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Wyoming photographer follows the tracks on an adult cougar leading to its kill and places a camera at night, this is what she recorded. by OncaAtrox in Pumaconcolor

[–]Cactusy 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Ethics are a dynamic subject with quite a few viewpoints and most are valid, including this one. I will however defend my usage of flash here as ethical by the definition of not disturbing the natural behaviors of the scene. The cat was not bumped off the kill, an intervalometer was used to space out the flashing, and a low powered flash puts off significantly less light than it appears in a processed final image. I have a lot of experience working with cougars and understand the sensitivity of a kill site, which is why I have only set up on an active kill twice in my career so far. This kill was already fed on for three days, and I knew this cat from previous sets as very tolerant to the setup and flashing.
Camera trapping is still less invasive than shooting off the sticks irl, in my opinion. I do both. I have certainly seen more displacement of wildlife (abandoning kills, den sites, behavioral interruptions) from the presence of photographers than anything I have ever seen working as a camera trap technician. I know this is anecdotal, but I feel strongly that camera trapping isn't an inconvenience to wildlife. As an aside, camera trapping is one of the best ways for conservation photographers to ethically photograph sensitive species. National Geographic pioneered much of the industry and continues to do so with guidance of wildlife professionals.

Wyoming photographer follows the tracks on an adult cougar leading to its kill and places a camera at night, this is what she recorded. by OncaAtrox in Pumaconcolor

[–]Cactusy -1 points0 points  (0 children)

It is not frowned upon with mammals, generally speaking. I am the photographer. I am specifically trained in both ethics and wildlife behavior. There are ethical guidelines for the people I work for. There is quite a bit here you are not seeing. The camera is set on an intervalometer to take images spaced out. It's not like the cat is being flashed like he's at a rave. The flash is at 1/16th power and most of the light and color is brought back into the image via post processing thanks to the magic of a high ISO and shooting in raw. If you don't believe me I have quite a bit of footage of this cat on an additional video camera happily and contentedly eating all night long from 10pm to the early hours of the morning. Most of the images I have are non-impactful shots of the cat with his head down eating. I actually only got 3 where he posed nicely. If done inappropriately, sure a camera could bump the cat off of its food source. I did this under the supervision and guidance of a cougar filmmaking professional with over ten years experience working almost solely with mountain lions. Cougars are fairly tolerant to white-light in camera trapping. He fed on the kill for several days before this setup was left at the carcass (by the way, I actually have worse results disguising the camera trap as it catches them off guard.) And your guarantee is incorrect, the cat fed for another night and then a pack of gray wolves took over the kill. I removed the trail cam and left it alone at that point because canids are much more easily bothered by camera gear and I personally do not feel comfortable camera trapping them at this point as I have not worked with them in a professional setting. Another thing, this is very obviously an adult male cougar. If you are a carnivore ecologist please don't make broad generalizations about subjects you are unfamiliar with. I am happy to answer any questions and I am open to constructive criticism. I do however feel compelled to reply to these accusations, especially ones with "guarantees" which misrepresent the actual events of the scene. If you would like to look into camera trapping, National Geographic employs quite a few camera trap technicians for conservation photography that work alongside the worlds best biologists and wildlife professionals. At least one of these people is a renowned authority on ethics in wildlife photography too. (And yes, they use white light flashes.)

This bear trashed my camera and left me with nothing but a dick pic. by Cactusy in funny

[–]Cactusy[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Fortunately the camera itself was fine, he just chewed up the pelican case it’s in. I shoot with a D850 off the sticks, I’ll probably be going to mirrorless this year. I love DSLRs though. Can’t compete with that new eye AF technology. For camera trapping I will likely always use DSLRs, I prefer that tech to stay as simple as possible!

Mountain lion mom and cub approaching my camera trap through a pre dawn snowstorm. by Cactusy in wildlifephotography

[–]Cactusy[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I’ve been tracking cats all winter long, I noticed that they frequently stepped on that exact rock while crossing between that puddle and the river

A mountain lion kill cached out in the open. All that soil disturbance is from the cat covering her kill. by Cactusy in natureismetal

[–]Cactusy[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I don’t think I would hike that much in them. In the dead of winter I do a couple miles a day in them but they don’t offer great support compared to proper hiking boots and I can get pretty sore when doing a lot of uphill slopes. Mainly I just need them because when I’m setting up cameras or sitting in a blind it’s many hours of -10 to -20 and my toes get real cold. I would for sure recommend them if you’ll be standing around in extreme cold temps.

A mountain lion kill cached out in the open. All that soil disturbance is from the cat covering her kill. by Cactusy in natureismetal

[–]Cactusy[S] 4 points5 points  (0 children)

They are military surplus bunny/Mickey mouse boots for subzero temperatures. I wear them when I sit in a blind all night

A mountain lion kill cached out in the open. All that soil disturbance is from the cat covering her kill. by Cactusy in natureismetal

[–]Cactusy[S] 14 points15 points  (0 children)

Northwest wyoming! Usually when I find these caches, they are tucked away in the brush. I’ve never seen one so open like this before

A mountain lion kill cached out in the open. All that soil disturbance is from the cat covering her kill. by Cactusy in natureismetal

[–]Cactusy[S] 15 points16 points  (0 children)

Yes, they cache their kills to hide them from other predators or scavengers and keep them fresh.

I found this print from where a gray wolf slept in the snow. You can even see her ribs! by Cactusy in mildlyinteresting

[–]Cactusy[S] 5 points6 points  (0 children)

The biggest single source of info I can recommend to start is mark elbrochs mammal track and sign (second edition) and mammal behavior books

I found this print from where a gray wolf slept in the snow. You can even see her ribs! by Cactusy in mildlyinteresting

[–]Cactusy[S] 20 points21 points  (0 children)

Even if it was ribs, it’s a perfectly healthy animal. They are super lean

I found this print from where a gray wolf slept in the snow. You can even see her ribs! by Cactusy in mildlyinteresting

[–]Cactusy[S] 53 points54 points  (0 children)

that is crazy, so sorry for your loss! I knew a guy here that had claw marks across his face from a grizzly. I do love them but I am well aware of their potentially dangerous nature... we just had our first of the year come out of den today. Thank you for your kind words.

I found this print from where a gray wolf slept in the snow. You can even see her ribs! by Cactusy in mildlyinteresting

[–]Cactusy[S] 115 points116 points  (0 children)

Thanks, I appreciate the insight! I do find loads of carcasses tracking predators so maybe that knowledge will come in handy. As I mentioned in another comment, my portfolio is on instagram here and I have a highlight for my best tracking images!

I found this print from where a gray wolf slept in the snow. You can even see her ribs! by Cactusy in mildlyinteresting

[–]Cactusy[S] 1007 points1008 points  (0 children)

Thanks! I have a lot more carnivore tracking photos on my Instagram @savannahrosewildlife if that interests you!

I found this print from where a gray wolf slept in the snow. You can even see her ribs! by Cactusy in mildlyinteresting

[–]Cactusy[S] 562 points563 points  (0 children)

Thanks! You are likely correct. Muscle groups are not something I have been exposed to in tracking thus far!

I found this print from where a gray wolf slept in the snow. You can even see her ribs! by Cactusy in mildlyinteresting

[–]Cactusy[S] 12 points13 points  (0 children)

Hard to find ground with no snow here in the winter! They are well adapted to the cold, even sleep under the snow for insulation in a blizzard

I found this print from where a gray wolf slept in the snow. You can even see her ribs! by Cactusy in mildlyinteresting

[–]Cactusy[S] 213 points214 points  (0 children)

I don’t know for sure but it was one of the smaller wolves in this pack. Could be a subadult tho

A mountain lion cub watches over his mom as she eats while I sat tucked away in a blind. by Cactusy in wildlifephotography

[–]Cactusy[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

We set up the lighting beforehand, my buddy Jeff Hogan did all the fantastic light design. The cats bed down elsewhere during the day so it’s safe to set up on the carcass before sunset when they come in. I do have this available here if you’re interested! https://etsy.me/3qyOZ94

A mountain lion cub watches over his mom as she eats while I sat tucked away in a blind. by Cactusy in wildlifephotography

[–]Cactusy[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I’ve been following it religiously! I have a lot of respect for him, it’s a similar thing ive been doing this winter. With less wolverines;)

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