In a period of travel and movement restrictions, it is hard to keep up my wildlife photography. The local zoo has reopened and at least I can keep my hand in and enjoy some outside time.
The NZ Tuatara predates the dinosaurs, dating back over 250 million years. Not only is it unique to NZ, but it has some unique biological features: for example, the young have a third, proto-eye located high up between the arches of the two conventional eyes. It is absorbed back into the body upon maturity. It's possible that this was a protective measure so that the young could sense the presence of predatory birds above.
Canon EOS R6, RF 24-105L@ 89mm, f/4, 1/100sec, ISO-2500, hand-held
The Red Panda is one of the hardest animals to view - in the wild or at the zoo. There they tend to be secluded almost all of the time behind or within the trees. I was lucky to catch this one as it was peeking out to see when it was going to get fed.
Canon EOS R5, RF 100-500L@ 500mm, f/8, 1/640sec, ISO-5000, hand-held
