From late October through February, tens of thousands of monarch butterflies can be found overwintering at the Pismo Beach Monarch Butterfly Grove in central California. They are part of one of nature’s great migrations as they make their way down from Canada. Butterflies west of the Rocky Mountains spend their winters at many locations along the California coast, while those east of the Rockies migrate all the way down to Mexico. At night, the butterflies cluster on tree branches and look like leaves. It’s only when the sun starts to warm up that they open their wings and begin to fly around. The first time I visited the grove I didn’t notice the butterflies at first, mistaking them for bunches of leaves.
Nikon D300 with Nikkor 200-400mm lens (at 200mm) ISO 800, f/10 at 1/800th of a second

It was early in the morning down at Bombay Hook National Wildlife Refuge in Delaware when I saw this red fox trotting along the side of the road with what appears to be a female red-winged blackbird in its mouth. She was heading back to her den where two pups were waiting for their breakfast.
Nikon D300 with Nikkor 200-400mm lens (at 200mm) ISO 400, f/5.6 at 1/640th of a second

This cold morning reminds me of another cold morning a few years back when I was in Bosque Del Apache National Wildlife Refuge in New Mexico photographing sandhill cranes and snow geese. Each morning the snow geese would blast off en masse from the area’s ponds and lakes and take to the skies in large flocks. I used a slow shutter speed in this shot and panned with the flight of the geese to create blurred motion.
Nikon D700 with Nikkor 70-200mm lens (at 200mm) ISO 400, f/13 at 1/40th of a second

This will be the last post before the holiday break. Seemed appropriate — a couple of polar bears playing in the snow and ice. Hope everyone has a great break. Stay tuned for all new photos in 2014.
Nikon D300 with Nikkor 200-400mm lens (at 400mm) ISO 800, f/4 at 1/500th of a second

You can never be too careful walking along a waterway while in Florida. This alligator was hunkered down in the grass, silently watching when I hiked past. After my initial surprise, I got down on the grass too — a safe distance away, of course — and let my telephoto lens do the work.
Nikon D800 with Nikkor 200-400mm lens (at 400mm) ISO 800, f/4 at 1/500th of a second

There are many pockets of the United States where you can still see wild horses, mustangs, whatever you want to call them, roaming free — both in the east and out west. This guy was grazing near Monument Valley National Tribal Park in southern Utah.
Nikon D700 with Nikkor 70-200mm lens (at 190mm) ISO 800, f/4 at 1/320th of a second, graduated neutral density filter

This California ground squirrel seems quite pleased with how its day is going. Perhaps because it found a spot devoid of any rattlesnakes, eagles, foxes, badgers, weasels, and raccoons — all of which, consider ground squirrel’s quite delicious for dinner. These squirrels are common (as the name would suggest) in California and in Oregon, and have been pushing their range even further north into Washington state.
Nikon D300 with Nikkor 200-400mm lens (at 400mm) ISO 400, f/4 at 1/320th of a second

Short-eared owls are fun to watch hunt. They fly close to the ground before making a quick dive at their prey. This guy was scanning the marshland along Boundary Bay in Western Canada for any tasty rodents.
Nikon D800 with Nikkor 200-400mm lens (at 400mm) ISO 1250, f/5 at 1/1000th of a second

The cheetah may be the fastest land mammal on earth, but when it comes to long range speed, it can’t touch the pronghorn (up to 55 miles per hour for five miles). The pronghorn ranges across a large area of western North America, along the front range of the Rockies. This one, photographed in Badlands National Park in South Dakota, wasn’t exactly showing off its stellar speed, but it cooperated by posing in front of the colorful early morning sky.
Nikon D700 with Nikkor 70-200mm lens (at 200mm) ISO 800, f/4 at 1/125th of a second, graduated neutral density filter