Marty’s photo of the day #5186: This short-billed gull carried this black thing around as if it was a toy. Initially, I assumed it was a type of lichen. Later, I did some research, and now I believe the gull was carrying a piece of kelp covered in Pacific herring eggs. #photography #birds

Marty’s photo of the day #5185: Unlike Republicans in Congress, turkey vultures are valuable creatures that serve a purpose. They are better looking, too. (Photographed on Vancouver Island.) #birds #photography

Marty’s photo of the day #5184: This is an early morning shot from in front of Deb’s and my campsite last month on the Johnstone Strait. I loved watching the fog dissipate as the sun rose. Soon the tide would come in, covering every inch of the land you see in the foreground. #photography #nature

Marty’s photo of the day #5183: I shot quite a few sunrise and sunset photos last month on Vancouver Island. This is one of my favorites: a sunset near the northern end of the Strait of Georgia. #photography #nature #VancouverIsland

Today, when I checked the motion-sensing cameras on the Essen Wildlife Refuge, I viewed a large herd of female elk rushing by the camera. Bringing up the rear was this big guy. If the herd stays on the Essen Wildlife Refuge through hunting season . . . (Tap ALT for full text.) #photography #wildlife

Marty’s photo of the day #5182: I think these are a type of ink cap mushroom, called fairy inkcaps, but mushroom ID isn’t my forte. I found them in the temperate rainforest of Vancouver Island and thought they made an interesting subject to photograph. #photography #nature

Marty’s photo of the day #5181: During my travels, some people have commented to me, “I don’t shoot photos because I want to live in the moment.” I understand that, and to each his/her own. For me, however, I can live in the moment and still . . . (Tap ALT for full text.) #photography #birds

Marty’s photo of the day #5180: When Deb and I returned to Port Hardy after a three-year absence, the first thing we did was look for the bald eagles. And there they were! Just where we left them. (Photographed on Vancouver Island.) #birds #photography

When I was six years old and shot my first roll of film, I photographed a bunch of feet. When my dad saw the photos, he threatened to take my camera away. He just didn’t understand what it meant to be creative. Now, as a wildlife photographer, I . . . (Tap ALT for full text.) #birds #photography

Marty’s photo of the day #5179: When Deb & I visited Vancouver Island three years ago, we saw lots of sea otters along the western coast, near Tofino. During our visit last month, we stayed mostly along the northeastern coast of . . . (Tap ALT for full text.) #photography #sealife #VancouverIsland

Sea lions on high alert! Moments before I shot this photo, a pod of orca whales passed close by, and there was a huge splash. Many of us watching from a boat thought we had witnessed an orca taking a sea lion. Our guide, however, proclaimed that . . . (Tap ALT for full text.) #photography #nature

Marty’s photo of the day #5178: A whole mess of sea lions. Well, technically, a colony. (Photographed on Vancouver Island.) #photography #nature

Marty’s photo of the day #5177: I watched this great blue heron for parts of three days. She was the only great blue heron hanging out on the gravel beach in front of Deb’s and my Johnstone Strait campsite. The heron was particularly interesting . . . (Tap ALT for full text.) #birds #photography

These may look like golden eagles, but they are actually immature bald eagles. Earlier today, I featured an action shot of these two squabbling over a perching spot on the intertidal zone. Here’s another shot from that sequence of photos. (Photographed on Vancouver Island.) #birds #photography

Marty’s photo of the day #5176: I saw more bald eagles earlier this month on Vancouver Island than I have seen collectively in my entire life. I enjoyed shooting action photos as they interacted among themselves and other bird species. Here’s one . . . (Tap ALT for full text.) #birds #photography

It’s going to take a while for me to get an accurate count of the bird species I photographed earlier this month on Vancouver Island. There were so many! This is a harlequin duck. #birds #photogarphy

Marty’s photo of the day #5175: It’s going to take a while for me to get an accurate count of the bird species I photographed earlier this month on Vancouver Island. There were so many! This is a female Barrow’s Goldeneye. #birds #photography

Marty’s photo of the day #5174: On my second morning of photographing orca whales from the beach in front of Deb’s and my Johnstone Strait campsite, I noticed two smaller marine mammals between me and the big orcas. I initially thought they were . . . (Tap ALT for full text.) #photography #nature

Sunrise on the Johnstone Strait. Waiting for the whales come. #photography #nature #Canada

Marty’s photo of the day #5173: “Hey! Chickie, chickie! Shake a tail feather!” A short-billed gull and a greater yellowlegs, photographed earlier this month on Vancouver Island. #birds #photography

Marty’s photo of the day #5172: When I walked the remote gravel roads on Vancouver Island, I frequently found banana slugs and bear poop near to each other. Since the slugs didn’t eat the poop, I reasoned that the bears must gorge themselves on . . . (Tap ALT for full text.) #photography #nature

Marty’s photo of the day #5171: I enjoy photographing birds in flight. So many things have to go right to have a satisfactory image. When they are moving fast, like these glaucous-winged gulls, just getting them in frame is a challenge. (Photographed on Vancouver Island.) #photography #birds

Marty’s photo of the day #5170: I watched this great blue heron for parts of three days. She was the only great blue heron hanging out on the gravel beach in front of Deb’s and my Johnstone Strait campsite. The heron was particularly . . . (Tap ALT for full text.) #birds #photography #nature

Marty’s photo of the day #5169: It took some work to convince the birds to line up in the yellow stripe, but they eventually complied. (Photographed earlier this month on Vancouver Island.) #birds #nature #photography

Deb and I thought we had our “secret spot” Vancouver Island campsite all to ourselves. Then we noticed these moss creatures, watching our every move.

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Marty’s photo of the day #5168: Of the many highlights of my Vancouver Island visit, the moments around the time I shot this photo were my favorite. We had pitched our tent at a remote campsite on the Johnstone Strait, and, like . . . (Tap ALT for full text.) #photography #sealife #orcas #nature

Salmon Day concludes with this short video of the fish waiting for the right moment to make the rapid, strenuous swim upstream to spawn. Shot last week on Vancouver Island. #salmon #nature

Salmon Day continues with a photo I shot last week near the mouth of a river on Vancouver Island. This is a small part of a large school that was waiting for the right moment to make the rapid, strenuous swim upstream to spawn. #photography #nature #salmon

Marty’s photo of the day #5167: The salmon were running in a river near one of Deb’s and my campsites on Vancouver Island. Most of the time I carried two cameras: my Canon R7 with a telephoto lens for distant shots, and my . . . (Tap ALT for full text.) #photography #nature #salmon