North Pacific humpback whales, a mother and calf pair swim closely together just under the surface of the ocean. The calf will remain with its mother for about a year, migrating from Hawaii to Alaska to feed on herring.
Species: Humpback whale, Megaptera novaeangliae
Location: Maui, Hawaii
Image ID: 00140
Humpback whale breaching, near Molokai, Hawaii. Megaptera novaeangliae. It is suspected the breaching often has a communicative purpose which depends on the behavioral context of the moment.
Species: Humpback whale, Megaptera novaeangliae
Location: Maui, Hawaii
Image ID: 00205
A SCUBA diver swims through a giant kelp forest which is tilted back by strong ocean currents. Giant kelp, the fastest plant on Earth, reaches from the rocky bottom to the ocean's surface like a submarine forest.
Species: Giant kelp, Macrocystis pyrifera
Location: San Clemente Island, California
Image ID: 01107
A hiker admiring the striated walls and dramatic light within Antelope Canyon, a deep narrow slot canyon formed by water and wind erosion.
Location: Navajo Tribal Lands, Page, Arizona
Image ID: 17993
Townsley Lake (10396'), a beautiful alpine lake sitting below blue sky, clouds and Fletcher Peak (right), lies amid the Cathedral Range of glacier-sculpted granite peaks in Yosemite's high country, near Vogelsang High Sierra Camp.
Location: Yosemite National Park, California
Image ID: 23206
Fin whale underwater. The fin whale is the second longest and sixth most massive animal ever, reaching lengths of 88 feet.
Species: Fin whale, Balaenoptera physalus
Image ID: 27594
Fin whale underwater. The fin whale is the second longest and sixth most massive animal ever, reaching lengths of 88 feet.
Species: Fin whale, Balaenoptera physalus
Image ID: 27597
Fletcher Peak (11407') rises above Fletcher Lake (10174'), near Vogelsang High Sierra Camp in Yosemite's high country.
Location: Yosemite National Park, California
Image ID: 23208
Mobius Arch at sunrise, framing snow dusted Lone Pine Peak and the Sierra Nevada Range in the background. Also known as Galen's Arch, Mobius Arch is found in the Alabama Hills Recreational Area near Lone Pine.
Location: Alabama Hills Recreational Area, California
Image ID: 27644
A perfect Brown Pelican Head Throw with Distant Ocean in Background, bending over backwards, stretching its neck and gular pouch. Note the winter breeding plumage, yellow head, red and olive throat, pink skin around the eye, brown hind neck with some white neck side detail, gray breast and body.
Species: Brown Pelican, Pelecanus occidentalis, Pelecanus occidentalis californicus
Location: La Jolla, California
Image ID: 39873
A brown pelican preening, reaching with its beak to the uropygial gland (preen gland) near the base of its tail. Preen oil from the uropygial gland is spread by the pelican's beak and back of its head to all other feathers on the pelican, helping to keep them water resistant and dry. Adult winter non-breeding plumage.
Species: Brown Pelican, Pelecanus occidentalis, Pelecanus occidentalis californicus
Location: La Jolla, California
Image ID: 30326
Humpback whale lunge feeding on Antarctic krill, with mouth open and baleen visible. The humbpack's throat grooves are seen as its pleated throat becomes fully distended as the whale fills its mouth with krill and water. The water will be pushed out, while the baleen strains and retains the small krill.
Species: Humpback whale, Megaptera novaeangliae
Location: Gerlache Strait, Antarctic Peninsula, Antarctica
Image ID: 25648
Surf grass on the rocky reef -- appearing blurred in this time exposure -- is tossed back and forth by powerful ocean waves passing by above. San Clemente Island.
Species: Surfgrass, Phyllospadix
Location: San Clemente Island, California
Image ID: 10237
Male Brandt's Cormorant Skypointing, Courtship Display, Breeding Plumage with blue throat and white pin-feathers, La Jolla. Skypointing is an interesting courtship behavior that many birds practice. Among Brandt's Cormorants the male performs this, likely as a way of attracting a mate to the nest he has built by showing off his striking blue throat. He tips his head backward showing off his striking blue throat, and partially raises his wings. Seen here on seacliffs above the ocean.
Species: Brandt's cormorant, Phalacrocorax penicillatus
Image ID: 36801
Brown Pelicans Flying Along Sheer Ocean Cliffs, rare westerly winds associated with a storm allow pelicans to glide along La Jolla's cliffs as they approach shelves and outcroppings on which to land. Backlit by rising sun during stormy conditions.
Species: Brown Pelican, Pelecanus occidentalis, Pelecanus occidentalis californicus
Location: La Jolla, California
Image ID: 38867
Vogelsang Peak (11516') at sunset, reflected in a small creek near Vogelsang High Sierra Camp in Yosemite's high country.
Location: Yosemite National Park, California
Image ID: 23202