It's Superb Owl Sunday, so you know what I'm going to do. (Go Hawks, btw.)

Another cancellation means 1 spot has opened up on one of my 2026 tours. Our return to the Great Bear Rainforest brings us to the land of spirit and grizzly bears, humpbacks, and more. It's also one of the most beautiful environments I've ever explored. Learn more: www.maxwaugh.com/workshops/gr...

Guyana 2026: I always appreciate bringing guests to a destination that allows them to experience a variety of things, including different environments. In Guyana, we floated through coastal wetlands, explored rainforests... and we even spent time in the savanna, where we saw this giant anteater.

Over the holidays I received a thermal camera as a gift, so I brought it to Guyana. The first animal it helped me find was... a red-nosed armored tree-rat caught mid-pee.

Here are a couple of the underrated finds from our night walks in Guyana. Trying to ID obscure bugs is always a challenge, but @wizentrop.bsky.social was there to help me once again. Turns out these two critters (Largus anticus and Dubiepeira neptunina) have rarely been documented in the field!

Guyana 2026: Many folks are aware that some birds come in different "morphs." For example, the Red-tailed Hawk may be medium brown, or a light beige, or almost black. Did you know the Crested Owl has juvenile morphs? According to science, they are "Boopable," "Hoity-toity," and "Bedraggled."

Guyana 2026: One of many large creatures we saw on the "Land of Giants" tour was the giant otter. Though I've seen them countless times over the years in other countries, the ones in Guyana are far less habituated due to the relative lack of people. This one dashed into the water as we boated past.

Guyana 2026: Along a forest road, we watched a pair of White-throated Toucans flying to and from their nest cavity. Sometimes we'd see them peeking out before they took off again. It was only later, when we examined the photos, that we realized their chick was also looking out the window!

New Photos: Guyana 2026 This coming week I'll start sharing my new Guyana photos in earnest, but as usual my BlueSky audiences gets a sneak peek! Here's a lovely tropical flat snake we found during one of our night walks. Preview more photos from this trip: www.maxwaugh.com/2026/01/30/n...

It's my son's birthday week, so I gave him the choice of what I should post today. He asked for a wolf. Here's a loner, likely a member of the Junction Butte Pack, that I encountered just about five years ago in Yellowstone.

Missing winter in Yellowstone, but I'll make it back next year. Here's a scene from the Lamar Valley a few years ago.

Ultimately, I'll probably never do anything with this photo after today, but you have to admit that it's pretty cool seeing a real life dragon peeking out of its lair.

The elephant's trunk, the giraffe's long neck, the peacock's tail... These are all standout body features that make certain animals famous. But is there any more iconic body part than that of the male vervet monkey?

Seems like a very good day to remind everyone of the Seahawks' mascot identity crisis. Their logo is based on a ceremonial PNW tribal Eagle mask, while the live mascot at their games is... an Augur Buzzard (a hawk found in Africa). But a "sea hawk" is... an Osprey. What connects them? All winners!

Just in case anyone out there is interested in seeing pumas in the wild, my May Patagonia photo tour just had a cancellation. We've got one spot open! www.maxwaugh.com/workshops/wi...

I appreciate the largely positive feedback from yesterday's photo, but recognize that some of you may require a palate-cleanser. So here's a quokka.

Not a great photo, as it was taken with a 600mm lens (the subject was inaccessible at close range, so I feel fortunate we got an open view), BUT... ...this has to be the most beautiful spider I've ever seen: the purple earth tiger tarantula from Borneo!

I'm missing out on winter adventures in Yellowstone right now, but thankfully will be back next year. Here's a scene from last year's trip, with an American Dipper hanging out along a semi-frozen (or is it semi-thawed?) stretch of Soda Butte Creek.

As dusk falls on the Caribbean coast, a Little Blue heron flies home to roost near Georgetown, Guyana. I'm hoping I can begin processing the photos from this trip very soon!

It's National Popcorn Day, so of course I'm pulling out a binturong photo!

For some reason I've only ever managed to see mink in British Columbia. This was one of my earliest sightings, from the Great Bear Rainforest. Mink are often seen scouring the rocky shorelines for crustaceans and other treats. We happened to be puttering by in a Zodiac when we spotted this one.

I hope you all enjoyed my Year in Review series in recent weeks. I'm ready to move on... not from 2025, necessarily, but at least just going back to random themeless posts. In Borneo, I was glad to finally get closer views of their pygmy elephants in the wild, after first glimpsing them in 2012.

Best of 2025: One of the most memorable scenes from last year was witnessing hundreds of parrots descend on the Rio Roosevelt in the Brazilian Amazon to feed along the edge of a treacherous waterfall.

If you follow me on IG/FB, you may have seen my Stories and know I’ve been leading my Guyana tour the last two weeks. I hope to share photos from this trip soon. In the meantime, here’s a short video from the most unexpected moment of the trip (I was looking for birds and didn’t have my camera).

Best of 2025: This encounter kicked off my excellent otter year. It was only the second time I saw otters and coyotes interacting with each other. These two species seem to have a mutual respect for each other: coyotes will steal fish and even kill otters, but the otters will chase them right back.

Best of 2025: Caracara Chase So many of my favorites from last year were tied to memorable or personal moments, or featured rare wildlife. This was just some cool subject placement that translated really well to B&W: Two White-throated Caracaras chase a larger Southern Crested Caracara.

Best of 2025: I was fortunate to have a variety of photographic experiences last year beyond my standard mammal/bird photography. It was fun doing more macro, and I even got to try my hand at some underwater in the Galapagos. This shot of a Galapagos Penguin chasing fish was my favorite of the trip.

Best of 2025: Photo of the Year This was my favorite photo taken last year. It depicts a planthopper nymph defending itself against a Giant Forest Ant, using the waxy filaments growing from its rear. It was so cool seeing this type of behavior on a miniature scale during my Borneo trip.

Best of 2025: Otter of the Year? In a year of memorable otter sightings (including another that made my Best Of list), seeing Cape clawless otters for the first time in South Africa was definitely the biggest surprise.

Best of 2025: It’s time to share my favorite photos of 2025. The year featured plenty of trips and special moments, such as this encounter with an Alaskan brown bear family. See the full list of 2025 faves in the blog: www.maxwaugh.com/2026/01/07/b...

Sharing more of my peers’ 2025 highlights: Pietro encountered this sand moray with a small friend in the Philippines. Don’t forget to see the full collection of peers’ faves from ‘25 in the blog. Tomorrow I’ll start sharing my own favorites of the year. (© Pietro Formis. Shared w/permission.)

Who’s up for some mustelid highlights from my peers in 2025? Simon at @naturelabs.bsky.social and MacNeil at Yellowstone Insight had fun with a marten and long-tailed weasel in Canada and Yellowstone. (Photos ©️Simon Jackson and MacNeil Lyons, respectively. Shared with permission.)

Definitely one of the coolest shots shared by my peers in this year’s year-end collection from other photographers! @wizentrop.bsky.social photographed this Micrathena spider constructing her egg sac in Ecuador. Read more about it in the blog. (Photo © Gil Wizen. Shared with permission.)

Another 2025 Highlight From My Peers: Jess Findlay works a lot in the forests of BC, where he captured this photo of a Spruce Grouse. Read more about it in the blog, and see some of the other cool images submitted by my peers. (Photo © Jess Findlay. Shared with permission.)

Another 2025 Highlight From My Peers: @lauradyer.bsky.social submitted this amazing giraffescape from one of her many Africa adventures this past year. (Photo © Laura Dyer. Shared with permission.)

More of the Best of 2025 From My Peers... Trying to crank out more highlights from my fellow photographers while I can, since I'll be traveling starting tomorrow. Here's a fun little Burrowing Owl from John Blumenkamp (shared with permission). (I shared a link this morning to the full collection!)

2025 in Review: Top Work From My Peers Each year, I highlight some favorite photos from by my fellow photographers. Read the stories behind the photos, including these spawning Pacific Lamprey by @antonsrkn.bsky.social, in the blog: bit.ly/44ReiKC (Photo © Anton Sorokin. Shared w/permission.)

Happy New Year, everyone! While I wish I had time to rest, this is the year I return to Guyana, and I was forced to schedule the trip for... well, almost now. So I will be leaving very soon for South America...

Happy to share another of my "almost faves" today. As usual, owls were contenders for the favorites list. I was excited to visit a new island in the Galápagos, primarily because it's home to the only owl in the islands... and we saw it! This is a Short-eared Owl carrying a Storm Petrel.

Another from my “runners-up” list this year… Stumbling across a spectacled caiman nursery deep in the Brazilian Amazon was a fun surprise!

Not Quite Best of 2025: That time we started my Borneo tour by watching a 3-4 meter reticulated python get outed by alarm-calling Prevost's squirrels 20m off the ground. What a dynamic encounter!

Not Quite Best of 2025: Both bison and foxes put on a good show for my groups during January's winter Yellowstone tours... sometimes together! See more of the "Not Quite Best of the Year" in the blog: www.maxwaugh.com/2025/12/26/2...

Not Quite Best of 2025: Iguana Mountain Once again, marine iguanas provided good photo opportunities during my Galápagos visit. There are usually a lot of closer encounters, but this distant mountain of iguanas looked like it was hiiigh up in the clouds (only a few m above the ocean, actually).

My Not Quite Best of 2025: I've published the photos and moments that just missed my "best of the year" cut. Seeing the female Magellanic Woodpecker pulling a grub out of a tree was a nice bonus during my May Chile trip. See all of my runner-up choices here: www.maxwaugh.com/2025/12/26/2...

Closest thing I have to a reindeer photo. Have a wonderful day, everyone!

More from my 2025 Tour Guests... Big cats played a prominent role in my adventures this year (again). Here are a few different species photographed by some of my guests in South Africa, Chile, and Brazil. (Photos © Julie Robideau, Tom Peterson and Shaun Dixon. Shared with permission.)

More From My 2025 Tour Guests: Foxes played a major role in my Yellowstone winter tours back in January. Jenny and Steve were ready to capture some nice moments with them behind the lens. (Photos © Jenny Loren and Steve Santel. Shared with permission.)

Best of 2025 From My Clients: Glenn joined my group in Alaska in June and photographed this fun interaction between two Horned Puffins. (Photo © Glenn Hermes. Shared w/permission.)

2025 in Review: Favorite Images from My Clients Each year I share some of the top photo moments from my trips, as captured by my tour guests. Maggie sent me this double scent-marking action from South Africa. See more: www.maxwaugh.com/2025/12/21/2... (© Maggie Matthes. Shared w/permission.)

In honor of a certain team snatching victory last night… #seahawks