Here’s my attempt at an arty Forster’s Tern shot from Wakodahatchee Wetlands. They were a blast to shoot while they were there, providing quite a challenge when diving. (Sterna forsteri) (Sony a9M3, 200-600 lens @ 600mm, F/6.3, 1/4000 second, ISO 1000)

Tags:   Forster's Tern Sterna forsteri wakodahatchee Sonya9M3 tern diving high key low key reflection

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None of my small critter series would be complete without an American Pika. They're just too darned cute and charming to be left out.

This little guy/gal was blending in nicely on a boulder at 12,000 feet elevation in Rocky Mountain National Park.

We're about to depart the winter doldrums for a warmer, sunnier climate, hopefully with lots of cooperative birds. So I'll be absent from Flickr for the next couple of weeks. Adios Amigos!

Tags:   American Pika Ochotona princeps tiny wildlife Lagomorph high elevation rocky mountain national park blending in nature's camo Colorado wildlife nature conservation protect wildlife protect public lands cute critter

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Big bro!!!

and the wrestling match continues . . .

Tags:   Alaska Bears Grizzly Bears

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The first rays of morning sun stream into the clouds and reach into the depths to stir the velvet tones of lingering twilight from the vantage of Hopi Point, Grand Canyon National Park, Arizona.

I awoke before my alarm as often happens when I retire still thinking about the sunrise adventure on the morrow. A 45-minute drive awaited, and I wanted to arrive well before official sunrise. I had never visited the Grand Canyon prior to this trip, and when I enquired with my grad school advisor where might prove enrapturing at the first light of day, he immediately recommended Hopi Point. He and his wife have both spent more time exploring the Canyon than the average person, so it seemed only right to follow through.

The trusty EuroVan, now old enough to purchase an adult beverage in the United States (plus a couple years), delivered me to the Hopi Point overlook when it was still quite dark. A number of tourists were there already, bunching up in a corner of the protective railing and gazing east where anticipation lay on the horizon, intertwined with a promising layer of clouds. I stepped over a low, protective wall and made my way toward the edge, where the brain stem and the self-protective endocrine system began to fire warning shots across the bow. I set up my tripod within about 20 inches of a rather abrupt transition in topography, and I began to pay careful attention to not moving my feet as I watched and waited with the camera.

The world can be so beautiful that it can almost feel impossible.

Tags:   Arizona Colorado Plateau Grand Canyon Grand Canyon National Park Hopi Point Landscape National Park U.S. National Park Winter clouds crepuscular crepuscular light dawn desert magic hour morning morning light sunrise winter sunrise

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This Anhinga was flying along, distracted with deep thoughts as to where to get the best twigs for the nest, when suddenly he looked up and I was standing right in his flight path. Thankfully for both of us, he was a good enough flyer to deviate around me. I was looking though my viewfinder at the time, and it was pretty exciting to see it come that close at speed through the magnification of my lens. It made me laugh! (Latin naming award for originality: Anhinga anhinga) (Sony a9M3, 200-600 lens at 259mm, 1/4000 second, f/6.3, ISO 800)

Tags:   wakodahatchee Anhinga Anhinga anhinga Sonya9M3 Sonya9iii

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