Photographing the Northern Fulmar (Fulmarus glacialis) of Iceland

Northern Fulmar Portrait , Fulmarus glacialis (Fulmar boréal) Látrabjarg, Iceland ©Christopher Dodds www.chrisdoddsphoto.com All Rights Reserved Canon EOS-1DsMKII, 300mm F2.8IS. ISO 400, 1/320s F5.6 Manual mode. Canon 550 EX Flash in manual mode. Tripod and Wimberley Head. CLICK HERE TO PURCHASE A PRINT OR LICENSE IMAGE FOR PUBLICATION.

Northern Fulmar Dorsal View , Fulmarus glacialis (Fulmar boréal) Látrabjarg, Iceland ©Christopher Dodds www.chrisdoddsphoto.com All Rights Reserved Canon EOS-1DsMKII, 300mm F2.8IS. ISO 250, 1/1000s F4.5 Manual mode. Canon 550 EX Flash in manual mode. Hand-held. CLICK HERE TO PURCHASE A PRINT OR LICENSE IMAGE FOR PUBLICATION.

Northern Fulmar on nest , Fulmarus glacialis (Fulmar boréal) Látrabjarg, Iceland ©Christopher Dodds www.chrisdoddsphoto.com All Rights Reserved Canon EOS-1DsMKII, 500mm F4IS. ISO 400, 1/800s F8 Manual mode. Canon 550 EX Flash in manual mode. Tripod and Wimberley Head. CLICK HERE TO PURCHASE A PRINT OR LICENSE IMAGE FOR PUBLICATION.

Northern Fulmar on cliff edge in rain , Fulmarus glacialis (Fulmar boréal) Látrabjarg, Iceland ©Christopher Dodds www.chrisdoddsphoto.com All Rights Reserved Canon EOS-1DsMKII, 300mm F2.8IS. ISO 250, 1/800s F2.8 Manual mode. Canon 550 EX Flash in manual mode. Tripod and Wimberley Head. CLICK HERE TO PURCHASE A PRINT OR LICENSE IMAGE FOR PUBLICATION.

Cool Northern Fulmar Facts:

  • The Northern Fulmar is one of the longest-lived birds. Data from one study indicate a mean adult life span of about 32 years. In Scotland, several Northern Fulmars banded as adults in 1951 were still breeding in 1990, at ages likely greater than 50 years.
  • The Northern Fulmar begins breeding at an exceptionally old age. Most do not breed until they are at least 8 to 10 years old; one study found an individual that started breeding at age 20.
  • The Northern Fulmar is well known among commercial fishermen for its avid scavenging of offal thrown from whaling and fishing boats.
  • The population of Northern Fulmars in the northeast Atlantic has dramatically increased over the past 250 years. Once only one colony was found in northern Iceland, and none off the Faeroes or the British Isles. Now hundreds of colonies exist across all the coasts of these islands. It is unclear whether this change has resulted from natural oceanographic changes, from increased food availability from fishing vessels, or from some other factor.
  • The Northern Fulmar can dive to a depth of at least 3 meters (10 feet).

LensFlare Live & NatureScapes Radio LIVE:

On Tuesday, April 6th, 2010, I was honoured to be the first invited guest on the new NatureScapes Radio Live. Hosted by LensFlare 35's very own Dave Warner, with Greg Downing and E.J. Peiker of NatureScapes.net. Be sure to give it a listen HERE:

Coyotes, Canon EOS 1D Mark IV First Impressions and NatureScapes Radio Live

Coyote Alpha Male Portrait  (Canis latrans) Quebec, Canada (C) ©Christopher Dodds  www.chrisdoddsphoto.com All Rights Reserved. Canon EOS 1D Mark IV, 500mm F4 IS, Canon 2X II Tele-converter, Tripod & Wimberley Head II. ISO 400, 1/320s F8 Manual Mode. Full Frame. Click HERE to purchase a print or license an image for publication.

Coyote Adult female Portrait  (Canis latrans) Quebec, Canada (C) ©Christopher Dodds  www.chrisdoddsphoto.com All Rights Reserved. Canon EOS 1D Mark IV, 500mm F4 IS, Canon 2X II Tele-converter, Tripod & Wimberley Head II. ISO 400, 1/400s F8 Manual Mode. Full Frame. Click HERE to purchase a print or license an image for publication.

Coyote Alpha Male Skulking  (Canis latrans) Quebec, Canada (C) ©Christopher Dodds  www.chrisdoddsphoto.com All Rights Reserved. Canon EOS 1D Mark IV, 500mm F4 IS, Canon 1.4X II Tele-converter, Tripod & Wimberley Head II. ISO 400, 1/640s F5.6 Manual Mode. Full Frame. Click HERE to purchase a print or license an image for publication.

Coyote

It's amazing to see just how much this Alpha Male Eastern Coyote resembles a wolf; Coyotes have been known to occasionally mate with wolves. The offspring, known as a coywolf, are generally intermediate in size to both parents, being larger than a pure coyote, but smaller than a pure wolf. A study showed that of 100 coyotes collected in Maine, 22 had half or more wolf ancestry, and one was 89 percent wolf. A theory has been proposed that the large eastern coyotes in Canada are actually hybrids of the smaller western coyotes and wolves that met and mated decades ago as the coyotes moved toward New England from their earlier western ranges. The Red Wolf is thought by certain scientists to be in fact a wolf/coyote hybrid rather than a unique species. Strong evidence for hybridization was found through genetic testing, which showed that red wolves have only 5% of their alleles unique from either gray wolves or coyotes. Genetic distance calculations have indicated that red wolves are intermediate between coyotes and gray wolves, and that they bear great similarity to wolf/coyote hybrids in southern Quebec and Minnesota. Analyses of mitochondrial DNA showed that existing red wolf populations are predominantly coyote in origin.

Canon EOS 1D Mark IV First Impressions

I've now spent a considerable amount of time in the drivers seat of my Canon EOS 1D Mark IV and am loving every moment. From the new, and snappy, autofocus system to the superb image quality in low light at high ISO, this camera ROCKS! Be sure to download, read and digest the following from CPN Canon Professional Networks 1D Mark IV page:

Christopher Dodds on NatureScapes Radio Live April 6, 2010 @ 9PM EST!

Each month NatureScapes.net will be broadcasting a LIVE Pod Cast called "NatureScapes Radio LIVE!" 

NatureScapes Radio LIVE! will air live the first Tuesday of each month at 9PM EST.
Hosted by Dave Warner of LensFlare Live each show will feature friends E.J. Peiker and Greg Downing of NatureScapes.net as well as other guest photographers TBA (Christopher Dodds on April 6th, 2010). Listen LIVE or participate in the conversation while they talk about everything nature and wildlife photography from the latest and greatest gear to techniques and important issues affecting us all.

I was thrilled to be invited as Greg and E.J.'s first featured guest and look forward to answering all of your questions live at 9PM EST on April 6th, 2010. Click HERE for more information.