Category Archives: wildlife

Jelly Time

If you want an example of how long it can take me to get around to something, how about the jellyfish exhibit at the Shedd Aquarium. This has been going on for ages – I think we talked about taking my Mum there in August and it had been around for a while – but we have finally got around to seeing it. Actually, we thought January would be a really good time to go since it wasn’t peak season.

In the summer, the line to get into the Shedd can stretch quite a way and on a sunny and hot day, it can be a touch uncomfortable. A January day seemed like it was far more likely to be quiet. What we hadn’t counted on was that they were running a promotion for Illinois residents. They had the basic admission price waived and any more expensive tickets had the same amount discounted. This appealed to a lot of people judging by the line.

At least we got the discount too so we stuck it out and made our way in to the building. Since the jellyfish were the main reason for being there, we did that first. It was a neat exhibit. They had some really informative stuff about jellyfish, how they live and what they do – not a complex life you understand, just eat, reproduce and die – but some interesting stuff all the same. They had a variety of different species floating around in their tanks.

I had gone equipped with a remote flash to think about shooting them but the Shedd is a flash free environment. Instead, I was glad to have the MkIV since I was able to crank up the ISO quite a lot. At the really high ISOs the noise does become apparent but at least you get the shot and if you aren’t pixel peeping, it is not too big a problem. Besides, you are shooting through thick tank walls so how good can the images really be?

More Young Wildlife

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We took a trip to Brookfield Zoo to see the young snow leopards. However, we also were aware that there had been some other new arrivals at the zoo since we had last visited. One of these was a baby White Cheeked Gibbon. After visiting the leopards, we headed for the large primate building to see how the new arrival was doing.

Shooting in the primate house is tricky since the light is not always great. I also hadn’t planned for this so didn’t have a flash with me. After the cold outside, the warm and humid building also made for a lot of steaming up of the gear so we spent a lot of time just looking around while everything cleared up. The baby was certainly pretty cute. Mum was taking good care of him while some of the other gibbons seemed to be a bit annoyed about the lack of attention they were getting. This could involve trying to poke the baby. However, Mum was up to the task of fending off any unwanted attention!

Young Snow Leopards

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As members of the Brookfield Zoo, we get regular emails telling us about changes that have taken place at the zoo. A recent email caught our eye. Two new Snow Leopard cubs have arrived at the zoo. There was a YouTube video of them playing in their enclosure. They are not related but are of similar age and have been paired. Just like any small cat, they were full of energy and were rolling around and fighting. Exceedingly cute!

We figured we need to get there to see them. When Hudson the polar bear was a cub, we were a bit slow in getting to see him and he was a little large by the time we first caught him. Still very cute but certainly a lot bigger. It seems that Snow Leopards grow fast too! With winter (supposedly) here, animals outside are a rarer event since a lot fo the zoo’s creatures are not suited to Chicago winters. We also wanted a sunny day to make some photography opportunities.

We did get to the zoo and we were lucky to have a great weather day. Both the leopards were out in their enclosure. They are already quite large so we missed the cutest stage. However, they are still quite playful. They have some high locations that they like to rest on but they would still fight with each other. I watched one sneak up on the other and the leap in the air that resulted was very funny.

Shooting them in the enclosure can be tricky. There is a glass wall which gives great viewing but makes shooting a little tricky. The glass is thick and the light is very shaded. In the enclosure open spaces they are more easily shot. However, the high rock area they like to rest on is very close to the netting that keeps them in. When they are further in, a shallow depth of field will remove the netting from the shot but when they are close to it, there is nothing you can do. Hence, I apologize for the net in some shots but I still think they look cool!

Halloween at the Zoo

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Whether it is the weather or whether it is some subconscious thing, it appears that we get lured to the zoo at Halloween. The weekend weather forecast looked very promising so we thought we pop out to Brookfield to see what the animals were doing. It was only when we got there that we realized that, being Halloween weekend, everyone was there in costumes.

This triggered something from our recollection that we had done the same thing last year. Let’s go to the zoo when everyone else is planning on being there and all dressed up! (I will leave my thoughts on Halloween for another post I suspect.)

As it turned out, the center area of the zoo was very busy but the rest of it was no busier than most weekends. The sun was out and the animal were active so it was a good time to go. We got particularly lucky with a couple of things.

I have never seen the kangaroos move before. They have always been lying down taking a nap when I have been there. Sometimes, this is tucked up against the wall for extra shade. However, this time they got up and fed for a while and even hopped across the enclosure. That was a big plus.

Next we arrived at the brown bear enclosure and the staff were seeding the place with vegetables for the bears to find and feed on. Consequently, we got a couple of grizzlies rummaging around the enclosure for a long time. Given their love for dozing this was a result. I guess the polar bears had already been fed since they were out for the count.

The lions are always a stop for us. The male was lying down and looked like he was falling asleep. A lion roaring has a very small mouth shape which doesn’t look like much. A lion yawning, on the other hand, has a wide mouth and lots of teeth. A good photo opportunity! A little patience and we were rewarded with a big view of fangs! As an aside, lions are not empathetic creatures since we tried yawning a bunch of time to try and induce a yawn but to no effect!

Out last stop was the leopard. Normally another one having a nap when we are there, this time he was also on the prowl. We only had a few minutes before it was time to lie down again but even so, this was better than normal. Not a bad day out!

Evil Frigates

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Early in our visit to Kauai, we paid a visit to the lighthouse and wildlife refuge at Kilauea Point. We were there to see the lighthouse and the surrounding coast but the wildlife element was an interesting addition. There were tons of birds in the area. Along the cliffs we saw a lot of Red Footed Boobies. These are a pretty decent sized bird that is akin to a small albatross. The boards also mentioned the presence of frigate-birds. These weren’t close in but appeared to be out towards the lighthouse.

Once we got out on the peninsula on which the lighthouse sits, we became a lot more familiar with the frigate-birds. It turns out that they are something I have seen on one of the TV nature programs that the BBC produces in great detail every five years or so. Frigate-birds are a prehistoric looking creature. Their wings make them look like a pterodactyl and their beaks have a most evil looking hook on the end.

The thing that the TV show explained and that we got to see in action is their preferred method of getting food. The boobies head off out to see to catch fish. They bring the fish back in a pouch in their throat and then use it to feed the chicks. The frigate-birds are not so interested in making much of an effort so they hang around and wait for the boobies to return. They then attack them trying to make them spit out their catch. Nice, huh?

Anyway, we got to see this at close range. The frigate-birds would pick a target and go for them, sometimes in pairs. The attack would continue for some time as the boobies tried desperately to get out of the way. If they got close enough to the shore, that seemed to be good enough and they could get back to their roost. Otherwise, the frigate-birds would be pretty tenacious. Quite something to witness at close quarters!

The Chicken Secret

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We have just spent a week on Kauai having a great time exploring a fantastic island. I will cover aspects of the trip in coming posts but today I want to cover the big story that no-one tells you about.

We read many books and websites when researching the trip to Kauai. They were full of lots of good information about the island but not one told you the number one theme. Chickens! The island has thousands of chickens roaming wild. The normal predators are not present on Kauai so they flourish.

We arrived at the airport and a family including some very small chicks were walking across the parking lot. Someone mentioned it to the shuttle bus driver and he said they were everywhere. He wasn’t wrong!

More Zoo Stuff

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Previously I showed the pictures of Kalina, the baby elephant. Indy Zoo has plenty of other things to see. It is not a large zoo but it is nicely laid out and has a good selection of things to see. I find visits to zoos to be an interesting time. The places are filled with parents dragging very young children around. I wonder whether parents feel an immediate need to take their kids to the zoo. They kids certainly don’t seem to care. They are dragged around and told what to look at but they don’t seem in the least bit interested. It seems that around 10 years old is the point when the kids seem genuinely interested in the animals.

Anyway, plenty of things to see at the zoo so here are some shots of the various animals on exhibit. Some of the indoor ones were tricky given the limited lighting but they are included anyway.

Aww, so cute!

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When looking for a possible short getaway trip, all you need is something to trigger the choice of destination. How about the birth of a baby elephant (as opposed to a full grown elephant being born!). Indianapolis Zoo has recently put on display its latest addition to the elephants, a baby called Kalina. She is still very young and causing quite a level of interest.

So, couple of days in Indy for us then? Absolutely. I hadn’t been to Indianapolis itself before. I had driven through a couple of times and visited friends in one of the northern suburbs but downtown Indy was a new one for me. Turns out it is really quite a nice spot. More on the city in another post though.

This is about a baby elephant and so I will cut to the chase. Kalina is very cute. She makes a couple of appearances each day and there are plenty of people wanting to see her. Whether this is noticed by the animals, I don’t know but I did see a neighboring cheetah eying the events closely. Of course, he could just have been taking a look at a tasty young animal waiting to be felled!

Just like lots of young, Kalina is full of energy and exploration. She runs around a lot, a little away from mum sometimes but never too far. A regular run back to nurse can be expected. She really is quite tiny for an elephant but still a lot larger than most of us. It was interesting to see her hanging out with the keepers sitting nearby. Mum didn’t seem bothered either.

Anyway, enough of the chat, here’s the last of the pictures.

Swallows but no Amazons

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When trying to be smart and come up with an amusing play on words for a title, I realized I could be on dangerous territory with this one. Instead, I decided to play it safe but dull! Back to the topic…

I was sitting on the shore of Lake Michigan recently watching the swallows do their thing. I find them a fascinating bird to watch since they have a level of agility that is hard to comprehend. I guess when you eat by catching insects in mid air, you have to be pretty sharp. Catching a swallow on the wing is a trickier proposition altogether. They are hard to pan with and they are small so a long lens helps keep them visible but makes the panning so much harder!

Getting them standing on a non-moving surface makes for a far easier time. Of course, that isn’t so exciting. There is always the option to keep trying to get a bit closer without scaring them off.

Then again, you can always try and get the flying shot. These will never be published but they were better than I expected!

Flashing at the birds

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While hanging around up in Door County in Wisconsin, I have been taking a bunch of pictures of the local wildlife. Mainly a lot of birds in the vicinity of our hotel and that is always a fun challenge. To add to the challenge, one of the afternoons that we were back at the hotel, the weather closed in and it began to rain. There was a patch of grass outside our balcony that seemed to be a popular spot for some robins so I started taking some shots.

As you are probably aware, robins are quite bold creatures so, with a little patience, you can end up with them coming reasonably close in. However, with the light having faded fast as the weather deteriorated and the natural shade of the area, it was not looking good to get a good shot. I started out by bumping up the ISO but that was only helping so much and, without a tripod, I was still going to get mixed results.

At this point I decided to try something that everyone who shoots wildlife a lot probably does to some extent but that I had not tried before and that was using some flash to boost the excitement. I had no idea how much to use so experimented with a little extra FEC, then zero and ultimately one stop under on FEC. The latter seemed to have the best results judging by the quick view on the back of the camera – always such a reliable indicator!

I was using the flashgun straight with no boost like a Better Beamer (if that is the right name) so it was a bit of a raw experiment but the results seemed to be be pretty pleasing so this is something I will have to think about further in due course.