Photographing wildlife and landscapes is my favourite way to explore new places on my travels, or during fieldwork! Enjoy some selected photos here:
Many animal species have rich social lives just like we do. Here, two puffins on the Farnes Islands perform a pair-bonding ritual named 'billing', involves rubbing their beaks together.
A kangaroo mother with its joey out at the Westernmost point in Australia.
Dolphins in Shark Bay in Western Australia are known for their tool-using behavior, which I have studied as part of my MSc and PhD research. Here, a dolphin wearing a marine sponge as a protective 'glove'. 'Sponging' is a behaviour that young dolphins learn exclusively from their mothers.
Svalbard - a Norwegian archipelago in the Arctic Ocean - has so much to offer in terms of wildlife and landscapes. This was my favourite wildlife encounter of my 5-week stay. Breeding birds in Svalbard defend their nests ferociously against intruders - foxes, humans... and reindeers! These two had the audacity to come a little too close to the skua's nest on the ground, and were chased around the swamp in return. Do not mess with a skua, they mean business!
The Milky Way far from any light pollution... simply breathtaking.
The Isle of Skye - a true gem.
Great tits are clever birds. They can even learn to solve puzzles! During my first postdoc, I investigated the mechanisms underlying the spread of this behavior through the population.
Birds can get a worm if they slide the little door to the left or right, while the fully automated puzzles register the birds identity through RFID techniques.
Silver Falls State Park in Oregon
Silver Falls State Park in Oregon
My current study organism: the California ground squirrel. Fantastic for both behavioural observations and automated data collection - and extremely photogenic!
They are a facultatively social, semi-fossorial species that likes to forage on seeds and fresh greens.
Playing with long-exposures at Silver Falls State Park in Oregon.
Ten waterfalls are easily accessible from a trail that runs through the park.