Wildlife

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These Feet are Made for Diving

January 31, 2012 Ducks and Others

Ducks have reason to be nervous around us humans in the winter, and diving ducks are always dive-ready if danger is imminent. Sometimes, I refrain from even pointing my lens at ducks, having learned that this act alone can be a stressor for them. Almost all flying ducks will divert course, even a little, when [...]

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Grackles & Apples …

January 17, 2012 Birds

… and grackles foraging across Nevada, exploiting urban food scraps. One of my favorite things about visiting southern climates is the summer night chatter of grackles … the cavatina that becomes the dissonant ensemble of grackle song when huge groups of the birds roost on urban plazas. These were winter-time grackles — Great-tailed Grackles roaming [...]

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Having a Heart for Horses

January 16, 2012 Laws & Policy

In commemoration of the Martin Luther King, Jr. holiday: “Never, never be afraid to do what’s right, especially if the well-being of a person or animal is at stake. Society’s punishments are small compared to the wounds we inflict on our soul when we look the other way. ” ~ Martin Luther King, Jr. I’ve [...]

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The Wild Horses of Vegas

January 10, 2012 Mammals

You see signs of wild horses before you ever see horses … And, along the way, these signs … From the point where I turned off the highway north of Las Vegas and headed west into wild horse country, I drifted under the speed limit in anticipation — watching for horses on the two-lane road [...]

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Pinniped R&R

October 17, 2011 Marine Mammals

(about pinnipeds) This group of California sea lions (Zalophus californianus) was hauled out on a dock in Westport, Washington. The scene reminded me of Pier 39 in San Francisco — although on a much smaller scale. California sea lions are a protected species and, by law, all marine mammals should be viewed from a distance [...]

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The Orca-Scat Tracking Dog

October 6, 2011 Endangered Species

Tucker isn’t really interested in the water. But, he spends his working days on a boat, sniffing out orca scat in the breezes of the Salish Sea. He’s a labrador mix, trained as part of the Conservation Canine program — at the University of Washington’s Center For Conservation Biology. Tucker’s ambivalence about water actually makes [...]

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If Orcas Could Buy Sofas …

October 2, 2011 Marine Mammals

Orcas can’t, of course, pick out sofas. But if they could, they would tell you that their survival may depend on the product and furniture choices we make — and the industries we support in the process. The orcas of the Salish Sea, who regularly cross the international boundary between Washington State and British Columbia, [...]

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A Train of Thought on Orcas and Captivity

August 29, 2011 Captivity

In preparation for a short trip where we may or may not encounter Orcas (again), I’m immersed in literature about the Southern and Northern resident pods and about significant issues affecting whales and other wild marine mammals — like sonar, salmon stocks and Puget Sound pollution. We’ll be out just one of those days in [...]

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The One I Couldn’t Help

May 16, 2011 Bay Flotsam

It was one of those anomalous sunny days in the midst of Seattle downpours. A Flickr friend of mine told me about a tugboat race on Elliott Bay, so I thought I’d walk the Terminal 91 bike path to the water. The “path” is an industrial slog — a cement slough leading to Puget Sound, [...]

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This is not a Duck

February 24, 2011 Marine Mammals

I went out to photograph ducks in this morning’s fresh snow. As I approached the pond, I noticed that ALL of the Mallards (every single one) were sitting on the banks. I felt the reverb of a huge splash in my periphery and thought, wow, big fish. Sturgeon-caliber fish. When “it” resurfaced, “it” had a [...]

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Wildlife Photography on a Budget

February 8, 2011 Photography

Here’s a great way to make a photographer happy: After viewing her photos, say something like “wow, you must have really great gear.” Everyone knows photography is not about the gear. Right? Well, it isn’t . . . but sometimes it is. Artistic vision is definitely not about the gear. And you’ll rankle a lot [...]

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Dine Like an Eagle

October 24, 2010 Birds

Taken during a recent visit in the Northwest. We came upon this scene on a Seattle area beach . . . a small stretch of private community beach where we have a guest pass . . . the same beach where I was shown the gate, when I wandered too far during my first stroll [...]

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Pigeon Over Seattle

October 6, 2010 Doves & Pigeons

This pigeon did aerial turns and hovers that rivaled a raptor’s. I captured a few frames as she took off from Pike Place Market and hovered for a few seconds against Seattle’s skyline. Thanks to SkeletalMess on Flickr for the Creative Commons texture “Tainted” which I used in the above rendering. Related Pigeon Posts: Lancelot-Guinevere: [...]

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I Let a Song Go Out of My Heart

October 5, 2010 Perching Birds

A Starling’s tribute to Duke Ellington . . . jockeying for best song position, and losing it to a crow. Shot with my Olympus E-520 and Zuiko 70-300mm. The photo was taken as the sun receded behind clouds, just above the horizon, so it was later-afternoon warm and filtered.

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Give Wildlife a Break: Plum Solutions

August 29, 2010 Urban Wildlife & Nature

On a recent morning, nursing my perfect cup of coffee as brewed by my perfect host of a friend, I heard a sound from the kitchen. A shout, actually …

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Wolves Back on Endangered Species List

August 6, 2010 Endangered Species

I’ll let the Defenders of Wildlife release speak for me. I’m just elated the wolf hunts have come to an end. A federal judge ruled that the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service acted illegally when it removed wolves from the endangered species list in Idaho and Montana but left them on the list in Wyoming. [...]

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Through the Lens of Glenn Nevill

July 28, 2010 Bay Area Faves

A photograph’s true essence is visceral: How does it make you feel? What does the image inspire? It’s an impression that defies pixel peeping — where the mood and meaning of a photo can be crushed in a haze of digital noise, scrutinized at 100 percent.

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Seeking Justice for a Sea Otter: It’s a Small World

July 22, 2010 Bay Area Faves

I received a notice tonight from Defenders of Wildlife, asking for help in finding the killer of a young sea otter. The female otter was found along Morro Strand in June of this year — slain illegally, with the post-mortem revealing a shot to her head. In seeking additional information on this case, I landed [...]

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Scrub Jay Way

July 14, 2010 Corvids

This Scrub Jay came to us as a tame and inquisitive interloper. He landed on the bannister, then sat and looked in our kitchen window all morning. He’d obviously done this before. But … he’d landed at a kitchen fresh out of peanuts. He gave up. True to jay form (persistence and sweat), he showed [...]

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Thumbnail image for Fast Food [Gull] Nation

Fast Food [Gull] Nation

June 1, 2010 Animal Behavior

Part of what makes gulls both amusing and exasperating to humans is their cleverness and opportunism when it comes to food. Across the gull universe, the diet is omnivorous. They’ll eat crustaceans, fish, insects and other marine organisms. They will also prey on the nests of other bird species for food. A number of researchers [...]

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