Wild Discovery

30/10/2026

Who needs trick or treat when you have the Baining Fire Dance

The other evening we were phenomenally privileged to witness the Baining Fire Dance in East New Britain. This is a highly secretive dance, sacred nocturnal dance shrouded in secrecy and performed by the men of the region.

After building up a large fire the men run through the fire and embers kicking at the logs and creating plumes of flames around them. Their feet are bare and their bodies unclothed, covered only with these huge Kavat masks offering limited visibility as to where they are going. Each of these masks depicts an animal and is used once before being discarded. At the end of the dance the young boys who have been tending to the fire and racking embers back in start to run through it as a right of passage. This all happens to the rhythmic chanting and thumping of bamboo poles in the most spell-binding and remarkable displays we have ever witnessed.

I took some time to actually watch and soak in this remarkable dance but the images captured were done using OM SYSTEM UK 90mm macro (which also serves as a nice portrait lens!)

23/10/2026

Faces of the Asmat: Part I

They say people make the place and nowhere is this truer than the Asmat.

The Asmat is a remote region of Papua. One of the most culturally fascinating places on the planet where a labyrinth of Mangroves and peat swamps are home to a community of people with the most remarkably rich culture. This week we have had the privilege of meeting two of these communities. After a long zodiac transit in from the open sea and then up the river channels we arrived in Omandesep village to an intimidating and spectacular welcome. War canoes paddled out to intercept us, each with several heavily armed men demonstrating remarkable balance as they paddled past our zodiacs, encircling us and escorting us back to the village where they performed a welcome dance and mock battle followed by the Spirit Masks, these huge wicker masks that hold the Spirits of the dead. These communities are unlike any I have experienced on the planet. The experience of meeting the community is more than rich, it reverberates through your body and mind in every way possible. Massive thanks to Heritage Expeditions for this incredible voyage and experience; to Oswald and team for their phenomenal logistical arrangements and to Courtney Rayes for her superb leadership.

📷OM System OM1 MKII + M.Zuiko 150-400mm PRO lens

15/10/2026

Yesterday the alarm went off at 0240 and we headed out into the darkness from the Heritage Expeditions ship, navigating the inky blackness in the zodiacs before taking a fleet of vehicles into the forest to search for one of Raja Ampat’s most stunning birds; the Red Bird of Paradise.

As dawn spread and a chorus of Kookaburra’s, Manucode’s, Hornbill’s and Pitohui’s kicked off, the first Birds of Paradise came into view with one male spending a particularly long time feeding in front of us.

This year’s El Niño has caused a significant draught in the archipelago and the locals have been putting out water and fruit for the birds.

With incredibly low light levels I was amazed at how the OM1 mkII handled the conditions.

📷 OM SYSTEM UK OM1 mkII + M.Zuiko 150-400mm Pro lens

05/10/2026

Many thanks to Eloise Barker and The Independent for a wee feature in this article about birdwatching.
Not that we are biased but we think it's the best of hobbies!

Curious about taking up twitching as a hobby, Eloise Barker discovered nature-filled getaways in the UK – and a whole new flock of friends

03/10/2026

I’m continually in awe of myriad evolutionary wonders that make a species beautifully adapted to its environment. When it comes to camouflage the plethora of shape and form is simply mind blogging.

Whilst many people think moths are brown and boring, I would beg to differ and am probably preaching to the converted here but how damn good is this one!?

Merveille du Jour is a widespread species in Scotland and only flies in the autumn. It is perfectly evolved for a life camouflaged by day on lichen-covered tree and being active at night. It’s one of my faves and it flies at the same time as a number of other stunning moths.

The combo of the 90mm macro and diffuser is my new fave setup, It’s just incredible for capturing species like this. The final image is an iPhone pic just to illustrate how good the camouflage is.

📷 OM SYSTEM UK OM1 MKII + M.Zuiko 90mm macro lens with Brendan 'Cygnus' James 📸🕷🦂🐞 diffuser

25/09/2026

Bornean Orangutan.

Last week we had the privilege of watching nine different Bornean Orangutans including two mothers with infants in Tanjung Puting National Park, Kalimantan. Our visit to Kalimantan was part of a Heritage Expeditions voyage through Indonesia and this expedition day was one of the most epic the team have ever undertaken driving zodiacs for 120km in total, deep into the tropical forest. This phenomenal national park is a haven for so many species from False Gharials and carnivorous plants to a plethora of primates. Sadly, it is under considerable threat and this years intense El Niño has piled on the pressure further as fires are deliberately lit to clear the forest making way for Oil Palm plantations.

Thankfully there is still a good population of all primates here but with the increasing pressures all around who knows how long this will persist for.

📷 OM SYSTEM UK OM1 MKII plus 150-400mm M.Zuiko lens

23/09/2026

It is that time of year again when our good friends at Heritage Expeditions open up applications for their True Young Explorer Scholarships for the 2026/27 season.

Wild Discovery co-owner and Expedition leader, Dan was once a beneficiary of the bursary and can testify first-hand to the the incredible experience and opportunity it can afford successful applicants.

So, if you're between 20-32 years old then check out the link in the comments of the original post. Good luck!

07/09/2026

Australian Darter

This gangly, snaky, prehistoric-looking bird was common this morning at Fogg Dam and the light and conditions were perfect for capturing its unique hunting style. The whole bird simply sank beneath the glassy-calm surface of the pool, the needle-sharp bill be the last piece of the bird visible before vanishing without a ripple. On re-surfacing it was similarly inconspicuous and its neck, head and bill were all that was visible above the surface, frequently resembling a snag in the water. 

Despite being common, these birds amounted to just a few of the thousands of waterbirds present on the reserve which included Brolga, hundreds of Magpie Geese, Green Pygmy-Geese, Sharp-tailed Sandpipers, and hundreds of herons and egrets. We even found Rainbow Pitta lurking in the spider-infested shadows of the monsoon forest. 

OM SYSTEM UK OM1 Mark II + M.Zuiko 150-400mm lens



05/09/2026

This month is which is perfect timing as my world in miniature has just been opened up with the M.Zuiko 90mm macro and the Brendan 'Cygnus' James 📸🕷🦂🐞 diffuser.

I have a lot to learn but I love how even the commonest critters in the garden suddenly become creatures to behold, from Earwings and Spiders to Bark Lice and Millipedes. And of course we can’t neglect moths (my fave!). September is a superb time for some richly coloured species and we are also getting a pulse of migrants at the moment.

Over the course of the next month (and more) I’m looking forward to putting this lens and diffuser to the test, briefly in Northern Australia and then more extensively through Indonesia and New Guinea - watch this space for more macro shots!

Images:
1. Earwig
2. Window Lace-Weaver spider
3. Lordithon staphylinid beetle
4. Herald moth wth proboscis probing deep into a blackberry
5. A compilation of Sallows (Pink-barred, (Top left), Sallow (TR), Centre-barred (LR), and Angle-striped (LL))
6. Silver-Y, a superb migrant that arrive in Scotland in variable numbers each year fromfurther south.

📷 OM1 mark II + M.Zuiko 90mm lense and Cygnus tech diffuser

Images 1, 2, 4 & 6 all stacked and hand held

mzuiko90mm

25/08/2026

Join our new tour to Batumi, Georgia in September 2027!

This single-base tour is timed perfectly to coincide with one of the world's most remarkable avian spectacles, the migration of over 1 million raptors south from their Eurasian breeding grounds into the tropics and sub-tropics for the winter!

Each day we will make the most of conditions to maximise our chances of witnessing thousands of birds passing south from one of the elevated watchpoints or along the coast. As well as raptors, thousands of other birds are also moving south from herons, gulls, terns and waders to Nightjars, shrikes, chats and warblers. There is never a dull moment at Batumi!

The area is also good for local breeders and resident species like Krüper's Nuthatch, Green Warbler and Black Woodpecker and there are always other interesting plants and and animals to look out for from Ladies Tresses's Orchids to Praying Mantids.

For more information on the tour, check out the link here, and enjoy a few images from Batumi last September.

https://wild-discovery.com/tours/fully-inclusive-tours/batumi-raptor-migration-georgia