Three female lions rest on the vast African plains of the Masai Mara in Kenya. Shortly after taking this shot, they were joined by two others from the pride and they made an attempt to capture a warthog. I had no idea how fast a warthog could be and despite the well orchestrated ambush by the lions, the warthog narrowly escaped. Those are cape buffalo in the distance. Nikon D850 with Nikkor 70-200mm lens (at 125mm) ISO 400, f/5.6 at 1/2500th of a second.
Roseate spoonbills range east of the Andes in South America and on up through the Caribbean, Central America, Mexico and as far north as the gulf coast of the United States. I’ve photographed them in Texas, Louisiana and in this case, Florida. Much like flamingos, they get their color from the foods they eat — crustaceans and other aquatic invertebrates that contain carotenoids that turn their feathers pink. Nikon D300 with Nikkor 200-400mm lens (with 1.4x teleconverter for 550mm) ISO 400, f/8 at 1/1250th of a second.
Of the five species of penguin I photographed in the Falkland Islands, the Magellanic is the only one that digs burrows in the ground. This Magellanic penguin was working on lining that burrow with twigs and straw. Photographed early morning at Volunteer Point. Nikon D800 with Nikkor 200-400mm lens (at 400mm) ISO 800, f/4 at 1/1600th of a second.
A bighorn ewe munches on some grass in Yellowstone National Park in Wyoming. Like the rams, female bighorn also have horns, but nothing like the size and shape of their male counterparts. Nikon D810 with Nikkor 200-400mm lens (at 200mm) ISO 2000, f/4 at 1/400th of a second.
A mother African bush elephant leads her calf on a foraging mission under a full moon in Samburu National Reserve, Kenya. Nikon D850 with Nikkor 70-200mm lens (at 70mm) ISO 800, f/4 at 1/200th of a second, 3 stop graduated neutral density filter.
The Malagasy kingfisher is a colorful little bird that I saw in a few different locations on my Madagascar trip years ago. They are relatively small as far as kingfishers go. This one was spotted on the island of Nosy Mangabe which is off the east coast of Madagascar. Nikon D200 with Nikkor 600mm f/5.6 manual focus lens, ISO 400, f/5.6 at 1/4th of a second.
As the name suggests, these guys eat a lot of bamboo. They are a smallish and highly athletic lemur. I photographed this one in Andasibe-Mantadia National Park in Madagascar. Nikon D200 with Nikkor 80-200mm lens (at 120mm) ISO 400, f/2.8 at 1/125th of a second.
This is a perfectly fine, but rather ordinary shot of a bear. But what I really like about it is that it was taken in my side yard on Friday. We also had three other bear sightings in the yard that day. And at least one sighting a week over the last month or so. True, our house sits on five acres and the neighborhood is fairly wooded, but we also happen to be only fifteen minutes to the state capitol in downtown Hartford. Being quarantined here at home isn’t so bad after all. Nikon D500 with Nikkor 500mm pf lens, ISO 3200, f/5.6 at 1/125th of a second.
A few of these guys have been hanging around in the woods behind my house. Always nice to see. The largest North American woodpecker (that is, unless the ivory-billed woodpecker isn’t extinct). Nikon D500 with Nikkor 500mm pf lens, ISO 1600, f/5.6 at 1/160th of a second.
Today is my wife’s birthday. It’s a milestone year so I figure I better post something she likes. I know she loves cape buffalo. Their anthropomorphic expressions of disinterest and disdain always made her laugh. This guy was doing his “get off my yard” best as we drove past in the Masai Mara of Kenya. Nikon D500 with Nikkor 200-400mm lens (at 290mm) ISO 800, f/4 at 1/320th of a second.