Happy International Zebra Day!
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🦓Zebra (Equus quagga)
📸 Canon R5 & Canon RF100-500mm F4.5-7.1 L IS USM
📍Lapalala Wilderness Reserve, South Africa
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As 2024 comes to a close, it’s natural to reflect on the past year. Let’s take a look, shall we?
Unwavering Gaze: this is my absolute favorite photo this year, by far.
I photographed this four-year-old lion in the Lapalala Wilderness Reserve a few months ago, and it is possibly the most beautiful lion I’ve ever seen. Being just a few meters away from this magnificent animal as it looked at me sent shivers down my spine. I still feel that thrill whenever I look at the photo.
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🦁Lion (Panthera leo)
📸 Canon R5 & Canon RF100-500mm F4.5-7.1 L IS USM
📍Lapalala Wilderness Reserve, South Africa
Did you know that a zebra’s stripe pattern is as unique as human fingerprints? Scientists believe that this helps zebras recognize each other. The stripes also aid in camouflage, making it more difficult for predators to distinguish individual zebras by obscuring their silhouettes.
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🦓Zebra (Equus quagga)
📸 Canon R5 & Canon RF100-500mm F4.5-7.1 L IS USM
📍Lapalala Wilderness Reserve, South Africa
Sometimes, simple is best—just a few grazing sheep and the beauty of the rising sun. There’s something about that golden light that makes everything—sheep butts included—look fabulous!
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 😅.
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📸 Canon R5 & Canon RF100-500mm F4.5-7.1 L IS USM
📍Kangaroo Island, South Australia
A zebra walks leisurely ahead of its harem in the Marataba Game Reserve, South Africa. In zoology, a harem is a group of zebras consisting of one stallion, several mares, and their offspring. I love that soft morning light.
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🦓Zebra (Equus quagga)
📸 Canon R5 & Canon RF100-500mm F4.5-7.1 L IS USM
📍Marataba Game Reserve, South Africa
Boxing practice: two young kangaroos sparring at sunset. This is how they learn to fight, first with their mother and then with other young males. As they grow, sparring with other males helps them establish their position within the mob. With experience, the sparring sessions become longer and more intense.
Kangaroos use their sharp claws, strong back legs, and muscular tails —capable of supporting their entire body weight — to deliver powerful kicks that could disembowel a human.
However, these youngsters were only playing and started grooming each other shortly afterward.
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🦘Kangaroo Island Kangaroos (Macropus fuliginosus fuliginosus)
📸 Canon R5 & Canon RF100-500mm F4.5-7.1 L IS USM
📍Kangaroo Island, South Australia
I had a wonderful time watching this young Australian sea lion carefully inspect every stone, stick, and shell on the beach at Seal Bay. It was a beautiful display of innocence and curiosity. Kids, whether human or animal, are always curious! 😍
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🦭Australian sea lion (Neophoca cinerea)
📸 Canon R5 & Canon RF100-500mm F4.5-7.1 L IS USM
📍Seal Bay, Kangaroo Island, South Australia
Moments like these are why I love wildlife photography, even more so when knowing how few of these animals are left in the world.
Unique to South and Western Australia, Australian sea lions are one of the rarest animals in the world, with a total population of around 6.500. Australian sea lions are on the endangered species list today, having been hunted to near extension in the 19th century.
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🦭Australian sea lion (Neophoca cinerea)
📸 Canon R5 & Canon RF100-500mm F4.5-7.1 L IS USM
📍Seal Bay, Kangaroo Island, South Australia
African elephant photographed in Marataba Game Reserve, South Africa. Many people commented on the elephant’s long lashes on Instagram, but most missed just how long they really were. Take another look. Yes, they are long and thick near the eye, but if you look closer, you’ll see that they are even longer than you think!
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🐘African bush elephant (Loxodonta africana)
📸 Canon R5 & Canon RF100-500mm F4.5-7.1 L IS USM
📍Marataba Game Reserve, South Africa
Did you know that woodpeckers store seeds, berries, and acorns in the hollows of trees to prepare for the winter? In late autumn, these resourceful birds not only stash food for the colder months but also occasionally utilize these tree hollows as shelter for resting.
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Great spotted woodpecker (Dendrocopos major)
📸 Canon R5 & Canon RF100-500mm F4.5-7.1 L IS USM
📍Lidingö, Stockholm (Sweden)
This is how you pose 👌! When I took this photo in June, I was confident this would be one of my favorite images of the year. A quick glance at the back of the camera confirmed it.
This year’s Halloween card, I love it!
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🐿 Red Squirrel (Sciurus vulgaris)
📸 Canon R5 & Canon RF100-500mm F4.5-7.1 L IS USM
📍Lidingö, Sweden
A red squirrel digs through the snow in search of hidden nuts. Squirrels have an excellent sense of smell and can detect food buried under 30 centimeters (one foot) of snow!
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🐿 Red Squirrel (Sciurus vulgaris)
📸 Canon R5 & Canon RF100-500mm F4.5-7.1 L IS USM
📍Lidingö, Sweden
I hope you enjoyed looking at the photos. Here’s to more, better images to come in 2025! Cheers!
I wish you a very, very Happy New Year! Gott Nytt År as we say in Swedish.
Unwavering gaze. I photographed this four-year-old lion in the Lapalala Wilderness Reserve a few months ago, and it is possibly the most beautiful lion I’ve ever seen. Being just a few meters away from this magnificent animal as it looked at me sent shivers down my spine. I still feel that thrill whenever I look at the photo.
This is one of my top favorite photos this year, likely one of the 2024 top ten. Maybe THE 2024 favorite? We’ll see, we’ll see … only a few weeks to go.
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🦁Lion (Panthera leo)
📸 Canon R5 & Canon RF100-500mm F4.5-7.1 L IS USM
📍Lapalala Wilderness Reserve, South Africa
Same lion, now in color. It’s interesting how some photos can look better in black-and-white, as is the case with this lion …
… or in color, as it’s the case with this zebra.
Did you know that a zebra’s stripe pattern is as unique as human fingerprints? Scientists believe that this helps zebras recognize each other. The stripes also aid in camouflage, making it more difficult for predators to distinguish individual zebras by obscuring their silhouettes.
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🦓Zebra (Equus quagga)
📸 Canon R5 & Canon RF100-500mm F4.5-7.1 L IS USM
📍Lapalala Wilderness Reserve, South Africa
Same zebra, now in black-and-white. It’s an OK photo, but I think I like the color version better.
Circle of life in the Lapalala Wilderness. After feasting on the remains of a roan antelope, a young lion scans its surroundings; truly a sight to behold.
(And, truth to be told, a bit nerve-wracking, standing just a few meters from the lion. “Not interested in your antelope, sir, I’m a vegetarian”!)
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🦁Lion (Panthera leo)
📸 Canon R5 & Canon RF100-500mm F4.5-7.1 L IS USM
📍Lapalala Wilderness Reserve, South Africa
All photos were taken with Canon EOS R5 and Canon RF100-500mm F4.5-7.1 L IS USM.
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This is a charming story said to come from the San people of the Namibian Kalahari Desert.
Long ago, when the sun was still new in the sky and shone too hot, the land had very little water. The little pools of water that did exist were so precious to the animals that they were willing to share, understanding the importance of this life-giving resource.
One of these pools was under the watchful eye of an arrogant Baboon. He declared himself the ‘master of the water,‘ his arrogance towering over the other creatures. He forbade any other creature from even approaching his pool, going as far as to light a fire near the pool during the cold winter nights to protect his ‘possession.’
One day, when the sun was very fierce, Zebra was searching for a drink. Now in those days of long ago, Zebra wore a coat of pure white. He came across the pool and was about to drink when the angry Baboon barked, “You dare to trespass! This is my pool, and I am the master of the water,” The Baboon barked in fury. “This water is for all of us,” Zebra retorted.
This angered Baboon even more, and he bared his sharp fangs and shouted, “If you want water, you must fight for it!” The battle began. The dust rose in clouds as they circled each other, their eyes blazing with fury. This way and that way they went, until with a mighty kick of Zebra’s hind legs, Baboon went flying high into the rocks behind them, landing smack on his behind.
Since that day, Baboon still shows the bare, red patch where he landed. Zebra, with the force of the kick, stumbled backward into Baboon’s fire. The hot sticks scorched stripes across his white fur. Shocked, he galloped away back to the dusty veld, where stripes and all he stays to this day.
The Baboon and his family remain high up among the rocks, where they bark in defiance at all strangers. When they walk around, they still hold up their tails to ease the sore rock burn of their bald patched bottoms.
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I didn’t do much photo processing this month, what with summer vacations, gardening, and the Olympics.
African elephant photographed in Marataba Marakele, South Africa. Many people commented on the elephant’s long lashes on Instagram, but most missed just how long they really were. Take another look. Yes, they are long and thick near the eye, but if you look closer, you’ll see that they are even longer than you think!
A zebra walks leisurely ahead of its harem in the Marakele National Park, South Africa. In zoology, a harem is a group of zebras consisting of one stallion, several mares, and their offspring.
Southern yellow-billed hornbills (Tockus leucomelas) are also called ‘flying bananas’ because of their huge bills. This bird’s bill is remarkably large in comparison to its body and can make up to 1/6th of its entire body length!
Interesting breeding behavior: Once a mating pair is established, they search for a nesting site, often in a tree facing northeast, and construct their nest using leaf litter and bark. The female enters the hole, seals it with her droppings, and leaves a small opening for the male to feed her while she tends to the eggs.
The female lays 3 or 4 eggs and incubates them for 25 days without leaving the nest. During this time, she sheds all her flight and tail feathers, becoming reliant on the male and vulnerable if he is absent or harmed. While in the nest, her feathers regrow, and she emerges with new plumage when the oldest chick is about 3 weeks old. Both parents take turns feeding the chicks for the next 6 weeks. When the chicks mature, hunger prompts them to break down the nest wall.
Stay tuned because I’m bursting with excitement to share more about this unforgettable adventure with all of you!
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