Strike a Pose
January 26, 2020
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Do you want to learn how to take better wildlife pictures?
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I found this owl after several hours of hiking in Grand Teton National Park. Others had reported seeing owl activity in the area but I always arrived on the scene a few minutes late it seems...
Getting tired of driving around the park for hours (and...
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Teton Bugle
January 23, 2020
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September and October signal the time for one of my favorite wildlife spectacles in the US: the elk rut!
The Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem is home to many elk, including one of the most famous elk herds in the country: the Jackson Hole herd.
Famous for spending their winters on the National Elk Refuge near Jackson, Wyoming, these elk spread out d...
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Scenic Moose
January 15, 2020
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Fall season is an amazing time to find yourself in the Tetons in Jackson Hole, Wyoming.
The combination of beautiful fall colors with mating (or rutting) season for some of the park's largest inhabitants; elk and moose; brings many visitors to the area annually.
While hiking in the forest near Schwabacher Landing in Grand Teton National Park, all...
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Flehmen Moose
January 10, 2020
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The flehmen response.
The fleh.. what?
The animal behavior called a "flehmen response" is recognized when an animal lifts up its head and curls back its upper lip exposing its front teeth. As you can see in the below picture, moose are one of the species that perform this behavior.
How?
The technical explanation is that this behavior helps scen...
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Threesome
January 04, 2020
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After the moose's mating season comes to an end in late October, the first snow is usually already on the ground in Yellowstone and Grand Teton.
The males quiet down from their violent hormone-driven fights and hang out in groups during the wintertime; supposedly in peace and quiet. Males will be males however and the odd 'practice fight' is never...
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Happy New Year!
December 31, 2019
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Do you want to learn how to take better wildlife pictures?
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Happy New Year!
Somewhere in the National Forest outside of Grand Teton National Park lives a grizzly bear mom and a very brave cub.
When the mom (known as Felicia or #863) woke up from hibernation this spring, she found two tiny cubs by her side. D...
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Bugling Bull
December 27, 2019
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One of the most amazing sounds in nature for me is the bugling of a bull elk.
The first time I ever heard bugling was when I visited - of all places - California's Redwood National park. When you're looking to photograph elk, Redwood probably won't make it onto many lists.
The National Park is famous for its tall redwood trees. In fact, the talle...
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Looking Back On 2019
December 21, 2019
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With the holidays upon us and 2020 - and an entire new decade - just around the corner, I thought it was a good time to look back on 2019.
After leaving my "real office job", this was the first year of my new venture as a wildlife photographer. A lot comes to mind, including valuable lessons learned. I hope you enjoyed watching some of the new ima...
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Coming Through!
December 17, 2019
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This is one of the big bull moose in Grand Teton National Park.
It was a snowy afternoon when a few bulls were hanging out near the campground at Gros Ventre.
I was setup in a sage brush field with my long lens on a tripod. Animals this big don't seem to mind you standing there: if he wants to walk where you're standing, he's going to.
I got out...
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Cool
December 12, 2019
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While spending days and weeks in a rain forest in SE Alaska, life suddenly gets a lot more interesting when a grizzly appears out of the forest and starts swimming in your direction.
This image was made with a 600mm lens on a crop body so the bear was much further away than it may appear. Additionally I was standing on the (relative) safety of a w...
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Surprise
December 11, 2019
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It was late June as I was out exploring Yellowstone's Lamar Valley, looking for wildlife.
A bull bison grazed just across the Lamar river and showed an interest in crossing the river. I pulled over and sat myself down along the river bank hoping for the best. Patience paid off about 15 minutes later when he entered the river and started crossing o...
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Bull Moose Crossing
December 08, 2019
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Late September is a great time to be in Jackson Hole. Moose mating season is in full swing and the big bulls fight each other over the right to mate with the females.
One afternoon, I observed a big bull moose for a few hours as he stood guard over a cow moose. All was well until another bull moose showed up.
This big bull left his female; crosse...
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K Country Dandelions
December 05, 2019
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When you're in Canada's Rocky Mountains, one of the lesser known gems is called "K Country".
Home to grizzlies, wolves and other big wildlife, it is - at least where most foreigners are concerned - an unknown place. Not hard to understand if you consider its location: it is located next to Banff and Jasper National Parks which get all the visitors...
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Salmon Swing
December 03, 2019
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What appears to be a violent life-or-death encounter is actually a grizzly playing with his food.
This young male was full - at least for a little while - from eating lots of salmon. As he swam across a lagoon in SE Alaska, he used his paws to 'fish' for dead salmon carcasses.
He brought up this carcass, sat up in the water and started playing. H...
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Eye to Eye
December 01, 2019
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Ever wonder what it looks and feels like to come eye to eye with a big bull moose while hiking in the forest?
Even though they are large animals, it is amazing how quickly a bull moose can blend into the surrounding foliage, especially when bedded down.
This bull stood up; seemed to understand I wanted to take its picture and smiled for the camer...
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