The Magic Frozen Kingdom
Five times visited, the last time in September 2023 (see end of gallery trail): Svalbard, adm...
Millennial Water Sculptures
4 000-year-old glacier archives melting away at unprecedented rate: since 1970 Arctic average...
Landing at snowfall
45 097 tourists on cruise ships visited Svalbard in 2019, but only a small fraction in minor ...
The Glare of Ice and Snow
The rising atmospheric carbon and loss of Arctic permafrost - combined with higher solar abso...
Flying over Life’s Edge
75% of land-based and c.66% of marine environments are substantially degraded by human action...
Bird's Eye View of Spitsbergen
Spitsbergen (the main island): rugged mountains, fjord systems, glaciers and geological eras ...
View towards Longyearbyen
Longyearbyen (Svalbard's capital, background left, 2nd bay): a no-man’s land in the early 190...
Longyearbyen
Continuous bedrock deposits of high-quality black coal layers attracted the peopling and mini...
Old Mining Cableway
Continuous bedrock deposits of high-quality black coal attracted the peopling and mining of S...
Longyearbyen: modern housing
The largest settlement and administrative center of Svalbard had a population of 2,368 as of ...
View over the Old Church
View over the Old Church at Longyearbyen: 24 April 2015, Canon 5D III, EF 24-70mm, @ 70mm, 1/...
The Old Cemetery
Built in 1918, the Longyearbyen cemetery has to move somewhere since the graves face the thre...
Panorama View at 2 a.m.
On 20 April the midnight sun comes back and twilight is over: the sun in May-June is for now ...
White Night by the Nordenskiöldbreen (glacier) at 2:30 a.m
On 20 April the midnight sun comes back and twilight is over: the sun in May-June is for now ...
Polar Camping at 2:30 a.m.
In April 2015 the tent expedition we were part, although quite a physical challenge (temperat...
Getting Ready...
In April 2015 the tent expedition we were part of, had 2 sleds lead by 12 dogs, in addition t...
Panorama: coal outcrops
Rugged mountains, fjord systems, glaciers and geological eras exposed in extensive outcrops. ...
The Staggering Horizon
Just as in photography “The health of the eye demands a horizon” (Ralph Waldo Emerson). Photo...
The Face of Time
Deep geological time: continuous bedrock deposits of c. 12 Km wide by 1 Km thick with high-qu...
The Folding Look of Time
Deep geological time visible in folded bedrock deposits. 26 April 2015, Canon 5D-mk3 | EF400m...
The Melting Arctic
Rising atmospheric carbon and loss of Arctic permafrost - combined with higher solar absorpti...
Surging Glaciers
As glaciers increasingly melt across the globe new research is trying to understand short-liv...
Melting Away Glaciers
4 000-year-old glacier archives are melting away at unprecedented rate: since 1970 Arctic ave...
Land of Light and Shadows
Another weather front on its way... 30 April 2018, Olympus PEN-F | Zuiko 40-150mm F2.8 | @ 40...
The Blue Mountain
Fifty shades of Blue: 30 April 2018. Olympus E-M1 mk2 | Zuiko 300mm F4.0 + MC 14 lens | @ 420...
Ice Bones
Sculptures of Ice: 60% of Svalbard’s landmass is covered by 4 000-year-old glaciers, unique c...
Loneliness
An abandoned trapper’s cabin: trapping (1700-1973) followed whaling activities which were mai...
An Old Trapper's Cabin
An abandoned trapper’s cabin. Trapping activities were mainly carried out from c.1700 to 1973...
Bearded Seal family
(Picture: 2 adults and 3 pups): Over 10.000 animals were commercially hunted in Russia and No...
A True Valentine
Male mating ‘song’ can be heard up to 20 km (!). Although not endangered, their sea ice habit...
Scar-faced Bearded Seal
Bulls are territorial and actively fight among themselves, inflicting extensive wounds. To wa...
Mirror Mirror on the Ice...
... When will Nature have a price? Bearded Seals dive to as deep as 450 m for fish and crust...
Bearded Seal
His Male’s mating song can be heard 20 km away! The largest, mainly solitary, circumpolar sea...
Some like it Stormy
One of 2500 Svalbard Walrus under heavy snowfall. Once abundant in Svalbard they were hunted ...
Waking up to heavier snow storm...
One of 2500 Svalbard Walrus under heavy snowfall. Once abundant in Svalbard they were hunted ...
Harbour Seals at rest
Rarely dozing off while scanning for predators, Svalbard Harbour Seals use ice as haul-out pl...
Snowflake Dance
Black-legged Kittiwake (gull) under snowfall: circumpolar distribution, arriving in Svalbard ...
One of a kind...
30 April 2018. Olympus E-M1 mk2 | Zuiko 300mm F4.0 + MC 14 | @ 420mm | 1/1600 sec | f/ 10 | I...
Gliding Fulmar
With a high life expectancy up to 60-years (!) but threatened by harmful plastic in their sto...
Northern Arctic Fulmar
Related to the Albatrosses of the southern hemisphere: Low reproductive rate and a high life ...
A Worrying Shadow
Northern Arctic Fulmar: Low reproductive rate and high life expectancy (up to 60!). An alarmi...
A Magical Midnight Visit
While camping at Billefjorden - according to Svalbard regulations and being on watch for pola...
A Liifelong Memory
(See previous entry): The Arctic Fox has the warmest fur of any Arctic species, enduring chil...
The Fox
“The Fox knows many things but the Hedgehog knows one big thing” (Archilochus, Greek poet 260...
A Snowy, Rare Dot
Arctic foxes occur in white and blue as two distinct colour morphs. The first variety is whit...
A Rare, Blue Fox
Arctic foxes occur in white and blue as two distinct colour morphs. The first variety is whit...
Keep the Distance
45 097 tourists on cruise ships visited Svalbard in 2019, but only a small fraction in minor ...
Observers and observed
45 097 tourists on cruise ships visited Svalbard in 2019, but only a small fraction in minor ...
A very curious species
The total population of c.26,000 wild polar bears are divided into 19 units or sub-population...
Motherhood cycle
Most adult females give birth once every 3 years. In populations with access to abundant food...
Being observed: Polar Bear at Nordenskiöldbreen
I can see you... a considerable expedition time was spent in observing (or being observed!) P...
Food Shortage
Polar Bear and two cubs: Food shortage is directly linked to sea ice reduction, a challenge f...
Polar Bears in the midst
The Arctic is warming twice as fast as the global average, with continued sharply loss of sea...
Territorial Vigilance (1 of 4 sequences)
(First of 3 captures): Two female polar bears with cubs came too close. Soon after the photo ...
Mother Vigilance (2nd of 4 captures)
After coming too close (see previous capture) this mother bear - which had been sleeping - is...
Mother vigilance (3rd of 4 captures)
After coming too close (see previous captures) this mother bear - which had been sleeping - i...
Mother Vigilance (4th of 4 captures)
The Mother bear with two cubs is now running away from the other mother which came too close ...
Food shortage
Food shortage is directly linked to sea ice reduction, a particular problem for mother polar ...
Mother and cubs by Nordenskiöldbreen
By New Year usually 2 cubs weighing c. 500gr are born. Nursed until 2.5 years, when the mothe...
Mother and 2 cubs
Most adult females give birth once every 3 years. In populations with access to abundant food...
Trying Times
Mother bears give birth by new year (usually 2 cubs weighing c. 500gr, c.10 kg by April, as i...
Motherly Love
Polar bear mothers often groom their cubs for bonding and to keep their fur coat clean from d...
Feeding Mother Bear
Demanding Motherhood: Food shortage is directly linked to sea ice reduction, a particular pro...
The Proud Hunter
Hunting methods are passed on by mother to cubs under 2.5 nursing years: She shows them how t...
The kill
Although about half of a polar bear’s life is spent hunting for food, they only succeed 2% of...
Grooming
Polar bear mothers often groom their cubs for bonding and to keep their fur coat clean from d...
An Exhausting Motherhood
By New Year females give birth, usually 2 cubs weighing c. 500gr, around 10 kg by March/April...
A Tiring Business...
By New Year mothers give birth to usually 2 cubs weighing c. 500gr, c.10 kg by March/April; t...
The Black beneath the White
Beneath all that thick fur Polar Bear's skin is jet black. Their white coat provides camoufla...
Rolling in the snow...
Polar bears keep themselves clean to help the insulating properties of their fur and particul...
Cleaning up
Polar bears keep themselves clean to help the insulating properties of their fur and particul...
Bear Monitoring
Every April c.75 polar bears receive GPS collars to track habitat behavior and assess critica...
Keeping track...
Every April c.75 polar bears receive GPS collars to track habitat behavior and assess critica...
Svalbard Reindeer on a slope
The Earth Now loses more than ¾ of its species: It has happened 5 times in the past 540 Milli...
Look-alike but different...
Svalbard Reindeer is an endemic, small subspecies, migrated to Svalbard at the end of the las...
The True Polar Heroes
On the 12th of May 1926 Roald Amundsen (from Norway) made the 1st flight over the North Pole....
The September 2023 Revisit
Polar Bears are more predators (seals, and recently reindeer) than scavengers, but with criti...
On the way to a fitting bath...
Svalbard is warming up to 7x the global average, with critical ice reduction. Out of 4 bear s...
As if a snowflake in a fairy-tale
... you’re just a transient dot (zoom in Rib-boat, forefront center): Your eyes alone cannot ...
Negribreen from another angle
Mother Bear and Her Cub
20 Sept 2023, Murchison Fjord, Edgeøja, Svalbard. Olympus OM-1 | Zuiko 150-400mm F.4.5 TC | a...
An Extremely Rare Sight:
Approaching young ‘Ursus Maritimus’ (a fitting name), and a frightening feeling before realis...
An Extremely Rare Sight (2nd capture)
The Proud Young FisherBear
Apparently a very recent behaviour for polar bears [c.f. ’Observations of a wild polar bear ...
Playtime!
Young Bear (under mother’s supervision) rolling in the snow after catching a fish, 20 Sept 20...
Those Mother Eyes…
... likely saying ‘Do not dare come closer’): Mother and young bear series, 20 Sept 2023, Mur...
Portrait of a Mother Bear
20 Sept 2023, Murchison Fjord, NW Edgeøja, Svalbard. Olympus OM-1 | Zuiko 150-400mm F.4.5 TC ...
Curiosity...
Bear at Murchison Fjord, NW Edgeøja, Svalbard. 20 Sept 2023, Olympus OM-1 | Zuiko 150-400mm F...
Barnacle Geese heading South
Svalbard is Home to some of the rarest animal and bird life on earth: 253 bird species, inclu...
Life at the Edge
In Svalbard, what impresses the most is deep, magical stillness. And, at personal level, a se...
‘I am the Walrus’
The largest seal species resident in the Arctic only 100 remained alive after 350 years of he...
The Walrus Colony
... with c. 100 individuals). Once abundant in Svalbard they were hunted almost to extinction...
Polar Bear and Beluga carcass under heavy snowfall
Svalbard 22 September 2023 at Billefjorden, Olympus OM-1 | Zuiko 150-400mm F.4.5 TC | at 320...
The perfect camouflage
of an Arctic Fox changing into winter fur (the only canid to change its coat, the warmest of ...
David and Goliath
Often following Polar bears as scavengers, the poor fox does not dare to came nearer a polar ...
The Abandoned Wooden Boat
... (From the early 1900’s) resting below the massive Skansen cliffs by Skansbukta Bay. All i...
Frozen Time
All is short-lived in the Arctic: Remains of an old building possibly used as barracks and Me...
Blue Ice Wonder
Glaciers constantly shift and change shape. The pressure of the glacier’s weight over millenn...
Ice Sculpture in the ‘Blue hour
Svalbard, 16 Sept 2023. Olympus E-M1X | Zuiko 150-400mm F.4.5 TC | at 284mm | 1/3200‘’ | f/ 5...
Reindeer in the Mist
Endemic, smaller subspecies (c.10 000-year-old post-glacial migration): Population c.22 000, ...
World Wildlife Day 3 March 2024
I’m Looking at You: Arctic Fox at Svalbard, April 2015