A Secretary Bird Swallowing Its Prey 

Here’s how the photographer, Dr. Johann J. Botha, describes what we’re seeing here:

“The secretary bird (Sagittarius serpentarius) is an endangered species, but you do come across them in the Kalahari Desert. In Botswana’s Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park, I followed two of them hunting on the ground in a dune valley for a mile or so with my vehicle on a gravel road. They caught the occasional small insect, a small snake, and then all of a sudden one chased this ground agama. It caught and killed the agama with its feet by trampling on and smashing the reptile’s head – the secretary bird is the only bird of prey that kills its prey with its feet. It then took it with its beak and threw it into the air to catch it again and swallow it head first, while closing the nictitating membrane over its eye for protection. It all happened in less than a minute.”

Camouflage 

A blade of grass helps to camouflage a seahorse, keeping it safe from the many predators in the ocean.

Simple Pleasures…

Walking the dog on the beach.

Portrait of Huli Tribesmen 

This was the “Readers Choice” winner in Smithsonian Magazine’s 2023 Photo Contest.

The Huli is an indigenous Melanesian tribe in the Hela Province of Papua New Guinea. There are more than 250,000 Huli, making it one of the largest of the 600 tribes in the country.

Moon Shadow 

Researchers on board the International Space Station captured this view of the moon’s shadow over parts of North America during the solar eclipse on April 8.

A lion at Luján Zoo in Buenos Aires, Argentina 

The zoo provides a home for animals rescued from circuses, animal trafficking, and private collections. Losing its main source of money due to the effects of the pandemic led to its closure. Only the owner and one employee now care for the animals.

A walrus wades in the chilly waters near the Magdalenefjorden fjord 

From the World Press Photo Contest… 

Lotomau Fiafia, 72, a community elder on Kioa Island in Fiji, stands with his grandson at the point where he remembers the shoreline used to be when he was a boy.