Vertebrata Photos

Guadalupe fur seals, floating upside down underwater over a rocky reef covered with golden kelp at Guadalupe Island.
Species: Guadalupe fur seal, Arctocephalus townsendi
Location: Guadalupe Island (Isla Guadalupe), Baja California, Mexico
Image ID: 02113  

Adelie penguins leaping into the ocean from an iceberg.
Species: Adelie penguin, Pygoscelis adeliae
Location: Brown Bluff, Antarctic Peninsula, Antarctica
Image ID: 25005  

Guadalupe fur seal, floating upside down under the ocean's surface at Guadalupe Island, watching the photographer and looking for passing predators.
Species: Guadalupe fur seal, Arctocephalus townsendi
Location: Guadalupe Island (Isla Guadalupe), Baja California, Mexico
Image ID: 02114  

Brown pelican in flight against pastel-colored sky at sunrise. The wingspan of the brown pelican is over 7 feet wide. The California race of the brown pelican holds endangered species status. In winter months, breeding adults assume a dramatic plumage.
Species: Brown Pelican, Pelecanus occidentalis, Pelecanus occidentalis californicus
Location: La Jolla, California
Image ID: 15122  

Male elk bugling during the fall rut. Large male elk are known as bulls. Male elk have large antlers which are shed each year. Male elk engage in competitive mating behaviors during the rut, including posturing, antler wrestling and bugling, a loud series of screams which is intended to establish dominance over other males and attract females.
Species: Elk, Cervus canadensis
Location: Mammoth Hot Springs, Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming
Image ID: 19693  

Great hammerhead shark.
Species: Great hammerhead shark, Sphyrna mokarran
Location: Bimini, Bahamas
Image ID: 31966  

Two tiger sharks.
Species: Tiger shark, Galeocerdo cuvier
Location: Bahamas
Image ID: 31875  

Bald eagle, closeup of head and shoulders showing distinctive white head feathers, yellow beak and brown body and wings.
Species: Bald eagle, Haliaeetus leucocephalus, Haliaeetus leucocephalus washingtoniensis
Location: Kachemak Bay, Homer, Alaska
Image ID: 22582  

Bull elk spar to establish harems of females, Gibbon Meadow.
Species: Elk, Cervus canadensis
Location: Gibbon Meadows, Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming
Image ID: 13151  

Alaskan brown bear catching a jumping salmon, Brooks Falls.
Species: Brown bear, Ursus arctos
Location: Brooks River, Katmai National Park, Alaska
Image ID: 17031  

A large, old brown bear (grizzly bear) wades across Brooks River. Coastal and near-coastal brown bears in Alaska can live to 25 years of age, weigh up to 1400 lbs and stand over 9 feet tall.
Species: Brown bear, Ursus arctos
Location: Brooks River, Katmai National Park, Alaska
Image ID: 17039  

Full grown, mature male coastal brown bear boar (grizzly bear) in sedge grass meadows.
Species: Brown bear, Ursus arctos
Location: Lake Clark National Park, Alaska
Image ID: 19134  

Mule deer in tall grass, fall, autumn.
Species: Mule deer, Odocoileus hemionus
Location: Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming
Image ID: 19577  

Bald eagle makes a splash while in flight as it takes a fish out of the water.
Species: Bald eagle, Haliaeetus leucocephalus, Haliaeetus leucocephalus washingtoniensis
Location: Kenai Peninsula, Alaska
Image ID: 22584  

Portrait of a young brown bear, pausing while grazing in tall sedge grass. Brown bears can consume 30 lbs of sedge grass daily, waiting weeks until spawning salmon fill the rivers.
Species: Brown bear, Ursus arctos
Location: Lake Clark National Park, Alaska
Image ID: 19135  

Two Adelie penguins, holding their wings out, standing on an iceberg.
Species: Adelie penguin, Pygoscelis adeliae
Location: Paulet Island, Antarctic Peninsula, Antarctica
Image ID: 25007  

Humpback whale in Antarctica. A humpback whale swims through the beautiful ice-filled waters of Neko Harbor, Antarctic Peninsula, Antarctica.
Species: Humpback whale, Megaptera novaeangliae
Location: Neko Harbor, Antarctic Peninsula, Antarctica
Image ID: 25646  

Galapagos shark swims over a reef in the Galapagos Islands, with schooling fish in the distance.
Species: Galapagos shark, Carcharhinus galapagensis
Location: Wolf Island, Galapagos Islands, Ecuador
Image ID: 16240  

Scalloped hammerhead shark swims over a reef in the Galapagos Islands. The hammerheads eyes and other sensor organs are placed far apart on its wide head to give the shark greater ability to sense the location of prey.
Species: Scalloped hammerhead shark, Sphyrna lewini
Location: Wolf Island, Galapagos Islands, Ecuador
Image ID: 16246  

Galapagos sea lion pup, Punta Espinosa.
Species: Galapagos sea lion, Zalophus californianus wollebacki, Zalophus californianus wollebaeki
Location: Fernandina Island, Galapagos Islands, Ecuador
Image ID: 01611  

Ocean sunfish recruiting fish near drift kelp to clean parasites, open ocean, Baja California.
Species: Ocean sunfish, Mola mola
Image ID: 03267  

Brown booby flying over Rose Atoll at sunset, with dark colorful storm clouds and other birds in the background.
Species: Brown booby, Sula leucogaster
Location: Rose Atoll National Wildlife Sanctuary, American Samoa
Image ID: 00914  

A white tern, or fairy tern, alights on a branch at Rose Atoll in American Samoa.
Species: Fairy tern, Gygis alba
Location: Rose Atoll National Wildlife Sanctuary, American Samoa
Image ID: 00871  

Tiger shark and horse-eye jacks.
Species: Tiger shark, Galeocerdo cuvier
Location: Bahamas
Image ID: 31880  

Tiger shark and underwater photographer.
Species: Tiger shark, Galeocerdo cuvier
Location: Bahamas
Image ID: 31877  

California sea lions underwater, Coronados Islands, Baja California, Mexico.
Species: California sea lion, Zalophus californianus
Location: Coronado Islands (Islas Coronado), Baja California, Mexico
Image ID: 34577  

Tiger shark.
Species: Tiger shark, Galeocerdo cuvier
Location: Bahamas
Image ID: 31883  

Steller sea lions underwater, Norris Rocks, Hornby Island, British Columbia, Canada.
Species: Steller sea lion, Eumetopias jubatus
Location: Hornby Island, British Columbia, Canada
Image ID: 32663  

California sea lion framed by huge breaking wave in La Jolla.
Species: California sea lion, Zalophus californianus
Location: La Jolla, California
Image ID: 34272  

Bald eagle in flight, wing spread, soaring.
Species: Bald eagle, Haliaeetus leucocephalus, Haliaeetus leucocephalus washingtoniensis
Location: Kachemak Bay, Homer, Alaska
Image ID: 22581