One of the invertebrate species we surveyed… this species of sea urchin burrows into crevices in the reef and you only ever see them protruding out of a hole like this.
I spotted these egrets on this fence both times I went to the spiny forest to check out the baobabs. I had wanted to get closer, but I also like this shot with a bit of action going on with these guys chasing each other.…
Sometimes I feel bad not being more specific on the species of critters I am sharing – remember that shrimp goby post from the other day? But sometimes it is really difficult. Case in point, this looks like a fairly distinct nudibranch, but once you…
Oh yeah… I went to that Paris place… Actually, the day I arrived, the one lady who sold me my metro tickets mentioned that they were going to be doing a light show on the Eiffel Tower to celebrate its 130th anniversary. At the time,…
One of the benthic animals that we identified for our surveys were zooanthids. We didn’t get to the level of species identification, and flipping through my reef creature ID book quickly, there is little info in there about them. This is a less common species…
The guy above is an Arc-eye Hawkfish and the gal (yes, I am sure it is a female because the males have wavy lines on their cheeks) is a Speckled Sandperch. Neither fish were among the ones we surveyed and I realize I was pretty…
These trees are just so cool… The locals will carve into them to be able to drink the water that they store… and then eventually those carved openings become large enough that you can also use them for shelter… But there is just something to…
Well, I found a quick way to get some more posts… I have a bunch of photos I’ve uploaded with the intention of sharing, but have not yet done so… So first up is a cool nudibranch that I only saw a couple times on…
These are almost always somewhere on a coral reef, and they’re always interesting to look at, and fun to make disappear with just a wave of your hand…
I should ID this little guy, and I wish I had been able to get a photo with his burrow-mate shrimp (they’re usually much more skittish and vanish before the fish do)… but for now, just sharing a photo of a cool fish…
Fortuitous trees on either bank just downstream from a nice waterfall…
Finally complete. I feel it isn’t the best I can do, so I’ll have to collect more sets and try again in the future. I hope you enjoy. Warning: the audio might be set a little loud…
I was hoping to find some cool and crazy looking insects while in Madagascar (ok – we did get to see some stick insects, but I didn’t have the good camera with me that day), but while praying mantis are always fun to find and…
For many weeks in Andava, I was confused by numerous tracks in the sand around the huts and up on the dune near the huts. The tracks were continuous wavy lines, so they really appeared to be made by a snake, but they lacked the…
Sorry for not posting more recently, I’ve been trying to get the photos of the Milky Way processed in a way I am satisfied with, and I’ve been really struggling with that, so I’ve been spending time working on photos with little in the way…
On our overland tour north, we got to see some more lemurs… Oh – and in case you’re interested, I paid my deposit for another expedition with Blue Ventures – this time to Timor Leste in October/November/December. I’ll be doing a two week whale/coral watch…
I’m sitting in Paris this evening waiting for the rain to finish up so I can head out for some dinner, and while Paris is cool and all, what I’m really missing is this… The conditions were never favorable for any over/under shots, but I…
I can’t decide which version I like better…
I’ve been trying to get some photos of this kestrel since shortly after arriving in Andava, then one evening a pair of them posed for me right in the perfect light of sunset…
I’ll hopefully be putting together a couple timelapse videos, but for now, here’s a single frame of the Milky Way with a couple meteors…
These little guys were photographed inside one of the no-take reserves that Blue Ventures has helped the Velondriak association establish. We had completed our surveys of this site, so I got the bonus of getting to take the camera and do some “photographic surveying”.
On the same dive where we found those Nemobrotha Nudis, I managed to find this absolutely stunning Blue Dragon Nudibranch (Pteraeolidia ianthina). Today is a bit of a sad day though as I am leaving Andavadoaka and beginning my journey back towards home.
A couple closeups showing the corals feeding with their tentacles out during the day…
This little reef fish tends to live both in tabular corals (like the Indian Dascyllus I’ve shared before) as well as in anemones like this one…
We’ve started doing actual scientific survey dives at this point so I am not able to take my camera as often (though honestly, if I hadn’t struggled with it working properly earlier in the trip, I might have more photos). But one of our expedition…
Outside our huts there is a wooden fence/railing at the edge of the small cliff that drops down to the beach – many of have taken to hanging wet clothing there to dry… and quite often when I go to retrieve my dry clothes I’d…
It has been such a treat to be presented with this view almost every evening, and sad that it is soon coming to an end. I had debated trying to stay for a second expedition, but in the end decided not to (though I still…
I saw tiger flatworms in Indonesia, but I think these are some better photos. Flatworms are different from nudibranchs, but they kind of get lumped in with nudis as one of my favorite underwater critters. I’ve been lucky to see some really nice nudis and…
One of the days I was wandering with the camera, I noticed this little fly that seemed to be trying to dig a burrow in the sand. It is seemed like such interesting behavior so I got some photos and videos…
I told you that these guys are one of my favorite fish even though they are quite common. This shot also comes from wandering around in the tide pools during low tide. I actually found a small tabular coral (which is where these guys usually…
Another juvenile fish found in the rock pools. This little guy actually was a very cooperative subject even though it was swimming away from me. Usually fish turn and swim away and you’re left with fish butt photos… but this little guy simply backed away…
I found this little guy hiding among the rock pools during low tide. Unfortunately, the coloration isn’t leading me to any identification, but I do like the spot patterns on his head…
Warning: I intentionally did not set this post to have a thumbnail image just in case folks really don’t like centipedes This particular one was hiding under one of the volunteer’s shirt that was hanging out to dry and had fallen on the ground. I…
As promised, here is a sunset… the rock formation out in the water is called Andava Rock and this is basically the view from my hut.
I just don’t know how to describe this landscape – it was just something to stand at the top of one of those rocks and look down on that landscape and take it all in. The photo is a feeble attempt to convey the magnitude…
This is not one of the species of fish being surveyed, but pipefish are related to seahorses, so that makes them cool…
Ok – I’m going to start bouncing around with my photos now, so they’re no longer in sequential order as I took them… After some challenges with the diving (rough conditions, less than perfect visibility, and wanting to make sure I focused on the science…
I know this photo isn’t all that great (it was taken with my cell phone), but for at least the first week here in Andava, this was my morning view as I made a point to wake up and get out for the sunrise. Recently…
Otherwise known as the Madagascar Spiny Tailed Iguana… We saw them during a tour of an arboretum outside of Toliara, and the guide there said that they will be going into about a three month hibernation here in a couple more weeks as the weather…
Just a quick post today to share some more ring-tailed lemur photos… (and make up for those spiders from yesterday for any of you squeamish folks).
At least I *think* they are a pair… I suppose there is a possibility that the smaller one is one of those species of spiders that steals food from other spiders, but I am leaning towards this being a pair.. Incredible size difference between the…
These little guys were a bit calmer and let me get a closer approach, which is good since they were about half the size of the other black and white birds I posted earlier.
Another morning hike we took was to the spiny forest to see the baobab trees. Along the way, we went past some mashes and these medium sized birds were wading through the water. I had to let the group get out ahead of me so…
Baobab trees are one of those iconic sights of Madagascar, so no need for a lengthy introduction…
Zebu are the cattle in Madagascar, they’re used both as food and a beasts of burden. Those distinct horns and that hump behind the head between the shoulder blades make them rather distinct from most of the cattle in the USA The beef from them…
There is just something about these wide open landscapes… the sky seems larger, the patterns from the rice fields, the easily visible transition from valleys to mountains, everything. I often found myself wondering whether there are such landscapes somewhere in the States, as well as…
