Adélie penguins live on the Antarctic continent and on many small, surrounding coastal islands. They spend the winter offshore in the seas surrounding the Antarctic pack ice. Adélies feed on tiny aquatic creatures, such as shrimp-like krill, but also eat fish and squid. They have been known to dive as deep as 575 feet (175 meters) in search of such quarry, though they usually hunt in far shallower waters less than half that depth. Like other penguins, Adélies are sleek and efficient swimmers. They may travel 185 miles round-trip (about 300 kilometers) to procure a meal. During the spring breeding season (in October), they take to the rocky Antarctic coastline where they live in large communities called colonies. These groups can include thousands of birds. Once on land, Adélies build nests and line them with small stones. Though they move with the famed "penguin waddle" they are capable walkers who can cover long overland distances. In early spring, before the vast sheets of ice break up, they may have to walk 31 miles (50 kilometers) from their onshore nests to reach open water. Male Adélie penguins help their mates rear the young and, without close inspection, the two sexes are nearly indistinguishable. They take turns sitting on a pair of eggs to keep them warm and safe from predators. When food is short, only one of the two chicks may survive. After about three weeks, parents are able to leave the chicks alone, though the offspring gather in groups for safety. Young penguins begin to swim on their own in about nine weeks.
Pulitzer Prize-winning photographer Jack Dykinga blends large-format, landscape photography with documentary photojournalism. He is a regular contributor to Arizona Highways and National Geographic. His book Jack Dykinga's Arizona is a compilation of his best Arizona images along with accounts of his personal wilderness experiences.
Dykinga's other books include Frog Mountain Blues, The Secret Forest, The Sierra Pinacate, The Sonoran Desert, Stone Canyons of the Colorado Plateau, and Desert: The Mojave and Death Valley. He also wrote and photographed Large Format Nature Photography, a how-to guide to color landscape photography, and collaborated with Mexico's Agrupación Sierra Madre to help produce their book on the Mexican state of Tamaulipas.
Directing his focus to the Texas-Mexico border, Dykinga highlighted the biological richness and diversity of the protected areas along the Rio Grande River corridor in the February 2007 issue of National Geographic. Two months later, Dykinga and four other photographers—Thomas Mangelsen (United States), Patricio Robles Gil (Mexico), Fulvio Eccardi (Italy and Mexico), and Florien Schultz (Germany)—formed the first ever Rapid Assessment Visual Expedition (RAVE) for the International League of Conservation Photographers. They documented the El Triunfo cloud forest in Chiapas, Mexico, to draw attention to its threatened habitat.
Currently, Dykinga serves on the board of the Sonoran National Park Project in an effort to create a new binational park on the border of Arizona and Sonora, Mexico.
He and his wife, Margaret, live in Tucson, Arizona.
This sparrow (monotypic genus) feeds on bare or sandy ground. When flushed, it flies to a high perch. Few other sparrows are likely to fly high overhead during daylight. They call both when flushing and when flying overhead; occur singly or in flocks up to 50. Polytypic. Length 6.5" (17 cm). Identification Largest open-country sparrow. Long, rounded tail with prominent white corners. Adult: distinctive harlequin face pattern of black, white, and chestnut. Bright white underparts marked only with dark central breast spot. Juvenile: duller face; fine, black streaks on breast, sides, and crown lost gradually through fall. Geographic Variation Two subspecies show weak variation. Eastern grammacus darker overall with wider black back streaks than western strigatus. Similar Species None. Voice Call: sharp tsik, often a rapid series and frequently delivered in flight. High chips when excited. Song: begins with 2 loud, clear notes, followed by a series of rich, melodious notes and trills and unmusical buzzes. Sings one of the longest sparrow songs. Status and Distribution Fairly common. Primarily west of the Mississippi; once bred as far east as New York and western Maryland. Rare migrant throughout the East, mainly in fall. Prairies, roadsides, farms, open woodlands, mesas. Vagrant: accidental to Alaska, northern Canada, and Europe. Population Stable, though eastern populations are declining and it is extirpated from former breeding areas in the East. —From the book Complete Birds of North America, 2006
The African wild dog, also called Cape hunting dog or painted dog, typically roams the open plains and sparse woodlands of sub-Saharan Africa. These long-legged canines have only four toes per foot, unlike other dogs, which have five toes on their forefeet. The dog's Latin name means "painted wolf," referring to the animal's irregular, mottled coat, which features patches of red, black, brown, white, and yellow fur. Each animal has its own unique coat pattern, and all have big, rounded ears. African wild dogs live in packs that are usually dominated by a monogamous breeding pair. The female has a litter of 2 to 20 pups, which are cared for by the entire pack. These dogs are very social, and packs have been known to share food and to assist weak or ill members. Social interactions are common, and the dogs communicate by touch, actions, and vocalizations. African wild dogs hunt in formidable, cooperative packs of 6 to 20 (or more) animals. Larger packs were more common before the dogs became endangered. Packs hunt antelopes and will also tackle much larger prey, such as wildebeests, particularly if their quarry is ill or injured. The dogs supplement their diet with rodents and birds. As human settlements expand, the dogs have sometimes developed a taste for livestock, though significant damage is rare. Unfortunately, they are often hunted and killed by farmers who fear for their domestic animals. African hunting dogs are endangered. They are faced with shrinking room to roam in their African home. They are also quite susceptible to diseases spread by domestic animals.
This South American otter is the world's largest, at some 6 feet (1.8 meters) long. It lives only in the rivers and creeks of the Amazon, Orinoco, and La Plata river systems.
These huge members of the weasel family swim by propelling themselves with their powerful tails and flexing their long bodies. They also have webbed feet, water-repellent fur to keep them dry and warm, and nostrils and ears that close in the water.
Fish make up most of the giant river otter's diet. They hunt alone or in groups, sometimes using coordinated efforts, and must be successful often to meet their daily intake quota. Each animal may eat six to nine pounds (three to four kilograms) of food per day. Fish are supplemented by crustaceans, snakes, and other river creatures.
Giant river otters live in family groups which include monogamous parents and the offspring from several breeding seasons. They den by burrowing into banks or under fallen logs, and establish a home territory that they will aggressively defend.
Like most other otter species, giant river otters come ashore to give birth. Females retreat to their underground dens and deliver litters of one to six young. Young otters remain in the den for a month but grow up quickly. After nine or ten months, it is difficult to tell mother from child.
Giant river otters have been hunted extensively and are now among the rarest otters in the world—only a few thousand are believed to survive in the wild.
The American kestrel is usually found in close proximity to open fields, either perched on a snag or telephone wire or hovering in search of prey. The typical falcon-shaped wings are slim and pointed; the tail long and square-tipped. Sexes are of similar size. Adult male plumage is easily told from adult females and juveniles of both sexes. All have 2 bold, dark moustache marks framing white cheeks on the face and have the dark eyes typical of falcons. It hunts insects, small mammals, and reptiles from a perch or on the wing. Will hover above a field on rapidly beating wings, or soar in place in strong winds above a hillside. Flight style is quick and buoyant, almost erratic, with wings usually swept back. Polytypic (New World 17 ssp.; 2 in North America). Length 10.5" (27 cm); wingspan 23" (58 cm). Identification Adult male: head has gray crown, rufous nape with black spot on either side, dark moustaches around white cheeks. Back is bright rufous with black barring on lower back. The tail is patterned with highly variable amounts of black, white, or gray bands. Wings are blue-gray with dark primaries. Underparts are white, washed with cinnamon. Adult female: head similar pattern to male, but more brown on crown. Back, wings, and tail are reddish brown with dark barring; subterminal tailband much wider than other bands. Underparts are buffy-white with reddish streaks. Juvenile male: head similar to adult, but less gray and with dark streaks on crown. Back is completely streaked, heavy streaks on breast. Juvenile female: very similar to adult female. Flight: light, bouncy flight is usually not direct and purposeful—often with “twitches” or hesitation. Light underwings and generally light body coloration. Males show a row of white dots (“string of pearls”) on the trailing edges of the underwings. Fans tail when hovering. Geographic Variation Two subspecies occur in North America; widespread nominate sparverius is the typical migratory form. Subspecies paulus, from South Carolina to Florida, is smaller, the male with less barring on the back and fewer spots on its undersides, essentially nonmigratory. Similar Species Merlin appears darker in flight due to dark underwings, shorter tail. When perched, looks darker, more heavy-bodied, lacks the 2 moustaches. Peregrine falcon is larger, has wider wings, shorter tail, single heavy moustache. Eurasian kestrel is slightly larger, has 1 moustache, wedge-shaped tail; males have blue-gray tail and reddish wings. Voice Loud, ringing killy-killy-killy or klee-klee-klee used all year round. Distinctive. Status and Distribution Common in open areas, it ranges throughout North America, including much of Canada and into Alaska. Breeding: a cavity nester, it uses dead trees, cliffs, occasionally a dirt bank, and even a hollow giant cactus in the Southwest. It will also use man-made nestboxes placed high on trees and telephone poles. Up to 5 or 6 young per brood, depending on food availability. Migration: northern breeders follow traditional fall migration routes to wintering ranges in the southern United States and northern Mexico. Eastern populations use the coastlines more than the inland corridors, and are not reluctant to cross water. Spring migrants are only concentrated along the Great Lakes watch-sites. Winter: the majority of birds winter in the southern United States, often spaced out on every other telephone pole in agricultural areas. A small percentage winter in snow-covered states, the numbers depending on food sources. Population Overall, numbers are stable. However, increases in the central United States are being offset by declines in the Northeast and the West Coast (California and Oregon). Eastern populations are thought to be affected by loss of open habitat due to 2 factors; human development and agricultural abandonment leading to reforestation, with a subsequent increase in Cooper’s hawk predation. —From the book Complete Birds of North America, 2006
The goggle-eyed Cuban screech owl gets its other common name, bare-legged owl, from its featherless lower appendages. While most of the world’s more than 200 owl species wear feathers down to their toes, the Cuban screech owl’s warm tropical habitat appears to have encouraged it to evolve permanent Bermuda shorts.
These nocturnal birds of prey are endemic only to Cuba, and their substantial range covers nearly the entire island. They prefer forest and wooded areas with palm trees, which they bore roosting holes into. They will also frequently occupy abandoned woodpecker holes.
Their feathers are dark brown with white spots on top, and their bellies and bottom wing feathers are grayish-white. They have large brown eyes outlined with dramatic white feathers. The Cuban screech owl is not well studied, and information about its diet is scarce, but, like most owl species, it likely feeds on small mammals, other birds, frogs, and insects.
The bare-legged owl became the Cuban screech owl in 1998, when the American Ornithologists’ Union reclassified it in the genus Otus, which includes scops and screech owls. However, in 2003, the union, citing differences in morphology and vocal patterns, reversed itself, placing the owl in its own genus, Gymnoglaux, and restoring its former name.
No reliable population numbers or trends are available on the Cuban screech owl, but it is reported to be common throughout its range. Human encroachment likely impacts some parts of its habitat, but it currently has no special conservation status.
Sandpipers are familiar birds that are often seen running near the water's edge on beaches and tidal mud flats. The common sandpiper has a brown upper body and a white underside. When at rest its wingtips reach halfway back to its tail. The bird is a European and Asian species, but is closely related to the similar-looking spotted sandpiper of the Americas.
The common sandpiper is a migrator, but it frequents similar habitats year-round. When in upland areas, sandpipers live along river, ponds, or lakes.
Common sandpipers are small to medium sized birds, but they have relatively long legs that they put to good use. When seen running in groups the birds appear to display a remarkable coordination of movement. Sandpipers are ground feeders that dine on crustaceans, insects, worms, and other coastal creatures. They retrieve them by meticulously pecking and probing with their short bills.
In flight, common sandpipers have a stiff-winged style and typically stay close to the water or ground. When airborne they tend to be vocal animals. They sound off with a distinctive three-note, piping-like cry—often represented as "twee-wee-wee."
Born in northern Germany in 1953, Norbert Rosing is a passionate nature and wildlife photographer with special dedication to the Arctic, North American landscapes, and the national parks of Germany.
In 1980, Rosing published his first photograph in a German photo magazine. Since then he has traveled extensively to the Canadian Arctic, to the landscapes of the U.S. Southwest, and to the romantic landscapes of Germany's national parks and Africa's savannas.
A member of several photographic associations, he has won several awards for single images as well as for books and magazine articles in Germany and the United States. His images have been published in magazines all over the world, such as GEO, Terre Sauvage, BBC Wildlife, Sinra, Terra, Naturfoto, and Photo Technik International.
Rosing's first cover story in National Geographic magazine, "Bear Beginnings: New Life on the Ice," was published in December 2000. Since then he has also covered musk oxen, walruses, bald eagles, and snow foxes for the magazine, among other subjects.
Rosing has published many books, including Unknown Germany, Cheetahs, The World of the Polar Bear, German National Parks, Yellowstone: Land of Fire and Ice, and Yellowstone: America's Playground.
He does not use any modern computer technology to manipulate his images.
The African wild dog, also called Cape hunting dog or painted dog, typically roams the open plains and sparse woodlands of sub-Saharan Africa. These long-legged canines have only four toes per foot, unlike other dogs, which have five toes on their forefeet. The dog's Latin name means "painted wolf," referring to the animal's irregular, mottled coat, which features patches of red, black, brown, white, and yellow fur. Each animal has its own unique coat pattern, and all have big, rounded ears. African wild dogs live in packs that are usually dominated by a monogamous breeding pair. The female has a litter of 2 to 20 pups, which are cared for by the entire pack. These dogs are very social, and packs have been known to share food and to assist weak or ill members. Social interactions are common, and the dogs communicate by touch, actions, and vocalizations. African wild dogs hunt in formidable, cooperative packs of 6 to 20 (or more) animals. Larger packs were more common before the dogs became endangered. Packs hunt antelopes and will also tackle much larger prey, such as wildebeests, particularly if their quarry is ill or injured. The dogs supplement their diet with rodents and birds. As human settlements expand, the dogs have sometimes developed a taste for livestock, though significant damage is rare. Unfortunately, they are often hunted and killed by farmers who fear for their domestic animals. African hunting dogs are endangered. They are faced with shrinking room to roam in their African home. They are also quite susceptible to diseases spread by domestic animals.
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