Canada – Roumazeilles.net

A few bears from the Great North

Yves Roumazeilles — Sun, 03 Dec 2017 16:35:54 +0000

The polar bears were found in the North of Nunavut, Canada, in August 2016. There were a few beluga whale carcasses in Conningham Bay. So much food that bears were very relaxed and did not care much about our zodiac boat (and or cameras). So, we could shoot a few good pictures of this great male and a few others (including the mother and child that are appearing in several of the images).

Conningham Bay, Nunavut, Canada, August 2016.
Polar bear (Ursus maritimus, ours polaire).

Polar bears are marine mammals

Yves Roumazeilles — Sun, 29 Oct 2017 11:24:02 +0000

Most people tend to forget it, but polar bears are living in the sea. They tend to get out to the ground (and be photographed more easily there), but they are more than at ease in the water.

Polar bear (Ursus maritimus, Ours polaire).
Conningham Bay, Nunavut, Canada.
August 2016.

Musk ox

Yves Roumazeilles — Sat, 03 Dec 2016 18:11:19 +0000

Musk ox is assuredly a weird animal. They look a bit like a bison, but they are much smaller. As a matter of fact, they are more a goat with a long coat than a cow (the hair is a good protection against cold weather).

It’s not easy to approach them (we saw a few of them frightened by human presence at a couple of kilometers distance), but an isolated individual at the end of its life is easier on the photographer.

Musk ox (Ovibos moschatus, bœuf musqué).
Dundas Harbour, Nunavut, Canada.
August 2016.

Conningham Bay

Yves Roumazeilles — Sun, 09 Oct 2016 22:13:54 +0000

Conningham Bay, Nunavut, Canada.
August 2016.

Red-throated loon’s family

Yves Roumazeilles — Sat, 08 Oct 2016 22:46:17 +0000

Already a few days ago, I had shown this great brid, the red-throated loon in flight, because it is a marvelously gorgeous bird. But after a few days, we could also find a mother with two chicks in a small pool near Fort Ross. This gives us the possibility to admire it on the surface of water.

Red-throated diver or red-throated loon (Gavia stellata, Plongeon catmarin, aussi appelé Plongeon à gorge rouge, Plongeon à gorge rousse, et au Québec Huart à gorge rousse).
Fort Ross, Nunavut, Canada.
August 2016.

Birds of Prince Leopold Island 3/3

Yves Roumazeilles — Fri, 07 Oct 2016 22:04:29 +0000

An island, a cliff, tens of thousands of nesting birds. This is the opportunity to shoot a few nice pictures, even if the sheer number makes it more difficult, not simpler.

Thick-billed murre (Uria lomvia, Guillemot de Brünnich).

Black-legged kittiwake (Rissa tridactyla, Mouette tridactyle).

Prince Leopold Island, Nunavut, Canada.
August 2016.

Birds of Prince Leopold Island 2/3

Yves Roumazeilles — Thu, 06 Oct 2016 22:15:42 +0000

An island, a cliff, tens of thousands of nesting birds. This is the opportunity to shoot a few nice pictures, even if the sheer number makes it more difficult, not simpler.

Glaucous gull (Larus hyperboreus, Goéland bourgmestre).

Thick-billed murre (Uria lomvia, Guillemot de Brünnich).

Black-legged kittiwake (Rissa tridactyla, Mouette tridactyle).

Prince Leopold Island, Nunavut, Canada.
August 2016.

Neighbours bickering on Prince Leopold Island cliffs

Yves Roumazeilles — Wed, 05 Oct 2016 22:26:36 +0000

When tens of thousands of birds nest on the same cliff face, conflicts cannot be fully avoided. But when your neighbour needs to literally trample your own bed to reach his room, shouting is soon not enough.

It seems kittiwakes are permanently bickering. This could be easily understood from the fact there is limited space to build a nest and a bird would not want to lose its chance to reproduce. But kittiwakes are specially active.

Black-legged kittiwake (Rissa tridactyla, Mouette tridactyle).

Prince Leopold Island, Nunavut, Canada.
August 2016.

Birds of Prince Leopold Island 1/3

Yves Roumazeilles — Thu, 29 Sep 2016 22:49:15 +0000

An island, a cliff, tens of thousands of nesting birds. This is the opportunity to shoot a few nice pictures, even if the sheer number makes it more difficult, not simpler.

Glaucous gull (Larus hyperboreus, Goéland bourgmestre).

Thick-billed murre (Uria lomvia, Guillemot de Brünnich).

Black-legged kittiwake (Rissa tridactyla, Mouette tridactyle).

Prince Leopold Island, Nunavut, Canada.
August 2016.

Sunset at Iqaluit

Yves Roumazeilles — Wed, 28 Sep 2016 22:02:16 +0000

Iqaluit, Nunavut, Canada.
August 2016.

Polar bear in Bellot Strait

Yves Roumazeilles — Tue, 27 Sep 2016 22:34:42 +0000

When crossing Bellot Strait, so narrow and so emblematic of the centuries-long search for the Northwest Passage, we came across this bear which seemed to be interested in mountain climbing (or those bird nests perched halfway up on the so-colourful rock).

Polar bear (Ursus maritimus, Ours polaire).
Bellot Strait, Nunavut, Canada.
August 2016.

Blue ice in Resolute

Yves Roumazeilles — Mon, 26 Sep 2016 22:52:42 +0000

Resolute, Nunavut, Canada.
August 2016.

Many icebergs

Yves Roumazeilles — Sun, 25 Sep 2016 22:28:29 +0000

Dundas Harbour, Nunavut, Canada.
August 2016.

Ice front

Yves Roumazeilles — Sat, 24 Sep 2016 22:42:05 +0000

Dundas Harbour, Nunavut, Canada.
August 2016.

Icebergs abstract art

Yves Roumazeilles — Fri, 23 Sep 2016 22:58:21 +0000

The icebergs ice is the opportunity for Nature to draw some elegant waves that we may be able to reproduce in a photo. An abstract form, a move, a few lines…

Dundas Harbour, Nunavut, Canada.
August 2016.

Arctic tern

Yves Roumazeilles — Thu, 22 Sep 2016 22:49:43 +0000

Not easy to catch, a foggy day, shots that are more informative than eye-catching…

Arctic tern (Sterna paradisaea, Sterne arctique).
Conningham Bay, Nunavut, Canada.
August 2016.

Red-throated loon

Yves Roumazeilles — Tue, 20 Sep 2016 22:01:00 +0000

Look at that profile!

Muskox – Close up

Yves Roumazeilles — Mon, 19 Sep 2016 22:31:58 +0000

Muskox is definitely hard to approach. Probably because it’s hunted in Canada by Inuits. Our fist encounter was with a corpse dried by time since it had died. Here, I learned several things that may not appear immediately obvious from photographs, that only immediate proximity can put in a brighter light:

Morphologically speaking, muskox is nearer a (large) goat than a bison, as most photos would make you believe.
The long hair is a good protection against cold weather, but there is also a kind of fluffy down complementing it, even if it is hardly visible.

All in all, it is quite probable that the muskox name is misleading. Musk is certainly a reminder of the strong odor inherited from its caprine ascendance, while the ox is simply an interpretation or identification error from early European pioneers.

If the animal is often present on grassy slopes, it will easily be frightened and will run to the reassuring buttresses where its agility will talk about chamois, more than about the affable and quiet bovine animal of our temperate countries.

Muskox (Ovibos moschatus, Bœuf musqué).
Dundas Harbour, Nunavut, Canada.
August 2016.

Pairs of Glaucous Gulls

Yves Roumazeilles — Sun, 18 Sep 2016 22:51:21 +0000

Why did I shoot them two-by-two? What kind of inspiration is this?

Glaucous gull (Larus hyperboreus, Goéland bourgmestre).
Dundas Harbour, Nunavut, Canada.
August 2016.

Arctic bunny too far for a photo

Yves Roumazeilles — Sat, 17 Sep 2016 22:55:36 +0000

Sometimes, the animal you want to shoot is a bit too far for a good picture (even with a long tele-lens), but its camouflage totally failed to hide it, like this arctic hare whose pelt is still white while Winter snow is long gone:

Big lens, good camera, not enough… picture blow out of proportion: Bunny gets pixelated like hell.

Arctic hare (Lepus arcticus, Lièvre arctique).
Dundas Harbour, Nunavut, Canada.
August 2016.