B O O !

Just south of where the Headless Horseman rides is another scary celebration, Bronx Zoo’s Boo at the Zoo.

Wear your costumes to the Creepy Hollow Hayride and the Haunting of Habitat Mansion where ghostly guides remind guests to protect wildlife from extinction.

Set your camera on a high ISO for all your spooky scenes.

Weekends through October 2012.

Photo credit: Julie Larsen Maher © WCS

Share

F R O G  I N  F A L L

It’s autumn at the Bronx Zoo. This Surinam horned frog celebrates in full fall fashion at the World of Reptiles nearly blending into its surroundings. Frogs have unique and colorful patterning that help hide them from predators in nature.

Photograph frogs and other reptiles during 2 pm animal enrichment at the Bronx Zoo’s annual Boo at the Zoo event this weekend.

Photo credit: Julie Larsen Maher © WCS

 

Share

E A T  Y O U R   V E G E T A B L E S

October 1 is World Vegetarian Day, the beginning of a month of awareness on eating more veggies. Some of the most ample mammals, like hippos, are big plant-eaters, or herbivores, and like a good salad to celebrate any occasion.

An historic shot from our WCS Photo Collection shows Peter, a hippo that lived at the Bronx Zoo in the middle of the last century, as he takes the “cake,” made from garden vegetables.

Credit: Wildlife Conservation Society

Source: worldvegetarianday.org, lexar – julie larsen maher

Share

S K U N K  S P O T T E D  A T  T H E  M O U S E  H O U S E

This spotted skunk can be seen at the Bronx Zoo’s Mouse House.

Aptly named Rose, she is most active when it is dark—crawling through hollow logs and into burrows.

How to make a great picture with little or no light? Use a higher ISO setting and a lens with vibration reduction.

Photo credit: Julie Larsen Maher © WCS

Source: Bronx Zoo and Nikon

 

Share

P R I M A T E S  I N  P E R I L

Gorillas, all kinds, are in peril. Poaching and diseases like Ebola have decimated their numbers, even in protected areas. Their status is critically endangered. The Wildlife Conservation Society is working to make a difference by encouraging the renewal of the Save Vanishing Species stamp.

I am lucky to have western lowland gorillas as my neighbors at the Bronx Zoo. Ernie, one of our silverbacks, is a fine photo subject. He lives with his group of females at the Congo Gorilla Forest.

Standing at an angle to the exhibit glass while taking pictures helps to eliminate glare and reflections. (Yes, there is glass between Ernie and me!)

Photo credit: Julie Larsen Maher © WCS

Sources: WCS and IUCN Red List

Share

W O R L D  R H I N O  D A Y

“My horn belongs on my head.”

Rhino numbers drop as rhino poaching numbers climb to meet the international demand for rhino horn. Rhino horn, a permanent growth made of keratin, is believed to have medicinal value in some cultures, a misconception that has caused the demise of this charismatic species. In some places, rhinos have gone extinct.

Global conservation efforts are underway to protect those that remain.

Bring your camera gear to the Bronx Zoo to photograph southern white rhinos (below) and Indian rhinos.

Photo credit: Julie Larsen Maher © WCS

Sources: rhinoconservation.orgwcs.org, bronxzoo.com

Share

D E T A I L S,  D E T A I L S

The New Caledonian crested gecko, thought to be extinct until the 1990’s, was then rediscovered. This docile gecko has no eyelids—its eyes are topped with tiny points that look like lashes.

Geckos, and other herps, have intricate details that are beautiful and aid in their survival. Nikon’s R1C1 Close-up Speedlight system enables excellent lighting effects, bringing out details like the gecko’s bright, bulging eyes that resemble a map of the land where they live.

Take your camera to the World of Reptiles at the Bronx Zoo to get good shots of geckos, turtles, snakes, frogs, and other reptiles and amphibians.

Photo credit: Julie Larsen Maher © WCS

Source: Bronx Zoo and Lexar 

Share

N E W   F R O M   N I K O N

There is nothing better than trying out new Nikon products on wildlife at the Bronx Zoo. Nikon’s Mike Corrado came by today, bringing along a just-released Coolpix S800c with 16.0 megapixels and Android technology. I used it to take this photo of him meeting our giraffe. He transmitted it from the S800c camera—immediately—to his Facebook.

Photo credit: Julie Larsen Maher

The Nikon D4 is part of Corrado’s camera kit, too. I tried the D4 with a Nikkor 200-400mm lens and got every drop of this Caribbean flamingo’s bird bath.

Photo credit: Julie Larsen Maher © WCS

 

Share

S E P T E M B E R  1 1,  2 0 1 2

The Bronx Zoo’s Coquerel’s sifaka family are great photo subjects any time of year at Madagascar! Sifakas are lemurs, and one of many species that are only found in the wild on the island of Madagascar.

Ron Magill, a renowned photographer and wildlife expert from Zoo Miami, came to visit me and our leaping lemurs. He brought along a 200-400mm Nikkor VR lens for long range photo ops.

 Photo credit: Julie Larsen Maher © WCS

 

Share

S E P T E M B E R  9,  2 0 1 2

Back to the World of Birds at the Bronx Zoo—with a flash on my camera this time. Shooting through glass is a challenge often resulting in light bouncing back in a big blast that can ruin your photo. Stand at an angle to the glass rather than in front of it when taking your picture. The distracting flashback is gone, and reflections are minimized. Flash really helped to illuminate my friend’s face as he met this colorful quetzal.

Tip: I wear black when I have assignments with glass so I don’t show up in the reflections myself!

Photo credit: Julie Larsen Maher © WCS

Share