Wow, the Pacific Ocean. The wind, the smell of the salt and the elk, wait, elk? That’s right, Tule Elk have a designated place to roam free at the Point Reyes National Seashore. I am fortunate to have an organization like CBS Sunday Morning News as a client and friend. Their network has broadcast my Moment In Nature sequences for a very long time and now they reach an even larger audience with social media.
This Point Reyes shot was taken near the lighthouse, looking north. The Tule elk sequence aired March 10, 2024. If you add it all up, Point Reyes National Seashore has about 80-miles of shoreline.Tule elk are an indigenous elk to California. In Point Reyes, they feed along the grassy hills. Sometimes the sunset takes on a certain glow that’s magic.This is why I became a wildlife filmmaker. What seemed like the last car in the park rushed past me for dinner and all that was left was just me and the elk.
Another favorite of the CBS program is to highlight wildlife congregations. San Simeon, California is a great place to watch Northern Elephant Seals.
During the whaling days of hunting seals for their blubber to create lamp oil, Northern Elephant Seals were almost wiped out. Luckily, their population made a huge comeback and every winter, most seals in this picture return to this beach to give birth and to mate. Male Northern elephant seals can trumpet a loud sound that can be heard from a good distance. He is letting other large seals know that he thinks he is special, he is coming ashore and watch out! Alpha males are called bulls, they are huge, 3,300 to 5,100 pounds! They often fight one another for the right to mate and for a harem of females.
Monterey Bay with it’s Cannery Row, famous aquarium and 17-mile drive along the coast is nice, but I prefer the wild, underwater.
The Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary, home to seabirds and so much more. Some areas are open to fishing, others for research and still others for just observations.One afternoon, Pacific Sea Nettle Jellies swarmed the coastline. Scientists no longer call them “Jellyfish” because the jelly is not really a fish. Not calling them jellyfish is a hard habit to overcome. Sometimes, I must put my personal safety and health at risk to get the shot. The jellies poisonous tentacles surrounded my diving regulator and my upper lip was swollen for three-days!
Most people don’t think of watching butterfly migrations in California but California’s coastline has a few really good spots to observe them. This location is at the Lighthouse Field State Park in Santa Cruz.
The Monarch Butterflies in California use the coastline wind to carry them and their offspring to areas like the Sierra Nevada Mountains. When its cold, below 55 degrees, monarchs’ prefer to cluster together and not too many can be seen flying. This one branch had 7,500 butterflies. This day had lots of winter sunshine, something the monarch and their human observers both enjoyed. Monarch move from tree to tree, catching the sun’s warmth. Thank you California, the Golden State.
