Harlequin ducks

I’m on Miss 604: The Harlequin Ducks of Stanley Park

I had an opportunity this week to submit an article to Miss604.com, on behalf of Stanley Park Ecology Society. It’s always a pleasure to volunteer for SPES, and it’s exciting to appear on Rebecca’s (Miss604) blog; she has a huge following. I hope you enjoy it. Here’s the link: The Harlequin Ducks of Stanley Park  

tree ferns at Fernglade

On the Trail of the Platypus: Burnie, Tasmania

Beautiful Burnie, Tasmania was an absolute smorgasbord of wildlife, and one that we weren’t really counting on. We had pulled into this small city without having made any plans, except for exploring. We walked along the shoreline enjoying the cool breezes for a while, then did what we always do when needing inspiration: found a coffee …

Three Beautiful Boobies

Traveling by cruise ship is one of the best ways on earth to see some pretty cool wildlife. There’s a whole range of animals that you can only see at sea, and pelagic birds, in particular, are a real treat. Pelagic just means ocean-going; there’s a variety of birds that are practically never seen from …

boat approaching Mystery Island

The Parrotfish of Mystery Island

Parrotfish: Not just another pretty face on the reef. We’re visiting beautiful Mystery Island, in the South Pacific nation of Vanuatu. It’s a tiny spit of land just adjacent to the bigger island of Aneityum. The Aneityum people say that Mystery Island is inhabited by spirits, and nobody is allowed to live here, though it’s ok …

Sunrise Lautoka, Fiji

The Lemon-Yellow Fiddlers of Fiji

The cutest fiddle section this side of the international date line When you think of Fiji, you don’t think of fiddlers. Drummers, perhaps. But the last thing I was expecting to see as I wandered around the town of Lautoka, on the Fijian island of Viti Levu, was a tiny yellow fiddle section, all playing …

Alesund, Norway

Dances With Kittiwakes: An Encounter With The Coolest of the Gulls

A visit with the kittiwakes of Ålesund, Norway. Any travel guidebook will tell you that a visit to beautiful Ålesund is all about the architecture. And I suppose they’re right; it is quite something. This town on the outer Norwegian coast has a legitimate claim to fame in its buildings: in 1904, most of Ålesund burned to …