animal

Wild Encounters in Yosemite

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Yosemite National Park isn't just a haven for awe-inspiring landscapes; it's also home to a diverse array of wildlife that adds a layer of wonder to your visit. Capturing the park's inhabitants through the lens is a rewarding experience that offers a glimpse into the natural world's intricacies. Among the creatures I encountered were mule deer, Steller's jays, ground squirrels, and ravens, each offering a unique opportunity for wildlife photography.

Remember that photographing wildlife always requires patience and respect for these creatures' natural behaviors. Keep a respectful distance, avoid feeding them, and observe from a distance. With a keen eye and a quiet camera, you can capture the essence of Yosemite's wildlife and bring home lasting memories of your wild encounters.

Balboa Park's Urban Wildlife

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In San Diego, you don’t need to go too far to encounter wildlife. In fact, Balboa Park - a popular tourist spot featuring an assortment of local museums, gardens, and eateries - is an excellent place to spot some urban dwellers such as black phoebes, squirrels, and Eastern bluebirds. Here are some of my favourite images from an afternoon spent walking around the park and appreciating the urban wildlife that lives in this beautiful corner of Southern California.

Memories of Home

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Happy holidays! To me, the winter season has strong associations with time spent in Brazil with family, enjoying a christmas feast in the summer heat. It’s quite different from the stereotypical snowy winters of the northern hemisphere. So, this year I am bringing my holiday blog post closer to “home” and taking the opportunity to share some of the wonderful birds of South America. Of course, there’s a catch - these were photographed in San Diego Zoo’s tropical aviary, rather than their natural jungle environments. I hope you enjoy this somewhat unusual winter blog post, full of vibrant colours and charismatic wildlife!

Stars From The Underground

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As night falls and darkness covers the land, the New Zealand landscape comes to light. I’m not referring to the stars in the skies of Aotearoa, but to their invertebrate counterparts. Glow worms such as these are abundant in many caves and dells across the country, shining bright to lure their prey. Their bioluminescence is the effect of a chemical reaction where luciferin is combined with oxygen to produce a mesmerizing blue glow...

Royalty of the Wetlands

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Rare as they are, even in their full breeding plumage, I’m afraid White Herons still can’t compete with Royal Spoonbills (Platalea regia) in my books. It’s a matter of personal opinion, of course, but to me these enormous birds are the uncontested kings and queens of the wetlands. I thoroughly enjoyed photographing these avian giants swooping between their nesting sites, and occasionally fighting each other, during our birdwatching tour with White Heron Sanctuary Tours.

Cute Little Visitor

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Female tomtits have adorable disproportionately large heads for their minscule bodies. I was fortunate enough to spend some days living right next to a pair of these beautiful birds during my visit to Franz Josef village, and the female would often bring about new nesting material. Watching her hop from tree to tree through my telephoto lens was a great way to spend a lazy afternoon!

Birds of New Caledonia

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One of the perks of my work is that I get to visit some beautiful places and get to see some amazing animal species. For three years, I visited New Caledonia to work with the incredible New Caledonian crows, a species that crafts and uses sticks and hooks as tools to extract grubs from rotten tree trunks. Here are some images of these crows, and a couple other endemic bird species that can be seen in the Grande-Terre island.

Wild Wairarapa

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Cape Palliser is the home to a fantastic fur seal colony, besides its beautiful lighthouse. During our stay in Masterton, we spent an afternoon here with the seals. You can get really up close to them without stressing them, allowing for really great photo opportunities.

Here are some of my favourite images of these beautiful animals.

Pukaha Mount Bruce Wildlife Centre

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The Pukaha Mount Bruce Wildlife Centre is located in the region of Wairarapa. It houses a wide range of native New Zealand birds, including the rare kokako and takahe. It was a lovely afternoon stop on a cloudy day.

Here are some images of the New Zealand fauna which can be seen at the sanctuary.

Gannets at Hawke's Bay

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Cape Kidnappers is the largest terrestrial colony of Australasian gannets. Every winter, adult gannets flock here to mate. They raise a single chick every year, which fledges by the end of April. Surviving chicks embark on a long trip to Australia’s southern coasts, where they will mature into adults, before they return to their colony of origin. Only thirty percent of all chicks return each year.

We spent our first morning of 2018 here whilst staying in Napier. It was a fantastic way to see in a new year, right up close to these giants with 2 metre wingspans.