Tag: Australia

Favorite Photos: August 2024

5th September 2024
PhotographyWildlife
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  1. Favorite Photos: January 2023
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  23. Favorite Photos: November 2024 Scheduled for 1st December 2024
Close-up of a red squirrel

Red Squirrel (Sciurus vulgaris). This is one of my top favorite photos this year, likely one of the 2024 top ten.

Kangaroo Island Kangaroos

Morning grooming routine 🤭. Kangaroo Island kangaroos, a subspecies of the Western Grey Kangaroo (Macropus fuliginosus), photographed at the wildlife sanctuary created by Ecopia Retreat on Kangaroo Island.

Walking elephant

Morning traffic, Marataba Marakele, South Africa.

Close-up of Kangaroo Island Kangaroos

A kangaroo joey tenderly grooms her mother ❤️. I photographed this cute pair at the wildlife sanctuary created by Ecopia Retreat on Kangaroo Island.

The kangaroos in the photo are Kangaroo Island kangaroos, a subspecies of the Western Grey Kangaroo (Macropus fuliginosus). Because of their long period of isolation from mainland Australia, the KI kangaroos are pretty different from the Western Grey kangaroos. They’re shorter, darker, and much cuter if you ask me!

Koala

That Monday morning feeling 😵‍💫. Koala (Phascolarctos cinereus) photographed somewhere in the Middle River area on Kangaroo Island, South Australia.

Australian Sea Lions

Moments like these are why I love wildlife photography 😍. Australian sea lions (Neophoca cinerea) photographed during a guided research tour at the Seal Bay Con­ser­va­tion Park, Kangaroo Island.

All photos were taken with Canon EOS R5 and Canon RF100-500mm F4.5-7.1 L IS USM.

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Favorite Photos: April 2024

2nd May 2024
PhotographyWildlife
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  1. Favorite Photos: January 2023
  2. Favorite Photos: February 2023
  3. Favorite Photos: March 2023
  4. Favorite Photos: April 2023
  5. Favorite Photos: May 2023
  6. Favorite Photos: June 2023
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  8. Favorite Photos: August 2023
  9. Paris Is Always A Good Idea
  10. Favorite Photos: October 2023
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  23. Favorite Photos: November 2024 Scheduled for 1st December 2024
Kangaroo Island kangaroo joey at sunset

Warning: cuteness overload! This little joey has got me wrapped around its tiny paw. Just look at those big eyes and fluffy ears! 🦘❤️ And that golden light! I feel so blessed to witness moments like these.

A Kangaroo Island kangaroo female (Macropus fuliginosus fuliginosus) tenderly grooms her suckling joey 😍. Incredibly, the mother kangaroo can carry joeys at different development stages in her pouch. She can also provide different nutritional content milk in her four teats to cater to the various joeys’ ages!

Kangaroo Island kangaroo joey at sunset

This is the same joey as in the first photo. How cute?

All kangaroo photos were taken at the Ecopia Retreat wildlife sanctuary in February 2024.

Red squirrel searching a tree stump

Squirrel on a mission: curiosity never looked so cute! 🐿️💕

Red squirrel standing on a tree stump

Always looking ahead, even when the view seems a little bit nutty 🐿️🌳.

I hope you enjoyed these photos; there are more to come next month.

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Favorite Photos: March 2024

4th April 2024
PhotographyWildlife
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Boxing Kangaroo Island Kangaroos (Macropus fuliginosus fuliginosus) at sunset

When you and your mate have a disagreement and need to settle it like true Aussies 🇦🇺🥊😂. I always wanted to photograph boxing kangaroos, and one February evening, I was finally lucky enough to find a pair of joeys sparring playfully while the sun was going down. (And the light disappeared quickly; I had to bump up the ISO to 12.800 to freeze the action in low light).

A Kangaroo Island kangaroo joey (Macropus fuliginosus fuliginosus) grooms itself at sunrise on Kangaroo island, South Australia.

Another joey, grooming itself, same magical evening. So cute!

White-faced heron (Egretta novaehollandiae) in flight

White-faced heron (Egretta novaehollandiae) photographed at the wildlife sanctuary created by Ecopia Retreat on Kangaroo Island, South Australia.

Bottlenose dolphin

A wild bottlenose dolphin emerges from the sea to breathe, expelling stale air through the blowhole on top of its head before inhaling fresh air.

This is the first time I’ve photographed dolphins, and it took me a while to figure out the best way to do it. Unfortunately, they disappeared before I could perfect my newfound technique. Nevertheless, I’m grateful for this fantastic experience!

Photographed off the North Coast of Kangaroo Island, South Australia.

Eastern osprey (Pandion haliaetus cristatus) on Kangaroo Island, South Australia

I was fortunate enough to come across this rare eastern osprey (Pandion haliaetus cristatus), also known as the fish hawk, on Hanson Bay beach in Kangaroo Island (South Australia) in February 2024.

Unfortunately, they are a rare sight nowadays. They are listed as vulnerable in South Australia, and only 50 breeding pairs are estimated to be left in the region.

Sadly, human activities such as coastal development and competition for food with fishing production negatively impact their nesting sites and breeding.

I hope you enjoyed these photos; there are more to come next month.

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Favorite Photos: February 2024

6th March 2024
PhotographyWildlife
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  1. Favorite Photos: January 2023
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  5. Favorite Photos: May 2023
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  7. Favorite Photos: July 2023
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  9. Paris Is Always A Good Idea
  10. Favorite Photos: October 2023
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  20. Favorite Photos: August 2024
  21. Favorite Photos: September 2024
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  23. Favorite Photos: November 2024 Scheduled for 1st December 2024
Two young Kangaroo Island kangaroos practicing their boxing skills

Two young Kangaroo Island kangaroos (Macropus fuliginosus fuliginosus) practicing their boxing skills.

Wait, what? Kangaroos? Does it mean that I’ve been to Australia again?

Indeed I was, and too short a time it was! Three weeks on Kangaroo Island flew by in the blink of an eye, and now I’m back home, sorting through thousands of photos. I’ve just started, so it’ll take some time until I’m done and can begin processing the best photos.

I love this photo because it was the first time I’d seen boxing kangaroos, and managed to take a few pictures in that golden light.

Sheep bathed in golden light at sunrise

We were on our way to Seal Bay for a 7am appointment with the research team when we came across these sheep grazing peacefully as the sun rose. Everything was bathed in gold; it was breathtaking.

Unfortunately, we were in a hurry and couldn’t afford to stop for too long. I literally jumped out of the car and quickly took a few photos, hoping some would be good enough 😅. 

Two Kangaroo Island kangaroos at sunset

This may not be a masterpiece, but I love it. It has so many things I love: the golden light, the kangaroos, the grass tree to the left, and the flowering eucalyptus to the right.

The composition could be better, and I did move around a lot, trying to get a better angle, but the roos were skittish, and this is the best I could do.

I hope you enjoyed these photos; there are more to come next month.

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Save the Koala Day

29th September 2023
Wildlife
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Close-up of a koala sitting in an eucalyptus tree
A koala I photographed in the wild on Kangaroo Island, South Australia

You know how much I love Australia, so it’s no surprise I love cuddly koalas, too! Unfortunately, while found in millions in the past, the koala population has dwindled to less than 100,000 due to deforestation, urban expansion, and hunting.

Holding a rescue koala at the Kangaroo Island Wildlife Park, Kangaroo Island, South Australia
Holding a rescue koala at the Kangaroo Island Wildlife Park, Kangaroo Island, South Australia

Koalas are found in the wild in parts of eastern Australia  (Queensland, New South Wales, Victoria, and South Australia). I was lucky to see koalas in the wild in both New South Wales and South Australia, and I hope both I and others will still be able to do so in the future.

September is Save the Koala Month, and Save the Koala Day is celebrated on the last Friday in September. The Australian Koala Foundation (AKF) started this campaign in an effort to save wild koalas whose number is steadily diminishing. Their website has a wealth of information about koalas and what one can do to help them.

Even if you don’t live in Australia but care about koalas, you can help by donating money here or buying something from their online shop (worldwide shipping). If that’s not practical, please help by spreading the word about Save the Koala Day and the Koala Foundation!

I leave you with this cute koala compilation; it’ll melt your heart.

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KI Glossy Black-Cockatoo Photo Published!

27th July 2023
PhotographyWildlife
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Pair of Glossy Black-Cockatoo (Calyptorhynchus lathami halmaturinus)

My Kangaroo Island Glossy Black-Cockatoo photo has now been published in the Journey Beyond Magazine in Australia! Here’s the article if you’d like to read more about these magnificent birds and Kangaroo Island wildlife.

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Kangaroo Island Glossy Black-Cockatoo

29th June 2023
PhotographyWildlife
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Pair of Glossy Black-Cockatoo (Calyptorhynchus lathami halmaturinus

I’m so happy to share that my photo of this Glossy Black-Cockatoo couple will be published in the next issue of the Journey Beyond Magazine in Australia. 

This is a special moment for me, not only because it’s my first photo to be published in Australia (a dream come true!) but also because it was taken at Ecopia Retreat on Kangaroo Island (South Australia), a place very dear to me.

The Kangaroo Island subspecies of the Glossy Black-Cockatoo (Calyptorhynchus lathami halmaturinus) is listed as endangered, with a population of about 450 birds before the devastating bushfires of 2019/2020. 75% of their habitat in the western part of Kangaroo Island was impacted by the bushfires. They feed exclusively on Drooping She-oak seeds and only on particular trees in the forest, making their survival even more challenging. 

Yael and Rob, the Ecopia Retreat owners, have created a haven for these rare birds around Ecopia, planting She-oak trees and putting up bird boxes to help them survive. I was thrilled and awed to be able to find them and see them going about their business in the wild.

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Happy Australia Day!

26th January 2021
Life
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The flag of Australia. Photo by Mihaela Limberea

Happy Australia Day!