Leatherback sea turtles were on my mind as I pulled into Hobe Sound National Wildlife Refuge’s beach-side parking lot. My quest for nesting sea turtles to photograph for my Wild Florida book had begun several weeks prior, before summer settled in. I knew where to find Florida’s...
It was still dark when we gathered in the small office. Dressed in long-pants and long-sleeves with steaming coffee mugs in hand and headlamps shining from our foreheads, we headed to the boat ramp. In an early morning daze, we talked in unnecessarily hushed tones...
It was the new moon and it was dark, the type of blackness one never sees in the city. I squinted at the dirt road glowing in my headlights, hoping to spot a snake soaking in the last warmth of the day, or perhaps a...
I arrived at Jonathan Dickinson State Park with no real agenda. It had been the closest camping spot I could find to Hobe Sound National Wildlife Refuge where I intended to take pictures of sea turtles early the next morning for my forthcoming book Wild...
For me, 2019 was packed with adventures as I explored Florida beyond my southern base in pursuit of animals to photograph for my new book project with the University Press of Florida, Wild Florida: The Animals of the Sunshine State. As I continue my quest...
We’d barely dropped from the ridge into our first flower-studded meadow along Mt. Rainier’s Northern Loop Trail when my hiking buddy popped the question – “What’s the wildlife goal this time?”I had to laugh; this woman knew me well. She’d trudged through parks in Miami...
How do you approach a polar bear? I confess, it’s not a question I spent time contemplating until I began exploring my options for a polar bear expedition. Canada’s Churchill in northern Manitoba, otherwise known as the polar bear capital of the world and possibly...
It all started with a polar bear just outside the compound fence. It was a large male; close enough for me to see snow piled on its nose, but only when it peeked around the assortment of steel drums between us. I was clearly on...
For an entire week of travel in Africa, we had heard nothing other than how the wildebeest migration wasn’t happening. Rains had come to the south, grasses were dry in the north, and prescribed burns in Tanzania were said to be dissuading these famed antelope...
Let’s face it, birders can be a serious bunch. There are both written and unspoken rules that garner more than just glares if broken - God forbid you point or wear white boots. I’m pretty sure laughter is generally frowned upon as well. Yet it...