A spectacular Northern Fulmar rookery on Medny Island. The vegetation on these sheer cliffs appeared to be covering spectacular columnar basalt formations.
Another spectacular zodiac trip around a bird rock during one of our many stops in Medny Island. The birds here are mainly Red-faced Cormorants.
These sea stacks stood out as some of the more impressive geologic features of the Commander's impressive coastline.
This spectacular Asteraceae speciman was nearly blooming in Bering Island.
These spectacular falls were seen in Gladkovskaya Bay.
Although we had great sightings of the Medny Island Polar Fox, the only evidence of the Bering Island Polar Fox were the numerous tracks we saw along the beaches during our landings.
During some of our landings in the Commanders, we were given time to trek the vast, treeless tundra wilderness of the islands. These walks introduced us to the fantastic scenery and flora of the islands.
A curous Medny Island Polar Fox taking a peek at his "stalker", me...
"Who's dat!?"
The massive Northern Fur Seal rookery on Bering Island. We spent several hours here observing the daily lives of the two species of pinnipeds found here.
A bull Northern Fur Seal with his herom on Bering Island.
An elder Northern Fur Seal warning me to back off!
A couple heroms and a nursery of Northern Fur Seals. A few minutes later, a massive brawl between many of the adult bulls in the area ensued, killing dozens of the pups right before our very eyes!
A Tufted Puffin finding his way back to his nest on Commander Bay, Medny Island.
A glorious Tufted Puffin!
A startled Horned Puffin taking flight after noticing our approaching zodiac.
An Ancient Murrelet skimming the sea searching for food!
The massive "bird bazaars" of the Commanders were nearly endless. They mostly consisted of Thick and Thin-billed Murres, Red and Black-legged Kittiwakes and both species of Puffins. We also saw many Least and Crested Auklets.
These amazing "bird bazaars" were seen during our sunset zodiac cruise in Dikaya Bay. This evening ranks as one of the best nature experiences I have ever had. We spent two hours sipping vodka and enjoying the sights, sounds and intense smells of this amazing natural spectacle.
Some Thick-billed Murred, a Red-faced Cormonant and Red-legged Kittiwakes thrown in for fun!
The massive columnar basalt outcroppings make perfect nesting sites for the numerous pelagic species found here.
A Lapland Longspur singing his heart out on Bering Island.
Some very rare Red-legged Kittiwakes relaxing on some rocks in Dikaya Bay.
A mating pair of Red-legged Kittiwakes in Dikaya Bay. This is purported to be the largest Red-legged Kittiwake rookery on the planet.
Black-legged Kittiwakes and Thick-billed Murres on Bering Island.
Some Black Guillemots enjoying some sushi on Medny Island.
A Black Guillemot fishing in the waters of Medny Island.
A massive Northern Fulmar rookery on Bering Island.
We saw literally hundreds of thousands of dark-morph Northern Fulmars during our expedition to the Commanders!
A Red-faced Cormorant Rookery off Medny Island.
A close-up view of some Red-faced Cormorants along the Medny Island coastline.
I never tired of the Red-faced Cormorants that were literally everywhere during our expedition to the Commanders.
A Red-faced Cormorant sunset!
As it was July, I was not surprised to see the Snow Buntings out of their winter plumage like this one, but we did see at least a couple near-solid white ones during the expedition as well.
During one of our zodiac cruises, Guenther grabbed this Least Auklet for some close-ups!
A mixed flock of Red and Black-legged Kittiwakes take flight reacting to our approaching zodiac.
To see our complete Russian Species List, click here!
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Commander Islands Landscapes Gallery
