Santa Cruz Island, Channel Islands National Park

Three days on Santa Cruz Island - returned home just last night. I don't know how to write about Santa Cruz Island without sounding trite. The emotion and wonder that I feel about this place now, however, is the same as what I felt when I first visited as a child. Maybe it is because I am a Californian, but the landscape, unique animals and the ranching history are captivating.

Eastern Santa Cruz grassland and Anacapa Island

Cavern Point

Sea Caves

Island Scrub Jay

Santa Cruz Ironwood

Scorpion Cove

Ravens, Smugglers Ranch

Windmill

Smugglers Ranch

Morning Glory and Yellowbanks

Farm Equipment

Sunset on Montanon Ridge

Paul Nicklen's Leopard Seal Documentation

Yesterday I referred to Paul Nicklen's encounter with a leopard seal in Antarctica. Here is a brief interview with Nicklen I cam across on You Tube. My understanding of leopard seals up until this point was fairly limited, informed mostly by an account from Shackleton's expedition to Antartica (aboard the Endurance) in which a member of the crew nearly fell as prey. Nicklen'a encounter suggests these animals may be more complex than previously believed (although I hesitate to anthropomorphize here). The snout-to-snout perspective is only rivaled by the stunning clarity and sharpness of his images.

"Polar Obsession" - the work of Paul Nicklen

I first learned about Paul Nicklen's work in National Geographic Magazine in a series of images of a female leopard seal. The contrast of the leopard seal's teeth with the eerie blue light gave a haunting quality to what has to be one of the most incredible animal/human interactions I have every heard of, or seen documented. In a larger context, I admire Nicklen's efforts to inform people about the poles - places that few of us will ever visit, yet which play a critical role in Earth's ecological processes. You can see some of his work on NPR and hear an interview with him on NPR's photo blog The Picture Show as well as in the most recent issue of National Geographic Magazine.

Macroinvertebrate Survey/Biodiversity Field Work with Thacher students

Giant Water Bug

Kyle

Dobson Fly Larvae (hellgramite)

Fans of the Giant Water Bug

Sorting and Identifying Samples from Reeves Creek