Humpback whale, American black bear, Hawaiian monk seal, Hawaiian spinner dolphin, American bison, and pronghorn are my favorite wildlife sightings so far.
wildlife spotlight
- Thread starter pichu
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Given that two of those animals are endemic to the Hawaiian Islands, I don't really see the point in asking that.
Quebec.
Wow. Were those prairie chickens actively lekking? If so, that's really cool.Black Eastern Gray Squirrels and White-tailed Deer I see literally every day.
I've been very lucky with wildlife spotting and have seen lots of incredible species, but this remains my favorite wildlife experience ever:
I haven't seen much interesting, primarily just some of the local stuff you'd expect. Great Horned Owlets are probably the coolest I've seen (and heard), but I've also saw wild harbor seals a few times.
Yes, they were. They don't display any other time.
Here are some of my favourites, all from Australia (mostly Queensland, but a couple from Tasmania)
Humpback Whale
Platypus
Short-beaked Common Dolphin
Green Ringtail Possum
Saltwater Crocodile
Green Sea Turtle
Boyd's Forest Dragon
Brolga
Papuan Frogmouth
Great Frigatebird
Little Kingfisher
Victoria's Riflebird
Southern Cassowary
Tooth-billed Bowerbird
Asian Dowitcher
Nordmann's Greenshank (vagrant)
Wedge-tailed Eagle
Pied Heron
Humpback Whale
Platypus
Short-beaked Common Dolphin
Green Ringtail Possum
Saltwater Crocodile
Green Sea Turtle
Boyd's Forest Dragon
Brolga
Papuan Frogmouth
Great Frigatebird
Little Kingfisher
Victoria's Riflebird
Southern Cassowary
Tooth-billed Bowerbird
Asian Dowitcher
Nordmann's Greenshank (vagrant)
Wedge-tailed Eagle
Pied Heron
Bengal Tiger
Well-Known Member
Humpback whales off the coast of California during a whale-watching boat ride. I even saw one breach from a distance. The crowds of sea lions on the dock were unlike anything I had ever seen. I saw jellyfish while on the boat. I even saw some sea lions swimming in the ocean. I also had the treat of seeing a sea otter clutching a crab in its paws.
Another cool experience was at my local park, where I was able to get remarkably close to a downy woodpecker. I spent a while following it around from tree to tree. I have a tendency to look down when I walk (to avoid eye contact with strangers, and also to spot interesting things on the ground). I was walking with my friend at this park and I spotted a common true katydid, a species I hadn't seen in the area (also a species I don't really recall ever seeing), sitting on the sidewalk pretending to be a leaf. I've also seen a white-tailed deer with twins, but I don't know how rare that is. One of my favorite wildlife memories in my town is seeing two snapping turtles in one of the parks in the area. One of them had algae growing on its head like hair. I also saw my first false map turtles there. That park is also where I saw my second (and last) wood duck. Seeing the large amounts of tadpoles after their hatching is also a pretty fun experience. Another of my personal favorites is seeing a mother woodchuck and her young come up to my classroom window.
While in the Rocky Mountains I saw an American black bear walking on the opposite side of the river that I was sitting by. I also saw my first moose in the Rockies. This happened to be at a pizza place, so a bunch of people were watching the bear as it strolled by.
Seeing my first manatee in the Everglades also comes to mind (I saw a whole group of them later that day), as does walking past a gator sitting right by the side of Anhinga Trail. Honestly, Anhinga Trail in general was a great experience for me. There were plenty of gators, and the water was crystal clear, so I could see all kinds of fish (I sadly saw a lot of tilapia and oscars), but there were Florida gar lurking near the surface. There were also plenty of bird, such as anhingas (naturally), double-crested cormorants, and black vultures (to name a few). While waiting for a boat ride in the mangroves, I saw some cool lizards (don't know what they were, and my memory is too fuzzy now for me to ID them). On the boat ride I saw wood storks and some other birds, but the main highlights were the young American croc, a pod of dolphins (we could only see their dorsal fins, but it was really cool regardless), and a larger croc that was hanging out by the docks.
Seeing rhesus macaques in Andhra has always been a treat. I've had the opportunity to see some interesting bird life while there, too. I've seen herons, egrets, storks, rose-ringed parakeets, Indian robins, mynahs, pied kingfishers, and more. Male oriental garden lizards were also a wonderful treat.
In Kerala I've seen brahminy kites, various herons, white-throated kingfishers (probably the highlight for me), a Dussumier's litter skink, and fruit bats (I sadly didn't get the chance to see them during my 2022 trip).
Another cool experience was at my local park, where I was able to get remarkably close to a downy woodpecker. I spent a while following it around from tree to tree. I have a tendency to look down when I walk (to avoid eye contact with strangers, and also to spot interesting things on the ground). I was walking with my friend at this park and I spotted a common true katydid, a species I hadn't seen in the area (also a species I don't really recall ever seeing), sitting on the sidewalk pretending to be a leaf. I've also seen a white-tailed deer with twins, but I don't know how rare that is. One of my favorite wildlife memories in my town is seeing two snapping turtles in one of the parks in the area. One of them had algae growing on its head like hair. I also saw my first false map turtles there. That park is also where I saw my second (and last) wood duck. Seeing the large amounts of tadpoles after their hatching is also a pretty fun experience. Another of my personal favorites is seeing a mother woodchuck and her young come up to my classroom window.
While in the Rocky Mountains I saw an American black bear walking on the opposite side of the river that I was sitting by. I also saw my first moose in the Rockies. This happened to be at a pizza place, so a bunch of people were watching the bear as it strolled by.
Seeing my first manatee in the Everglades also comes to mind (I saw a whole group of them later that day), as does walking past a gator sitting right by the side of Anhinga Trail. Honestly, Anhinga Trail in general was a great experience for me. There were plenty of gators, and the water was crystal clear, so I could see all kinds of fish (I sadly saw a lot of tilapia and oscars), but there were Florida gar lurking near the surface. There were also plenty of bird, such as anhingas (naturally), double-crested cormorants, and black vultures (to name a few). While waiting for a boat ride in the mangroves, I saw some cool lizards (don't know what they were, and my memory is too fuzzy now for me to ID them). On the boat ride I saw wood storks and some other birds, but the main highlights were the young American croc, a pod of dolphins (we could only see their dorsal fins, but it was really cool regardless), and a larger croc that was hanging out by the docks.
Seeing rhesus macaques in Andhra has always been a treat. I've had the opportunity to see some interesting bird life while there, too. I've seen herons, egrets, storks, rose-ringed parakeets, Indian robins, mynahs, pied kingfishers, and more. Male oriental garden lizards were also a wonderful treat.
In Kerala I've seen brahminy kites, various herons, white-throated kingfishers (probably the highlight for me), a Dussumier's litter skink, and fruit bats (I sadly didn't get the chance to see them during my 2022 trip).
So did I, how big are the Pacific puffin species then?
Pangolin was a very unexpected chance encounter in a national park in Thailand.
Atlantic is roughly 30 cm, Horned is 37.5 cm and Tufted is 40 cm. I've seen Atlantic and Tufted in the same exhibit before, and the size difference was distinct. Not massive but notable.
snow leopard
I saw a Snickers-stealing Eastern gray squirrel in Magic Kingdom in 2019 that was colored like a fox squirrel, and before I actually knew what fox squirrels in Florida looked like I thought it was. It had darker gray coloration with a light orange underside, so I was convinced. Turns out it's just a coloration variant of gray squirrels. The attached picture is the best picture I could get.
Also some of my other favorites I've seen in the wild
Lemon shark
Bottlenose dolphin
West Indian manatee
Gray fox
American black bear
Crested caracara
Bald eagle
Although nothing rare or crazy, some months ago I saw Northern flickers in my backyard and that was the first I've seen the species. I haven't seen any since.
Also some of my other favorites I've seen in the wild
Lemon shark
Bottlenose dolphin
West Indian manatee
Gray fox
American black bear
Crested caracara
Bald eagle
Although nothing rare or crazy, some months ago I saw Northern flickers in my backyard and that was the first I've seen the species. I haven't seen any since.
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CMTM
Well-Known Member
Several years ago I was lucky enough to spend a few weeks on the Rio Negro in the Brazilian Amazon. Leading up to the trip my mind was racing with the possibilities of species I might see. I was especially interested in species not represented or under represented in managed care in North America. Black caiman were a priority, as were hoatzin, red howler monkeys, and of course river dolphins. Imagine my surprise the first morning of the trip when I saw the hoatzins, howlers, and dolphins within 15 minutes of getting in the canoe! The black caiman came several days later in the form of an absolutely titanic male who shadowed our group from a distance for over an hour while we explored a lake hidden in the forest. The guide said he was likely making sure we didn't mess with his lady friends. The lake was also home to a group of manatees and a mother boto teaching her calf how to steal fish from us. Truly an unforgettable two weeks.
Platypusboy
Well-Known Member
Moose, Northern hawk-owl, Barred owl, Black woodpecker, Belted kingfisher, Sandhill crane, Osprey, American alligator, Northern goshawk, Florida manatee, Roseate spoonbill and Siberian jay are some of my favorite's
pichu
Well-Known Member
you saw amazonian manatees? thats awesome! botos are one of my favourite aquatic animals. did you spot any giant otters?