Another master of camouflage, the African leopard. It's easy to see how prey could walk under a tree completely unaware of the predator directly above, and leopards are known to jump down from a perch onto their prey.
In this case, the leopard had been resting in the branches when, in this moment, it took notice of an impala passing by. We watched it stealthily descend the tree and stalk the impala, crawling on its belly at times. They were both soon out of sight, so we do not know how it ended up for either of them...
November 2023, Kruger National Park, South Africa 🇿🇦
Lioness
Lioness, Etosha National Park, Namibia.
What you can't see here is that she is wearing a radio collar, which is cleverly camouflaged by the tall grass. It almost seemed as though she was intentionally hiding it...
Cheers,
Colin
Cheetah Portrait
Good (early) morning out there! I am back in Alaska and trying to adjust to the time change. With the end of daylight saving time, I am now a full 12 hours behind where I was just a few days ago in Ethiopia, and waking up much earlier than I need to.
I'm still editing through images from Namibia and will continue to post in the coming days. Here is another portrait from the cheetah rescue facility at Neuras Lodge, in affiliation with Naankuse Wildlife Sanctuary. Next year's Namibia tour with Nat Expo Tours, LLC is half full already. Please contact me if you are interested in joining.
Have a great Sunday and thank you for following along!
Colin
Cheetah Cub on a Termite Mound
The ubiquitous termite mounds of Africa. If you've been here, you've probably seen thousands of them. Fact - if you weighed all the termites on earth, they would outweigh all of the mammals...!
While not their intended purpose, they do serve as a lookout for cheetahs and other animals, as this cub is demonstrating here. Taken in Onguma private game reserve last week while leading our first Namibia tour with Nat Expo Tours.
Colin
Cheetah Sightings
I was hoping to see & photograph a cheetah in Namibia this year. To my surprise, we were able to witness a mother with three cubs on two separate occasions in Onguma Private Game Reserve. On the first evening drive, we watched them come into a watering hole and drink until a pride of lions approached, which sent them running. The following evening, we came across the mother eating what was left of an impala she had likely hunted the day before. The cubs took their turns eating as well, and we watched the family interact for the next hour until the light was gone.
Stay tuned for more from our first Namibia tour with Nat Expo Tours!
Colin
Lynx Presentation on YouTube
Hello Everyone,
I enjoyed presenting for the Alaska Wildlife Alliance’s “Wildlife Wednesday” program last week and have received a lot of great feedback. If you weren’t able to watch my presentation on Alaska’s lynx, you can still view it here on the AWA YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GBsG6xau9is.
If you’re an avid YouTuber, please visit my new Colin Tyler Photography channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCyk_1tMJRT-LwV166he5H7g and be sure to subscribe!
As always, thank you for following along,
Colin
Male Canada Lynx, Eagle River Nature Center/Chugach State Park, Alaska
More Lynx Poses
Here are a couple more lynx photos from last Sunday - “Resting Lynx Face” and “Yoga Lynx.” Fun fact: Many yoga poses were learned (and named) from observing animals. Here a lynx demonstrates a nearly perfect "Downward Dog" pose. If I were to critique this lynx, I'd say drop the shoulders, lower the head, and keep pushing those hips toward the sky!
Namaste,
Colin
Resting Lynx Face
Yoga Lynx
One More Lynx Photo...
Good afternoon from Eagle River Valley, AK. Hope everyone had a great weekend out there! I've been saving the best for last - here is my favorite lynx photo from last week. This certainly was a fortunate encounter and one I will always treasure. With the high numbers of lynx right meow, hopefully there will be more to come!
As always, thank you for following along and feel free to share my site with your friends.
Colin
Rise & Shine!
Good morning from Eagle River Valley, Alaska. Have a great weekend out there, wherever you are, and thank you for following my adventures.
Remember that next Saturday, October 6, is the October Nights: 22nd Annual Auction Fundraiser for the Friends of Eagle River Nature Center, where I reside. If you'd like to attend this event and help support the Nature Center and the various services we provide, follow the link above for ticket information. There will be a variety of items for both live and silent auction, including two spots on my February 2019 Cuba Photo Tour. Aside from these two spaces in the auction, there is only one spot left on the tour so please contact me if you are interested in exploring Cuba with me this February!
Colin
Lynx!
Yesterday I certainly had one of my more fortunate encounters as a wildlife photographer. Lynx are very elusive creatures, yet they are also curious (that's the feline nature), so if they are comfortable and want to show themselves, they will. I actually had one sneak into my campsite in Denali National Park, lie down next to my tent and watch me while I was eating dinner. With the cyclical increase in snowshoe hare populations, lynx numbers are also rising and sightings are becoming more common. I will have more to share in the days ahead.
Cheers,
Colin
Cyber Monday 2017
Good morning and Happy Cyber Monday, everybody! Beginning today, I am offering 20% off all canvas prints and 15% off all metal prints on my website. If you are looking for a unique gift to brighten someone's home or perhaps you'd like to decorate your own space with an image from my collection, please visit my online store: http://www.colintyler.com/online-store/
Use the code "CYBERCANVAS" for 20% off canvas or the code "CYBERMETAL" for 15% off metal prints at checkout. Both canvas and metal prints arrive ready to hang - no framing required!
Thank you for following along and have a safe and happy holiday season, wherever you are in the world. Feel free to share this post!
Colin
International Tiger Day, 2017
Tigress, Bandhavgarh National Park, India
Happy International Tiger Day, 2017! Over the past century, the world has lost approximately 97% of the wild tiger population while 3 subspecies have gone extinct. Thanks to the tireless work of NGO’s such as
Panther, World Wildlife Fun, and International Tiger Da, as well as cooperation with regional governments, tigers are beginning to rebound in some areas, perhaps nowhere is this more evident than India, where anti-poaching efforts and habitat preservation have provided very encouraging results.
I am fortunate to have had the opportunity to witness and photograph many species of wildlife, both in my home state of Alaska and around the globe. I can tell you that nothing matches the exhilaration of seeing a tiger in the wild. They truly are magnificent creatures and I hope that our own species will continue to reverse the trend and bring them back from the brink in all areas where they are threatened.
Colin
New Logo
I’ve recently spent a good deal of effort designing a unique, impactful logo for my images, something symbolic and representative of my work as a wildlife photographer. Rather than download a piece of clipart, I wanted to create something original. After some thought, it occurred to me that I had the perfect symbol tattooed on my right shoulder – the paw print of my cat Spike, whom I lost 3 years ago. With a fair amount of digital time and equal parts determination and frustration, I was able to extract a silhouette by working off a photo of the tattoo. You can view the new logo in the bottom of this tiger image; also significant as this was the first tiger we saw in India and where I left Spike’s ashes. While traveling in India, locals would ask if my tattoo was that of a tiger. Sometimes I would explain the story behind it, but often I would just smile and nod in agreement, because Spike truly was a wildcat at heart. If you look closely, you might notice that the print is not exactly symmetrical; it is this slight imperfection that makes it the perfect tribute, in my opinion, and proves it was not downloaded. I could have corrected the symmetry, but then it wouldn’t match his print.
Now that I’ve created the logo, I will be updating the images on my website and Facebook page. Please let me know your thoughts on the design.
Cheers,
Colin
