Finding tigers in the wild is not an easy task.  They mostly stalk their prey, but will sit and wait for hours in the middle of the day for something to walk by.  When they are in the tiger grass they disappear completely, and only once they come out do you realize why they cannot be seen in the grass.

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It is not that common to be close to a tiger.  They don't like the vehicles and like to stay in the jungle and stalk their prey.  This tiger was on a mission, though, and when it approached us it was incredible to see his face close up and staring at us.

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The stripes on a tiger are designed that way for a reason.  When they are taken out of the jungles, people can't understand why they have such a pattern on their fur.  When they are seen in the wild, though, it is quickly obvious why a tigers stripes are the way they are.

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Tigers are an impressive and intimidating cat.  This tiger wasn't overly happy that we had found her.  After a few minutes she got up and left, but she let us know who was queen of the jungle as she was leaving.

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For as large as tigers are, they can quickly blend in to the jungle and disappear.  We were looking for a different tiger, when all of a sudden this male appeared on the rocks above us.  Seeing him stand so confidently above us was a little intimidating.

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In the jungle there is rarely an opening with no plants. I had been tracking this tiger for some time in the thick jungle, and not getting any photos. All of a sudden there was an opening  and the beauty of the tiger came to life as it was in the wide open.

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Tigers have good vision and much better depth perception than us. As soon as a tiger spots a potential prey, they go into stalk mode instantly.  Tigers have to eat a lot be able to sustain their large bodies.  Hiding in this taller grass gave this tiger a better chance of getting close to its prey.

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Tigers in India are treated differently than large animals here in the states.  This is a well known tiger because of the wrong reasons.  This tiger has actually killed 3 people who wandered into the park at night illegally.  This large dominant male tiger is still free today roaming in his natural territory.  

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During the dry season it can be extremely hot in India.  During week stretches it can be 115 fahrenheit, or more, on a daily basis.  The few watering holes that remain become a favorite hangout for the tigers to cool down, and to look for food.

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Being a wild tiger is not easy. Not only do they have to worry about surviving by finding enough prey animals, but there is constant threats from humans too. This tigress was well known for how old she was. At the time I photographer her she was 15, but she lived to be 19. It was such a treat seeing her in the wild!

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Getting to see a wild tiger dragging a large deer across a lake and onto shore was quite an experience. I didn't see the tiger take down the deer, but seeing the power of the tiger as it drug the deer in the lake was incredible. This tiger might have been across the lake, but it still let me know it was queen of the jungle.

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Tigers are known as large cats with an ability to hide and stalk their prey.  This male tiger was tired after recently making a kill and eating.  Here he was yawning and showing us just how powerful his teeth can be.

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Being a sloth bear cub is the good life.  Mother watches carefully over all day, and anytime they are on the move the cubs get a free ride.  As this family moves through a boulder field, the cubs watch carefully so they don't hit any rocks. 

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While one sloth bear cub was on the ground, the other cub was glad to finally have more space on mothers back to move around.  After a while it looked to see where its sibling was, and when it saw the other sibling it gave off a big smile.  

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Sloth bears are very funny bears. They really do enjoy sitting and laying back. They will be walking along and just sit down and start scratching. They really are such funny bears.

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People can mistake sloth bears as a non aggressive bear because they mostly eats termites and insects.  On occasion they will kill an animal, and will eat meat if they come across it.  These two young sloth bears play fighting show just how dangerous they can be. 

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When sloth bear cubs are young, they stay very close to their mothers side.  As mother began to move away, this cub took the shortest route possible to her and lept as far as it could.  

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Sloth bears have very interesting noses. They are very long, and they use these long noses to reach into termite mounds. I was happy to finally see one close up.

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Evening is the best time to see sloth bears, as they don't usually even come out until night. Right as I was about to go in for the night, this family came out to go on the hunt for the night.

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Baby sloth bear cubs are more often on their mother, than on the ground. After some time on the ground this cubs was tired, and when it laid down I could hardly see it because of its mothers very long hair.

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Baby sloth bear cubs ride on their mothers back for protection, and they do it all the time. It can be hard to see the cub in its mothers long hair though. When she started to go down a hill it gave me a great view of the cub.

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It is very tiring being a cub. They get to play all day and be carried around by their mother. These two cubs had used all their energy and came and rested on their mothers back together.

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After feeding all morning on an elk, this bear was full and tired.  It rolled over on its back like a human, and just took in the morning light and relaxed. 

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In the evening is when sloth bears are most likely to be seen by humans. They are mainly a nocturnal bear, but will move around in the evening some too. I caught this guy as he was walking the ridge at the last light.

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The wilds of India is a dangerous place for a sloth bear cub to be. To help protect the cubs, sloth bear mothers let the cubs ride on their back and keep them out of harms way.

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Mother sloth bears will sometimes feed their young by mouth to mouth. This is extremely rare behavior to witness, but also so neat to be able to see more into the world of the sloth bear.

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Elephants can hide amazingly well in the forest. For as big as they are, they can disappear and reappear very quickly. This elephant had a young baby, and when it saw something in the dry riverbed it came charging out of the woods to scare the other animal off.

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While in India I really wanted to see a wild cobra. This black cobra ventured into the resort I was staying at and that excited me. The moment I saw it I had massive respect for it, and it had an aura surrounding it that was like nothing I had ever experienced before.

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While in the tall jungle plants, I didn't even know there was a baby elephant. Mom came rushing out of the jungle and onto the dry river bed. Soon after, her little one followed and leaned against her for comfort.

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Elephants come in all different sizes. They can become so large it is hard to imagine an animal being that big, to being incredibly small when they are born. As these three elephants walked in stride, it showed how each was in a different stage of growth.

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The peacock is a very large bird and is mostly all across India.  During the mating season it is a spectacle to see them open up there huge feathers and shake them at the females.  A close up reveals just how colorful and textured the feathers are.  

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Kingfishers are one of the fastest birds, and also one of the hardest to photograph because they never sit still. I was following this kingfisher as it moved along the lake, it hovered for a couple seconds to allow me time to lock on it, and then it dove straight down and caught a fish.

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