Stone Marten (Martes foina)

Tejo Internacional, Portugal

Nights are peopled by strange creatures that hunt in the bushes and woods. A Stone Marten sleeps during the day and when it gets dark goes looking for small birds, mice or even berries to eat. While not actually rare, it is seldom seen all the same, remaining totally unknown for most people.

Nikon D300 + Nikon 60mm f2.8 AFS + 2x Nikon SB-26 + Jama BIR2
iso 800, 1/250, f7.1

Red Kite (Milvus milvus)

Tejo Internacional, Portugal

Red Kites and other migrant birds arrive with the cold season. Mimicry is not exactly a defense or hunting strategy for these birds, even though this specimen appears to have resorted to camouflage while resting on a small shale slab.

Nikon D300 + Nikon 500mm f2.8 VR + Nikon TC14-E II 1.4x teleconverter
iso 200, 1/1000, f5.6

Plains Zebra (Equus quagga)

Kruger NP, Limpopo, South Africa

I like to try black-and-white for Nature photography, and if there is an animal for which such an option is particularly adequate, it is the Zebra, with its striped pattern of strongly contrasting black and white. This photo was taken on a sunny morning, in a path in Kruger’s National Park. Among the 15 to 20 Plains Zebras in this group, these three remained calm in the middle of the path I was following.

Nikon D80 + Nikon 300mm f4
iso 100, 1/400, f4

African Elephant (Loxodonta africana)

Kruger NP, Limpopo, South Africa

I found these two large African Elephant males in the evening, as I was hurrying towards my bungalow. In Kruger Park there are about 12,000 Elephants, but these large males with long heavy tusks are not so readily seen. The photo was made using a 60 mm lens, which shows how close to me the animals actually were. Except for the large groups of females and their young, human presence is tolerated without apparent signs of stress.

Nikon D80 + Nikon 60mm f2.8 AFS

iso 200, 1/60, f4.5

Nikon D80 + Nikon 300mm f4

iso 200, 1/500, f4