100 photos to remind us of the beauty of the world we share
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With Earth Day fast becoming just another commercial holiday — albeit one where most people still have to go to the work — mongabay is taking a visual approach to capture the beauty that surrounds us.
Here are around 120 photos I’ve taken at sites around the world, most of which were snapped in the past five years. The animals pictured are in their natural settings — no zoo or aquarium specimen are included. I’ve done my best to name most of the creatures pictured, although I haven’t been able to identify many of the insects.
These 120 shots represent but a small subset of the planet’s beautiful and important biomes and ecosystems, but I hope they serve as a reminder of what we need to protect for future generations.
For previous year’s posts about Earth Day, see Is Earth Day a waste of time? (2006) by me and No longer a fan of Earth Day (2008) by Jeremy Hance.
Scale-crested Pygmy-tyrant (Lophotriccus pileatus) captured during a bird banding survey in Las Cruces, Costa Rica. The pygmy-tyrant was released after banding.
Sunset in Roatan, Honduras
Sand dunes in Coral Pink Sand Dunes State Park, Utah
Red and green arrow poison frog (Dendrobates granuliferus) near Hacienda Baru in Costa Rica
Bird of paradise, Peru
Cactus in Deer Creek, Honduras
Sifaka lemur, Madagascar
Limestone tsingy, Madagascar
Pantanal sunset, Brazil
Monkey frog (Phyllomedusa bicolor), Peru
Sunrise over Maui
Anole (lizard) seen from the underside of a leaf in Las Cruces, Costa Rica
Monkey frog (Phyllomedusa bicolor), Peru
Black, orange, and light blue butterfly, Colombia
Transparent moth in Las Cruces, Costa Rica
Red sand beach in Maui
Creek flowing out of Actun Tunichil Muknal Cave in Belize
Leaf-tailed gecko, Madagascar
Clear-winged Cithaerias pireta butterfly feeding on dung, Peru
Big Sur, Big Sur
Forest on the Pipiwai trail in Maui
Leaf in Kanyanchu rainforest, Uganda
Tad Fane, Laos
Red-tailed squirrel (Sciurus granatensis) feeding on a flower in Costa Rica
Cheetah, Kenya
Tad Lo waterfall, Laos
Meandering river in the lowlands of Gabon, Gabon
Baobabs, Madagascar
Multicolored leafhopper insect, Costa Rica
Young lowland gorilla, Gabon
Colorado River, Grand Canyon
Headshot of the colorful blue-headed tree agama, Uganda
Southern Tree Hyrax with baby, Kenya
Masked frog (Smilisca phaeota), Costa Rica
Young orangutan at Sepilok
Corteza Amarilla (Tabebuia ochracea), Costa Rica
Warthog running, Uganda
Mendenhall glacier, Alaska
White-footed lepilemur, Madagascar
Red-Eyed Tree Frog in Manuel Antonio National Park, Costa Rica
Forest elephant heading toward the jungle in Loango National Park, Gabon
Parson’s chameleon, Madagascar
Young orangutan feeding while hanging from tree, Indonesia
Leaf-hopper insect in Suriname
Parson’s chameleon, Madagascar
Sunset seen from Brian’s Head, Utah
Mendenhall glacier, Alaska
Scarlet macaw, Peru
Red Leaf-monkey (Presbytis rubicunda) in Borneo
Uganda kob “kissing”, Uganda
Butterfly in Costa Rica
Spiny forest vegetation at sunset, Madagascar
Red-Eyed Tree Frog in Manuel Antonio National Park, Costa Rica
Mendenhall glacier, Alaska
Bird of paradise, Colombia
Comb crested forest lizard (Gonocephalus liogaster) in Malaysian Borneo
Palm trees at sunset in Maui
Shoebill (Balaeniceps rex), Uganda
Silverback gorilla, Gabon
Grey crowned cranes “kissing”, Uganda
Gladiator tree frog, Costa Rica
Rainstorm approaching across the Mara savanna, Kenya