I only saw one owl while in Tasmania — the southern boobook. It was hiding in an old dilapidated barn on Maria Island when I inadvertently interrupted its daytime sleep.
Nikon D810 with Nikkor 200-400mm lens (at 400mm) ISO 400, f/4 at 1/125th of a second

There are four species of bettong in Australia. The one that occurs in Tasmania is called the eastern bettong (also sometimes called the southern bettong or Tasmanian bettong). As a group, bettongs are often referred to as rat kangaroos, which is a pretty apt description, although they are quite a bit bigger than rats, and I’d say a good deal more attractive. Like many marsupials, they are nocturnal, but I was able to see this one in daylight at the Bonorong Wildlife Sanctuary, a rehabilitation center for rescued animals that will eventually be re-released into the wild.
Nikon D810 with Nikkor 200-400mm (at 330mm) ISO 1600, f/4 at 1/640th of a second

Platypus can be difficult to photograph. First you have to find them. And once you do, they can be very skittish to any movement. What I liked about this shot, is that you can actually see the eyeball, pupil and all. In most shots, it’s hard to make out the actual eye. This was taken on my last full day in Tasmania just outside of the town of Scottsdale in the northeast.
Nikon D800 with Nikkor 70-200mm lens (at 200mm) ISO 400, f/2.8 at 1/500th of a second

Short-beaked echidnas can be hard to photograph because they spend most of the day with their faces buried in the ground searching for ants and other delicacies. When this echidna lifted up, it was clear that it had found what it was looking for. It was spotted with the help of Craig Bushie Williams in the bush just outside of his northern Tasmanian property.
Nikon D810 with Nikkor 200-400mm lens (at 260mm) ISO 800, f/4 at 1/400th of a second

I think this Bennett’s wallaby thought that if it held still for long enough, I wouldn’t notice and would move on. The photo was taken pre-sunrise on Maria Island in Tasmania.
Nikon D810 with Nikkor 200-400mm lens (at 330mm) ISO 800, f/4 at 1/250th of a second

Thanks to the many Tasmanian devil sanctuaries that are doing their best to save this nocturnal marsupial from the deadly facial tumor disease, it is possible to see a captive devil during daylight hours. Even so, they can be difficult to photograph because they never seem to stop moving. I snapped this young devil as it was running along a fallen tree trunk at the Devils@Cradle sanctuary just outside of Cradle Mountain National Park.
Nikon D810 with Nikkor 200-400mm lens (at 200mm) ISO 2500, f/4 at 1/1000th of a second

Another great thing about Tasmania — it has places with names like The Bay of Fires. Tyrion Lannister would feel right at home. At the southern end of the Bay of Fires is a place called Binalong Bay, where I took this photo just before sunrise. Orange lichen is characteristic of the Bay, although it’s not the reason for the name. In 1773, a sea captain saw the fires of Aboriginal people on the beaches and christened the name.
Nikon D800 with Nikkor 17-35mm lens (at 17mm) ISO 200, f/18 at 1, .25, .5, 2, and 4 seconds.

Here’s another shot from northern Tasmania and Narawntapu National Park. It was really great to be all alone with so many forester kangaroos on a night that the sky was so cooperative. I used a small aperture on this one to really bring out the rays of the setting sun.
Nikon D800 with Nikkor 70-200mm lens (at 200mm) ISO 800, f/22 at 1/125th of a second

Sometimes I don’t even realize what I’ve captured in a shot until months later. Thus is the case with this Tasmanian nativehen and her chick. I thought I was just photographing the mother and had no idea that the little head was sticking out of mom’s shoulder. Reviewing images the other day, I was pleasantly surprised. I actually found several photos of different nativeness doing the same thing. The Tasmanian nativehen is one of the twelve endemic bird species that can be found only in Tasmania. It is a flightless bird that has, so far, bucked the trend of flightless birds falling prey to extinction at the hands of human activity. The nativehen is actually doing quite well and I saw many of them throughout the island.
Nikon D810 with Nikkor 200-400mm lens (at 400mm) ISO 800, f/4 at 1/640th of a second

I remember being quite excited to see black swans on my first visit to Australia. Turns out, they’re fairly common in many areas of the country, including Tasmania. This particular swan allowed me a pretty close approach and I was able to get an eye level perspective by lying face down at water’s edge on Bruny Island.
Nikon D810 with Nikkor 200-400mm lens (at 400mm) ISO 800, f/4 at 1/6400th of a second