Wildlife – Page 20 – Earthwatcher

Birds and Flying Bugs

June 10, 2017 by Earthwatcher, posted in American River Parkway, Birds, Butterfly, Eagle, Fujifilm Cameras, Photography, Sacramento, Wildlife

Image of an Eaglet - Bald Eagle Chick, American River Parkway, Folsom, CA, MAY 2017 — Bald Eagle Eaglet

I want to share a few images from some recent walks around the American River Parkway near Folsom, CA. I’ve also included one from Oak Alley Plantation near New Orleans. Nature provides some beautiful creatures for us to appreciate. I hope you enjoy these few.

Regards,

Larry

Note: Click on caption to see image at larger size.

Image of a Female Eastern or Common Pondhawk Dragonfly, Oak Alley Plantation, LA, APR 2017 — Eastern or Common Pondhawk

Image of a California Quail, American River Parkway, Folsom, CA, JUN 2017 — California Quail

Image of a Northern Mockingbird, American River Parkway, Folsom, CA, JUN 2017 — Northern Mockingbird

Image of an Ash-throated Flycatcher, American River Parkway, FOlsom, CA, JUN 2017 — Ash-throated Flycatcher

Image of a Spicebush Swallowtail butterfly, American River Parkway, Folsom, CA, JUN 2017 — Spicebush Swallowtail

IMage of a Spanish Swallowtailbutterfly, American River Parkway, Folsom, CA, JUN 2017 — Spanish Swallowtail

Image of a pair of Tree Swallows, American River Parkway, FOlsom, CA, JUN 2017 — Tree Swallows

Image of a California Towhee, American River Parkway, Folsom, CA, JUN 2017 — California Towhee

Note: These and other images are available for purchase on my website: www.earthwatcher.us or by contacting larry@earthwatcher.us

Sad Elephant

February 27, 2017 by Earthwatcher, posted in Elephant, Fujifilm Cameras, Photography, Wildlife

I took this image of an elephant at Addo Elephant National Park in South Africa. This beautiful but sad face tugged at my heart strings a bit.

Note: These and other images are available for purchase on my website: http://www.earthwatcher.us or by contacting larry@earthwatcher.us

Hornbills

November 5, 2016 by Earthwatcher, posted in Bird Photography, Birds, Fujifilm Cameras, Photography, South Africa, Wildlife

Image of Southern Ground Hornbill - Perspective 2 — Southern Ground Hornbill

One of the many species of birds we saw while in South Africa were hornbills. They are beautiful birds that cast a striking pose even when flying. I hope you enjoy these images I am sharing.

Regards,

Larry

Click on image to view in larger size.

Image of Yellow Billed Hornbill - Perspective 2 — Pair of Yellow Billed Hornbills

Image of Red Billed Hornbill — Red Billed Hornbill

Image of Southern Ground Hornbill - Perspective 1 — Pair of Southern Ground Hornbills

Image of Yellow Billed Hornbill - Perspective 1 — Yellow Billed Hornbill

These and other images are available to purchase on my website: www.earthwatcher.us or by contacting larry@earthwatcher.us

African Penguin

October 8, 2016 by Earthwatcher, posted in Earthwatcher, Fujifilm Cameras, Penguin, Photography, South Africa, Wildlife

The African Penguin is a species of penguin found in the waters surrounding southern Africa. It is also known as the jackass penguin because of its donkey like bray. Its numbers are declining and it is considered endangered.

South Africa has created a reserve for these penguins on Boulder Beach near Simon’s Town. There is a nice boardwalk down to the beach and an observation platform for viewing. The penguins meander around and come very close to you. They were a lot of fun to watch.

I hope you enjoy these images.

Regards,

Larry

Note: Click on individual images to see in larger size.

African Penguin - Perspective 6 — African Penguin – Perspective 6

African Penguin - Perspective 5 — African Penguin – Perspective 3

African Penguin - Perspective 1 — African Penguin – Perspective 1

African Penguin - Perspective 4 — African Penguin – Perspective 4

African Penguin - Perspective 3 — African Penguin – Perspective 3

These and other images are available for purchase at my website: www.earthwatcher.us or by contacting me.

Antelope

October 7, 2016 by Earthwatcher, posted in Antelope, images, Photography, South Africa, Wildlife

Waterbuck - Perspective 2 — Waterbuck – Perspective 2, Elephant Plains Game Lodge, Sabi Sands, South Africa

I learned on my trip that South Africa has no deer, only antelope. I had never been curious enough to find out what the really is the difference between deer and antelope; they look mostly the same. I learned that deer, as well as elk and moose, have antlers made of bone and are shed and regrown every year. Antelope have horns which have a bony core covered by keratin. Horns are not shed and regrown. I did know that there were different varieties of antelope but, though I only saw a sample, I was really surprised at how many varieties there are.

A few weeks ago I published pictures of the beautiful kudu. Today I am rounding out my collection with the tiny duiker and steenbok, the klipspringer (rock jumper), the ubiquitous impala, the bontebok, the hartebeest and the big, beautiful waterbuck.

I hope you enjoy these images.

Regards,

Larry

Note: the images can be seen in a larger size at: https://larryklink.smugmug.com/South-African-Adventure-2016 in the Antelope and Waterbuck Galleries

Duiker, Elephant Plains Game Lodge, Sabi Sands, South Africa

Impala Herd, Kruger National Park, South Africa, AUG 2016

Waterbuck - Perspective 3 — Waterbuck – Perspective 3, Kruger National Park, South Africa, AUG 2016

Steenbok - Perspective 1 — Steenbok- Perspective 1, Kruger National Park, South Africa, AUG 2016

Steenbok - Perspective 2 — Steenbok, Perspective 2, Kruger National Park, South Africa, AUG 2016

Klipspringer (Rock Jumper), Kruger National Park, South Africa, AUG 2016

Bontebuck — Bontebuk, South Africa, August 2016

Hartebeast — Hartebeest, Addo Elephant Park, South Africa, AUG 2016

These and other images are available for purchase at my website: www.earthwatcher.us or by contacting me.

The African Fish Eagle

October 4, 2016 by Earthwatcher, posted in Bird Photography, Birds, Eagle, Fujifilm Cameras, images, Photography, South Africa, Wildlife

African Fish Eagle in Flight - Perspective 1 — African Fish Eagle In Flight – Kruger National Park, South Africa, AUG 2016

The African Fish Eagle was the most common large raptor we saw on our trip to South Africa. It is a beautiful bird that is a cousin to our American Bald Eagle. I learned from my friend Kevin that both the African Fish Eagle and the Bald Eagle belong to the family of fish eagles. They are distinguished from the family of booted or true eagles by their legs. True eagles have feathers on their lower legs. I am a novice birder and never realized there were different types of eagles. By the way, our Golden Eagle is a snake eagle; yet another type.

Our most interesting encounter was watching a fish eagle being chased by a Blacksmith Lapwing. I guess the eagle was too close to a nest. It was fun watching it fend off numerous attacks.

I hope you enjoy these images of these magnificent birds,

Regards,

Larry

African FIsh Eagle Feeding - Perspective 1 — African Fish Eagle Feeding – Perspective 1, Kruger National Park, South Africa, AUG 2016

African FIsh Eagle Feeding - Perspective 2 — African Fish Eagle Feeding – Perspective 2, Kruger National Park, South Africa, AUG 2016

African FIsh Eagle Fending Lapwing Attack - Perspective 1 — African Fish Eagle Fending Lapwing Attack – Perspective 1, Kruger National Park, South Africa, AUG 2016

African FIsh Eagle Fending Lapwing Attack - Perspective 2 — African Fish Eagle Fending Lapwing Attack – Perspective 2, Kruger National Park, South Africa, AUG 2016

African FIsh Eagle and Great Egret — African Fish Eagle and Great Egret, Kruger National Park, South Africa, AUG 2016

Note: These and other images are available for sale on my website: www.earthwatcher.us or by contacting me.

Elephants

September 22, 2016 by Earthwatcher, posted in Elephant, Fujifilm Cameras, Photography, South Africa, Wildlife

Nuzzling, Elephant Plains Game Lodge, Sabi Sands, South Africa

Today, 9/22, is National Elephant Appreciation Day; yes, really it is. So, to celebrate, I decided to publish my elephant pics from South Africa.

Our elephant experience was interesting. I learned that they are not subtle animals. You only have to look at the broken brush, trees and branches as well as the trail of dung to know elephants have been through. Elephants eat a lot but only digest a small portion of what they eat. Their dung becomes a source of food for other animals. At Addo Elephant National Park, they have signs warning you not to run over dung beetles because they are the clean-up crew and are an important part of the ecosystem.

I knew from documentaries that elephants are very protective of their young. But, it was interesting to see it in action. When elephants didn’t feel threatened, the calves romped and played. At the first sign of threat, the adults herded the young in between them. It is really neat to see this behavior firsthand.

I hope you enjoy my images of these fascinating creatures.

Regards

Larry

Note: 1) Click on image to see in larger size

2) These and other images are available for purchase at http://www.earthwatcher.us or by contacing larry@earthwatcher.us

Coming to the Water Hole - P1 — Coming to the Water Hole – Perspective 1. Elephant Plains Game Lodge, Sabi Sands, South Africa

Coming to the Water Hole - P2 — Coming to the Water Hole – Perspective 2. Elephant Plains Game Lodge, Sabi Sands, South Africa

Ready for a Swig. Elephant Plains Game Lodge, Sabi Sands, South Africa

Calf at the Water Hole. Elephant Plains Game Lodge, Sabi Sands, South Africa

Elephant Calf. Kruger National Park, South Africa, AUG 2016

Along the Game Trail - P1 — Along the Game Trail – Perspective 1. Kruger National Park, South Africa, AUG 2016

Along the Game Trail - P2 — Along the Game Trail – Perspective 2. Kruger National Park, South Africa, AUG 2016

Foraging at Sunset. Kruger National Park, South Africa, AUG 2016

Calf at the Mud Hole — Calf at Mud Hole. Addo Elephant Park, South Africa, AUG 2016

Momma and Baby - P1 — Momma and Baby – Perspective 1. Kruger National Park, South Africa, AUG 2016

Dolphins in the Surf

September 22, 2016 by Earthwatcher, posted in Dolphins, Fujifilm Cameras, images, Photography, South Africa, Wildlife

Sometimes you are lucky and are at the right place and right time. We spent one night at Mboyti River Lodge, Lusikisiki, South Africa; a lovely place along the Indian Ocean coast. I got up early in the morning hoping to get a nice sunrise shot. I did and will share it later. I found a nice spot, on a small embankment overlooking the ocean. As I scanned the ocean, I saw a few dolphins. Over the next few minutes a whole pod showed up – probably 30 of them. I have wanted a shot of the dolphins in the surf line for a long time. This morning, they put on a great show for me. I hope you enjoy this image.

Note: Click on image to see it in a larger size.

Baboons

September 19, 2016 by Earthwatcher, posted in Baboon, Fujifilm Cameras, Photography, South Africa, Wildlife

Pensive Baboon, Kruger National Park, South Africa, AUG 2016

My wife says that Baboons are wretched creatures. They look like monkeys but have an unsettling grunt and 3 inch canine teeth. When we stayed at Elephant Plains Game Lodge, we were awoken each morning by their unnerving growls that sounded like they were right outside our door and on our roof. The Leopard’s growl wasn’t as unsettling as the Baboon’s.

Baboons are very smart; especially when it comes to acquiring food. We were warned to keep our doors locked because they can open doors and will trash your room looking for food. At one stop, I watched a baboon open a garbage can and grab some leftovers. We were also warned that they will grab bags you may be carrying or steal food from your table.

Though they can be a fearsome nuisance, they are also fun to watch. They are fellow primates and I could see some of us in them. We watched them jumping and chasing each other through trees and over rocks. We watched them groom each other and care for their young. Wretched, maybe. Scary, sometimes. Interesting and fun to watch, absolutely.

I hope you enjoy these images.

Regards,

Larry

Note: Images can be viewed at a larger size by clicking on image.

Infant Baboon, Kruger National Park, South Africa, AUG 2016

Grooming the Little Baboon — Grooming Little Baboon, Kruger National Park, South Africa, AUG 2016

Baboon - Perspective 3 — Baboon – Perspective 3, Kruger National Park, South Africa, AUG 2016

These and other images are available for purchase at my website: http://www.earthwatcher.us or by contactin larry@earthwatcher.us.

The Lions

September 17, 2016 by Earthwatcher, posted in Fujifilm Cameras, Lion, Photography, South Africa, Wildlife

A Coalition of Male Lions — Coalition of Male Lions, Elephant Plains Game Lodge, Sabi Sands, South Africa

We had 4 lion sightings on our trip. Unfortunately, on the best opportunity, a female babysitting the pride’s cubs, I had to shoot through the windshield because we couldn’t get a good position. As is expected, lions draw big crowds and lot of folks beat us to the site. So, with that, I’ll tell you that my lion images aren’t of the quality I typically post. I posted them more because I thought they would be interesting.

Except for the cubs, lions like to lay down and sleep most of the time. Our first encounter was with 3 males. Except for one who took a few minutes to look at us, they all laid down and closed their eyes as if we weren’t there. The best shots came at night, in Kruger, when we encountered a mating pair. When mating, the male and female roam together, away from the pride, for three days. We watched and photographed them for 15-20 minutes before they walked off into the bush.

By the way, I learned something about lions while I was there. A pride of lions is a group of females and cubs. They have a territory but live in a territory that is controlled by a coalition of male lions; usually brothers. One male in the coalition is the alpha.

I hope you find these shots interesting. Again, my apologies on the quality.

Regards

Larry

Note: Click on image to view it in a larger size