These flycatchers built a nest just outside Alex’s remote research cabin. Luckily for him, they were the very species he wanted to study. So as not to disturb the birds or attract predators, the biologist hid his camera behind a large piece of bark on a nearby tree. He directed a flash towards the trunk, operating the set-up from inside.
The Cordilleran flycatcher chicks pictured were about 12 days old. Although this species is widespread across North America, numbers are declining. In arid western areas, rising temperatures are drying up rivers and other freshwater corridors along the bird’s migratory routes and in its wintering grounds in Mexico.
USA
Alex is a Professor of Evolutionary Biology at the University of Arizona, USA, and is a regular contributor to several international natural history magazines. His scientific work, nature photography and popular science writing have all earned him major awards. His images tell stories about species, capturing their essence and revealing rarely seen behaviours.
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