f/5.6 at 1/60th of a second, Nikon SB-600 flash.

Looking forward to someday returning to Madagascar. Ring-tailed lemurs were the first of the 23 three species of lemur I ended up photographing on my three-week trip back in 2007. Nikon D200 with Nikkor 80-200mm lens (at 175mm) ISO 100, f/2.8 at 1/1250th of a second.