Blog Page 2019-06-06T18:55:47+00:00

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The Daintree River of Tropical North Queensland

For many months, I'd often hear Yogi exclaim "Look at this!!!" And he proceeded to show me Solar Whisper's Facebook page of photographs taken by operator David White along the Daintree River in our part of the world of Tropical North Queensland. They were, of course, extraordinary wildlife images and videos of crocodiles [...]

By | April 19th, 2016|

WILDLIFE Under the Waves

With great excitement, we would like to present our latest book by New Holland Publishing - WILDLIFE Under the Waves. This book has a collection of stunning images that showcase the full diversity of marine life -- from mighty whales and graceful turtles through to huge shimmering shoals of fish and riotously coloured corals, anemones, [...]

By | March 3rd, 2015|

Fruit Bats!

Yogi and I have been visiting the Tolga Bat Hospital in the Atherton Tablelands, Tropical North Queensland for many many years, working and becoming fast friends with a wonderful woman named Jenny Maclean. Jenny Maclean with kelpie Guirri Maclean sitting on their magnificent bat bench. Jenny owns and runs the [...]

By | November 5th, 2014|

Finalist – 50th Wildlife Photographer of the Year

Night shot of fireflies in the thousands flittering about within in a single tree (Talisay - Wild Almond). Now in its 50th year, the Wildlife Photographer of the Year competition provides a global showcase of the very best nature photography. The competition is co-owned by two UK institutions that pride [...]

By | October 22nd, 2014|

Photographing Great Barrier Reef Mission of the Global Reef Expedition

The oceanic water at the outer edge of the Great Barrier Reef is so clear, that you can see the surveying scientists as little specks in the upper right corner from almost 50 meter away. In 2003, my wife and I immigrated to Far North Queensland, Australia – [...]

By | September 28th, 2014|

Dwarf Minke Whales in the Great Barrier Reef

It's been a while since I was out diving and snorkelling in the Great Barrier Reef. This time I went with the superb liveaboard "Spoilsport" of the Mike Ball Dive Expeditions during the best time of the year to see minke whales underwater. The weather was amazing with only 10-15 knot winds [...]

By | July 4th, 2014|

Stella’s Story

Stella up in the air in a heli bubble somewhere over Uluru. I’m Stella--a short, bossy half a century old Asian woman. I'm Chinese, born and raised in the Philippines, and a grateful immigrant to Australia. In 2003, my husband Yogi and I packed our entire household in [...]

By | June 15th, 2014|

Asia Pacific Reefs and Rainforests – A Photo Exhibition in April

Asia Pacific Reefs and Rainforests - A Photo Exhibition this April The Tablelands Regional Gallery in collaboration with the 5th Queensland Festival of Photography is proud to present Jürgen Freund in a solo photo exhibition. With the support of the Regional Arts Development Fund and the Worldwide Fund for Nature, [...]

By | March 29th, 2014|

The Coral Triangle featured in GEO Magazine

A little late but nonetheless always relevant! Our big photo story on The Coral Triangle came out in German GEO Magazine last August 2013 and correspondingly, an iPad app with this slideshow below. With so many stories to choose from, our writer Dr. Andreas Weber wrote mainly about the Tubbataha [...]

By | February 1st, 2014|

A Funeral to Remember – Goodbye Paramount Chief Ratu Aisea Katonivere

25 - 27 April 2013 - Naduri, Vanua Levu, Fiji Sevusevu with the late Tui Macuata, Ratu Aisea Katonivere, Paramount Chief of Macuata Province in Vanua Levu with Koli Musudroka of WWF South Pacific. We started our journey to Macuata Province first and foremost with a traditional sevusevu in Naduri with the [...]

By | August 29th, 2013|

Sea Cucumber Hunters of Fiji in the GSR

April 2013 - Kavewa Island, Nukusa Village, Yadua Island Sea cucumber is a high value, high demand Chinese delicacy that is sought after by Chinese traders buying dried sea cucumbers from all over the world especially in Asia and the Pacific. Sea cucumbers are flexible, elongated echinoderms belonging to the class Holothuroidea.  They live on the sea floor [...]

By | August 26th, 2013|

Yadua Turtle Monitoring and Irris

20 April 2013 Patricia Mallam WWF South Pacific Communications Manager brought her lovely 9 year old daughter Irris to rendezvous with us on Yadua Island - we, coming from Macuata Province and they, coming from Suva. They were joined by Pita Qarau, Turtle Monitor from Yadua Village in Suva and they all took the [...]

By | August 22nd, 2013|

WWF and University of South Pacific at work in the Great Sea Reef

April 2013 Our visits to the Fijian villages and the one resort in Macuata Province were made the richer when we were able to document the fieldwork of WWF South Pacific Marine Species Coordinator Laitia Tamata, WWF Labasa staff Koli Musudroka and University of South Pacific Laisiasa Cavakiqali. They were visiting 5 sites [...]

By | August 8th, 2013|

Nukubati Island – the Only Resort in Macuata Province’s Great Sea Reef

14 - 18 April 2013 Google Earth Map - Nukubati Island Getting a WWF assignment to document the world's third largest barrier reef, we needed to make sure we saw the Great Sea Reef from underwater. Nukubati Island Resort is the only resort in the Macuata Province of the GSR [...]

By | July 30th, 2013|

Udu Point – First Sunday at the Farthest End of the Great Sea Reef

7 April 2013 Google Earth Map - Kavewa to Udu Point, the farthest east we got in Fiji. (Click for larger map) Nukusa Village is the 4th to the last village from the tip of Vanua Levu. It is so remote that the villagers need to use up [...]

By | July 6th, 2013|

Kavewa Island – Mangrove Reforestation and the Reefs

4 - 6 April 2013 A charming activity took the children of Kavewa by storm one overcast Saturday morning. All the school children from Kavewa Village had just come back home for the weekend from their boarding school in Drua Drua (another nearby island) when they were assigned to go [...]

By | July 5th, 2013|

Mali Island – Diving, Spearfishing and Sea Snakes

2 - 3 April 2013 Google Earth - Mali Island, Fiji We had a grand opportunity of checking out the Great Sea Reef underwater while in Mali Island. Our Ligaulevu Village host Leone Vokai operates a brand new dive shop called the Great Sea Reef Divers and he invited us [...]

By | June 28th, 2013|

Days with the Chiefs – Mali Island (Nakawaqa Village, Vorovoro Island and Ligaulevu)

30 March - 2 April 2013 Mali Island Google Earth - Mali Island, Fiji The nearest island to Labasa Town is Mali Island, comprised of 3 villages on the island (Nakawaqa, Ligaulevu & Vesi) and 1 (Matailabasa) on mainland Vanua Levu. We visited 2 villages and experienced real [...]

By | June 25th, 2013|

Life in Navakasobu Village with Kava, Weaving and Fishing

30 March 2013 Navakasobu Village, Vanua Levu, Fiji Our wonderful guide and companion Koli Musudroka, WWF Field Officer for Labasa invited us to his village on Black Saturday. He had been telling us about the women in his village weaving a special kind of mat and traditional Fijian wedding costumes made of a [...]

By | April 3rd, 2013|

Happy Holi!

29 March 2013 Korowiri Village, Labasa, Fiji While the world I'm familiar with conducts solemn Good Friday activities celebrating the passion of Christ in quiet contemplation, another world celebrates a new year the Hindi way, with the festival of colours! Happy Holi! Yogi gets his first Holi colours! We had a [...]

By | March 31st, 2013|

First Day – Labasa, Fiji’s Northern Division

28 March 2013 Labasa Town, Northern Division, Fiji The incredibly efficient and fired up WWF South Pacific team in Fiji has given us a packed itinerary for our five weeks stay to document the entire length of the Great Sea Reefs of Fiji. Locally known as Cakaulevu, the Great Sea Reefs is the world’s [...]

By | March 28th, 2013|

Whale Sharks of Cenderawasih Bay, Province of Papua, Indonesia

23 March 2013 I really believe in saying "it's better late than never". Well, this post is almost a year late but nonetheless, the experience is still fresh in my mind like it happened yesterday.  As we get ready to leave tomorrow for our next brand new expedition to Fiji, I [...]

By | March 23rd, 2013|

JCU Nature Photography Masterclass 1 – Review

An entry from one of our participants from Ballarat, Victoria - Carol Hall.  This article is written by Carol for the Ballarat Camera Club newsletter. Carol with her bag of rolled oats and Mareeba Rock Wallaby mum and joey patiently waiting for a feed Masterclass in Nature Photography [...]

By | August 13th, 2012|

Tolga Bat Hospital Story in GEOlino Magazine

In the past five years, we have had two super strong category 5 cyclones visit our part of the world in Far North Queensland, Australia - Cyclone Larry in March 2006 and Cyclone Yasi in February 2011. The incredibly strong winds stripped our dense forest foliage naked and as a [...]

By | August 8th, 2012|

Masterclass in Nature Photography by Jürgen Freund at JCU

Masterclass in Nature Photography with Jürgen Freund. Click into the picture for the full brochure. Cairns-based photographer Jürgen Freund has been pointing his camera at all creatures great and small for several decades now, and with great success. He won the 2010 PATA Gold Award for Travel Photography [...]

By | May 11th, 2012|

BBC Wildlife Magazine features The Coral Triangle

We have been working hard to promote the Coral Triangle through our pictures. The images we accumulated during our epic 18 month WWF Coral Triangle Photographic Expedition is slowly getting its proper exposure in the world. For starters, here’s a beautiful portfolio last March in BBC Wildlife Magazine. [phoenixgallery id="bbc-coral-triangle"]   [...]

By | May 9th, 2012|

GEO Magazine features Fish Faces of the Coral Triangle

Last April, we had a truly charming feature in Germany's GEO Magazine on the Coral Triangle's colourful and cryptic marine creatures - a sure sign of biodiversity in this ecoregion. Soon it will also come out in GEO International magazines all over the world in around 16 countries!

By | May 9th, 2012|

Tauchen Magazine – West Australia 2008

Tauchen Magazine - West Australia 2008 FLASHBACK - October 2008 We were boarding the fabulous diveboat MV Febrina on Yogi's birthday in 2008 when a fellow guest from Germany chased Yogi with a magazine upon finding out he was Jürgen Freund. The newest issue of Tauchen Magazine had our West Australia [...]

By | September 9th, 2011|

WildPhotos 2011

WildPhotos 2011 A photographic event happens every autumn at the Royal Geographic Society in London. It is the UK’s largest nature photography symposium. WildPhotos plays host to some of the world’s top wildlife and environmental photographers – including winners of the prestigious Veolia Environnement Wildlife Photographer of the Year competition. [...]

By | September 8th, 2011|

Rolex Laureates Collaborating – Jürgen Freund on Assignment for Rolex in Ningaloo 2008

Rolex Laureates Collaborating - Jürgen Freund on Assignment for Rolex in Ningaloo 2008 FLASHBACK - May 2008 Rory Wilson and Brad Norman - two Rolex Award for Enterprise Laureates joined forces to study whale sharks of Ningaloo Reef in Western Australia. Yogi was given this "difficult" assignment of spending luxurious time onboard [...]

By | September 5th, 2011|

AIMS CReefs – Census of Marine Life, Lizard Island 2008

The Census of Marine Life (CoML) is a grand global project with an objective to survey and analyze changes from past to present in marine life biodiversity, distribution and abundance, and to compile the resultant data into a comprehensive database called the “Ocean Biogeographic Information System (OBIS),” to be used in forecasting [...]

By | September 5th, 2011|

GEO Snake Expedition – Australia 2008

GEO Snake Expedition - Australia 2008 FLASHBACK – February 2008 Way back December 2007, Yogi was asked by the GEO photo editors to do a photographic snake expedition with scientist Dr. Guido Westhoff. The assignment required them to go to the Queensland outback for land snakes and Weipa for sea snakes. This [...]

By | September 4th, 2011|

Lake Eyre 2 – Birdlife and Pelicans in the Outback

Charming Red-necked Avocet in Lake Eyre from the shores of Halligan Bay May-July 2011 A Lake Eyre photo assignment from GEO magazine got us quickly driving 3,000 km to the heart of South Australia to meet German writer Markus Wolff in Roxby Downs. Markus was flying in from Hamburg with many connecting flights [...]

By | August 2nd, 2011|

Lake Eyre 2 – Birdlife and Pelicans in the Outback

Charming Red-necked Avocet in Lake Eyre from the shores of Halligan Bay May-July 2011 A Lake Eyre photo assignment from GEO magazine got us quickly driving 3,000 km to the heart of South Australia to meet German writer Markus Wolff in Roxby Downs. Markus was flying in from Hamburg with many connecting flights [...]

By | July 31st, 2011|

Lake Eyre 1 – Following the Water

The flooded Lake Eyre from the air. Have you ever wondered what a massive lake in the middle of the flat dry Australian desert looks like?  Can you even begin to imagine what or where this famed lake is? Lake Eyre for those who know where it is geographically conjures visions of [...]

By | June 30th, 2011|

Photography in the Coral Triangle – by Jürgen Freund

April 2009 - September 2010 In 1995, when I was a fresh full-time wildlife photographer - after quitting my Industrial Photography day job of many years,  I went for 12 months on my very own photographic expedition through the Coral Triangle. I first visited Christmas Island, Australia for half a [...]

By | September 5th, 2010|

Talented carvers of Marovo Lagoon, Solomon Islands

15 - 17 July 2010 Chea Village, Marovo Island After strong winds and rain throughout our stay in Tetepare, we were dreading the island crossing from Tetepare to Marovo Lagoon, New Georgia. We were bracing ourselves for big waves and made sure all our belongings were packed water tight and [...]

By | September 1st, 2010|

Tetepare Turtles, Coconut Crabs and Seaweed Research in the Western Province of the Solomon Islands

10 – 14 July 2010 Tetepare Island The wild coast of Tetepare The Tetepare Descendants' Association take their conservation work very seriously. They protect and manage the entire island most especially their 13km-long Marine Protected Area. Since 2004, they have had a dedicated roster of rangers and different marine [...]

By | August 31st, 2010|

Tetepare Island Rangers and WWF Coral Reef Research, Western Province, Solomon Islands

10 - 14 July 2010 Tetepare Island Mystery shrouds Tetepare Island with its rainforest getting its fair share of rain Tetepare is the largest uninhabited island in the South Pacific where a tiny portion of its massive land is a dedicated research field station and a cooperative ecolodge run [...]

By | August 30th, 2010|

Pristine Rainforest in Kolombangara, Western Province, Solomon Islands

7 - 9 July 2010 Imbu Rano Lodge The only chance we had during this entire expedition to visit a forest was here in the Pacific. A forest, you might ask? What has that got to do with the Coral Triangle? With marine life?  Nature, from the highest forest to [...]

By | August 29th, 2010|

Aquaculture Farming and Post Tsunami in Gizo, Solomon Islands

6 - 7 July 2010 WorldFish Center, Nusa Tupe & Gizo Airport Onma Lodge, Kolombangara The April 2007 earthquake and tsunami wrecked havoc to the lives of many in the Western Province of the Solomon Islands. Foreign aid and rebuilding was slow and difficult, but the people of the Western [...]

By | August 26th, 2010|

Gizo and Ranonga After the 2007 Tsunami, Solomon Islands

6 July 2010 Gizo & Ranonga One morning in 2 April 2007, we woke up at home in Cairns. By force of habit, even before breakfast, I turned on the computer and checked BOM, the Australian Bureau of Meteorology, for the day's weather. There was a tsunami warning button in red. Blink, [...]

By | August 2nd, 2010|

Making Lime for Betelnut Chewing in M’Buke, Manus, PNG

28 – 30 July 2010 M’Buke Island A jar of lime powder (kambang); a bean-like green stick called mustard (daka) and green betel nuts (buai) Betel nut chewing is a custom or ritual that dates back thousands of years from Asia to the Pacific, a tradition very much a part [...]

By | July 25th, 2010|

WWF Community Canoe in M’Buke Island, Manus, PNG

28 - 30 July 2010 M'Buke Island, Anun Island & Champoin Island The traditional sailing canoes of M'Buke Islanders Last year in February, when I was still researching WWF Coral Triangle projects to cover for our expedition, I had heard of the traditional community canoe making project of WWF [...]

By | July 24th, 2010|

The Amazing People of M’Buke Island, Manus, Papua New Guinea

28 - 30 June 2010 S2 22.915 E146 49.513 - M'Buke Island S2 18.697 E146 51.595 - Anun Island At low tide, we navigated our small boat through the incredibly healthy coral reefs of Anun Island, M'Buke. Anun and another beautiful island called Champoin are proposed ecotourism sites by [...]

By | July 24th, 2010|

Lovely Lissenung and Day Trips to Kavieng, New Ireland, PNG

4 - 24 June 2010 We totally adored our three weeks in Lissenung. We were so much at home it was LIKE being home. We could achieve so much portraying the many aspects of Kavieng's village and marine life. First was an entire white board dedicated solely to us and our [...]

By | July 3rd, 2010|

Lissenung Diving Exploratory Trip to New Hanover, PNG

15 - 17 June 2010 We set off for a three day exploratory trip with our friend Dietmar Amon with five other divers or NFFs (new found friends) to New Hanover. Lissenung Island Resort has these special trips once a year and again, how lucky were we to be part of this [...]

By | June 24th, 2010|

Enuk Sing-Sing at Lissenung Island Resort, New Ireland, PNG

9 & 20 June 2010 The strong culture of Papua New Guinea shines through during a sing-sing - a gathering of performers from a village who sing and dance to show off their ethnicity and their traditional rituals. It is powerful, as all earthy performances are and we have been so fortunate [...]

By | June 21st, 2010|

Diving with Lissenung Island Resort New Ireland, PNG

5 - 15 June 2010 We have been on idyllic Lissenung Island Resort since June 5 and have spent wonderful time catching up with our friends Dietmar and Ange Amon, the owners and operators of this lovely little dive resort in the Pacific. In the past, Dietmar and Ange have house sat [...]

By | June 19th, 2010|

Malagan Tatanua Masks of Kavieng, New Ireland, PNG

11 & 14 June 2010 We met a fascinating Papua New Guinean artist by the name of Fabian Paino. He carves Malagan wooden sculptures, the ceremonial art of New Ireland's living culture. Fabian carves the wooden part of a Tatanua Mask His work is now found amongst people's collection from [...]

By | June 14th, 2010|

Legendary FeBrina liveaboard in Father’s Reef and Witu Island, Kimbe Bay

25 May - 3 June 2009 Brandford Shoal, Kimbe Bay Kilibob's Knob, Father's, Kimbe Bay Dickie's Place, Garove Island, Witu Islands Sporting an all new white look, the famous liveaboard FeBrina is anchored inside the inactive Witu crater of Garove Island where cryptic creatures awaited us underwater Alan [...]

By | June 6th, 2010|

Walindi Plantation Resort, Kimbe Bay, PNG

13 – 25 May 2010 Walindi Plantation Resort Australians Max and his wife Cecilie were agriculturists when they bought an oil palm plantation in West New Britain, PNG in 1969.  The Benjamins' plantation is an 800 acre property along the western shore of Kimbe Bay. Running through the property is a [...]

By | June 5th, 2010|

Mahonia Na Dari – Guardians of the Sea – Kimbe Bay, PNG

Many thanks to Tansy Bliss' text below, we are able to tell you through her writing and Yogi's photos how brilliant this local NGO is at the heart of Kimbe Bay, West New Britain. Tansy is a naturalist and the Eco-tourism Officer of  Mahonia Na Dari. By Tansy Bliss [...]

By | May 25th, 2010|

Beautiful Walindi, Kimbe Bay, West New Britain, PNG

13 - 25 May 2010 Walindi Plantation Resort Restorf Island is our lunch place and one of our most favorite dive sites. it is muck heaven as well as having awesome underwater landscapes This is Yogi's fourth and my third time in Walindi Plantation Resort. Needless to say, we [...]

By | May 25th, 2010|

Fish for the Millions – Milkfish Aquaculture, Sarangani, Philippines

29 April - 2 May 2010 We made a most interesting and educational trip to Sarangani Bay in Southern Mindanao to photograph aquaculture or aquafarming.  Alsons Aquaculture Corporation is the producer of Sarangani Bay Prime Bangus or milkfish, which in the Philippines is food for the millions! A full cycle aquaculture facility, Alsons operates from having milkfish spawners capable [...]

By | May 9th, 2010|

2010 Butanding Whale Shark Festival in Donsol, Philippines

27 April 2010 Woodland Resort, Donsol We have not been to the Butanding Festival since 2003. It was exciting to be here again during the festivities and the fluvial parade was not to be missed. Woodland Resort. The very resort where we hosted our German guests when we used to run [...]

By | May 8th, 2010|

Hubbs Scientist Tagging Whale Sharks in Donsol, Sorsogon, Philippines

24 - 27 April 2010 Woodland Resort, Donsol WWF Research boat with our big Panda flag at the "mast" as we go forth and look for whale sharks in the waters of Donsol Bay To address some important questions about where sharks spend their time and what habtitats [...]

By | May 7th, 2010|

Seagrass Bed for Marine Life in Club Paradise, Northern Palawan, Philippines

18 – 22 April 2010 Dimakya Island, Club Paradise Many snorkelers and divers quickly swim past seagrass beds without stopping to check out the interesting marine life that live there.  Seagrass beds are very important marine habitats and ecosystems. With their root like stems, which can extend horizontally under the sand, [...]

By | May 5th, 2010|

A Dugong in Club Paradise, Northern Palawan, Philippines

18 – 22 April 2010 Dirk Fahrenbach is a dear old friend of Yogi’s. He owns and runs Dugong Dive Center in Club Paradise and we met him in Singapore during ADEX 2010.  Upon finding out what we’ve been up to, Dirk immediately asked when we were visiting him in Club Paradise. Still [...]

By | May 1st, 2010|

Good Friday in Bulacan, Philippines

2 April 2010  Kapitangan & Baliwag The Philippines is predominantly a Catholic country with a minority of Muslims living in southern Mindanao. The Catholic faith is strong and thriving and Folk Catholicism finds its major outlet during Lent, where traditional Philippine style rituals can be observed in different towns and provinces throughout the [...]

By | April 26th, 2010|

Club Ocellaris in Anilao, Batangas, Philippines

27 – 31 March 2010 The charming clownfish finds a symbolic home out of water in this quaint dive resort by the sea in Anilao, Mabini, Batangas.  Club Ocellaris is where I first entered the water with a self-contained underwater breathing apparatus and Boy Venus was there to teach and introduce me [...]

By | April 26th, 2010|

Newest Dive Resort in Mindoro – Apo Reef Club

15 - 22 March 2010 Sunset illuminates this charming dive resort in Mindoro Guenter Taus was my dive instructor for my PADI advance course many years ago. He also is part owner of Occidental Mindoro's newest dive resort called Apo Reef Club. Michi Roos is the founder and operations [...]

By | April 7th, 2010|

Apo Reef with Apo Reef Club, Mindoro, Philippines

15 - 22 March 2010 The colors of Asia comes out with this bright outrigger boat turned liveaboard Apo Reef Club I. Diver about to surface after a good dive With the expedition team complete with our writer Alya Honasan, our first Philippine journey for this leg was [...]

By | April 7th, 2010|

Dry Lands and Effects of Climate Change in Mindoro, Philippines

18 March 2010 We spent a whirlwind day traveling Mindoro on rocky roads from Concepcion to Mamburao to Sablayan back to Concepcion. It was from an early tuna festival activity at 7 in the morning to visiting Sablayan villages affected by climate change. Mindoro is the seventh-largest island in the Philippines. It is located southwest [...]

By | April 1st, 2010|

Tuna Festival in Mamburao – Occidental Mindoro, Philippines

26 March 2010 Today, I received a birthday greeting from our dear Paul Sunters, the Managing Photo Editor of the WWF Global Photo Network! It is my one year blog anniversary since writing my first entry! Imagine that! I went back to that first entry and thought, "where has the time gone?" [...]

By | March 26th, 2010|

Coralline Triangle – Pun Intended!

9 March 2010 Sometime August last year, during our trip on the Seven Seas diving around Komodo National Park, we met Jack Shargel, an animated American jeweler based in Bali.  Jack, upon hearing what it was we were doing, showed us a somewhat different coral triangle!  He opened his magic jewel pouch [...]

By | March 23rd, 2010|

Landscapes and Seascapes of Raja Ampat

8 - 27 February 2010 While we were in North Raja Ampat, we were incredibly fortunate to have professional photographers and videographers Claudia & Leon Joubert document our stay and experience in what is arguably the epicenter of marine biodiversity. Claudia Pellarini-Joubert and Leon Joubert of the Bittenbysharks.com fame work with Max Ammer to [...]

By | March 4th, 2010|

Seeing Magnificent Raja Ampat from the Air

27 February 2010 After days of grumbling about the weather, Yogi finally found his smile again. Max Ammer was bringing him along as co-pilot to his truly photogenic yellow aircraft. Yogi finally smiling from ear to ear. Finally sunny after overcast days with heavy rain Conservation International needed [...]

By | March 3rd, 2010|

Marine Life of North Raja Ampat

8 - 26 February If I may, I would like to lift a few bits and paragraphs written by Dr. Mark V. Erdmann, Senior Advisor Conservation International Indonesia Marine Program in his introduction of a new fantastic coffeetable book The Raja Ampat.  "Reefs on Steroids", "The Kingdom of Coral", "Heart of the Coral [...]

By | February 26th, 2010|

WWF CT Business Summit Photo Exhibition in Manila

19 - 20 January 2010 Sometime early November last year, we got an email from Dr. Lida Pet-Soede, WWF Coral Triangle Programme Leader to discuss an idea of having a photo exhibition of our expedition in Manila during the first WWF Coral Triangle Business Summit in January 2010. We knew [...]

By | February 5th, 2010|

Life Forms

22 January 2010 Fiabacet Misool Eco Resort When Yogi starts singing, I have all reason to stop and listen to his song as he seldom does this. Whereas I break into a song at a drop of a hat, even if I don't know the lyrics. Well, Yogi repeatedly sang [...]

By | February 5th, 2010|

New Year and Renewed Attention to the Blog!

16 January 2010 After  the busy Copenhagen Conference last year and the holiday season break, our friends in WWF International On-line & Communications Department have now the time to add new things into our blog and have put it in the main Panda.org homepage! Whoopy! Thanks guys for pushing more readers to [...]

By | January 16th, 2010|

Edi Frommenwiler, Pindito and Raja Ampat

Edi Frommenwiler Movie "Wild Eye of Raja Ampat" on YouTube 15 years ago, when Yogi quit his office job as industrial photographer of MTU in Munich and became a fulltime freelance photojournalist, he embarked on a one-year self-funded expedition to Christmas Island and the Coral Triangle - Indonesia, Sabah & [...]

By | January 1st, 2010|

Diving the Famed Misool, Raja Ampat!

12 December Boo Windows The Pindito steamed all of last night till 10am this morning to Misool. The first dive site at 11am was in Boo.  The landscape of limestone islands and outcrops is similar to Coron and El Nido, Palawan in the Philippines. Beautiful! This is finally my introduction to Raja [...]

By | December 31st, 2009|

Coral Triangle Expedition Cover Stories

Happy makers like these go a long way in keeping us company during our travels from site to site, boat to boat, hotel room to hotel room all throughout the Coral Triangle. Stella snorkeling the shallow reefs of Komodo National Park Please read all about The Jakarta Post [...]

By | December 5th, 2009|

The Fate of Leatherback Turtles in the Kei Islands, Moluccas

21 November 2009 - Saturday Today we were extremely happy in the morning and extremely sad by the afternoon.  We had a slow start leaving the house at 7am. For 2 long hours, we saw nothing. Eki was in fact close to cursing mode when we saw our first leatherback turtle at [...]

By | December 2nd, 2009|

In Search of Leatherbacks in the Kei Islands, Moluccas

20 November 2009 Second day we were asked to wake up at 5:30am! By after breakfast and 6:15am we were off. The seas were glass flat and calm as. The early morning sun made really brilliant reflections on the water but after 2 hours of searching, we still didn’t see [...]

By | December 2nd, 2009|

Kei Island Turtles

19 - 26 November 2009 After zooming around the many islands in Wakatobi, it was a relief to finally stay put in one community and concentrate in one thing and one thing only - leatherback marine turtles. Kei is the only location in Indonesia we can hope to photograph leatherbacks underwater. [...]

By | December 2nd, 2009|

Coral Miners

2 - 12 November 2009 We noticed from early on how different the sea gypsies from Wakatobi lived compared to their Bajau relatives from Sabah, Malaysia and the Philippines. The Bajo from Wakatobi reclaimed land and had sturdy houses on top of their new land. We heard from Sugi how [...]

By | November 15th, 2009|

People of Wakatobi

2 - 12 November 2009 To many divers around the world, Wakatobi South Sulawesi is an underwater destination. Wakatobi, which is short for its many islands, stands for Wangi-Wangi, Kaledupa, Tomia & Binongko. We went to all these islands and beyond with WWF Indonesia and its partner agency TNC. We didn't do much diving here. [...]

By | November 15th, 2009|

Diving Bunaken and Mucking Around Manado

20 - 24 October 2009 Off we went with the tireless Simone Gerritsen of Thalassa Dive Center in Manado to explore  Bunaken and the surrounding islands as well as the under-appreciated mainland Manado. We knew to expect the steep wall dives of Bunaken National Park and the beautiful coral cover of Bunaken's [...]

By | October 29th, 2009|

The Batuna Family

18 October 2009 About 15 years ago, Yogi dove and dove and dove for two straight months with Murex Dive Resort and Liveaboard in North Sulawesi. During this period, he contracted dengue fever and got a special visit from Murex's very owner, the gentle, soft-spoken Dr. Batuna. His verdict was, "You'll live." [...]

By | October 29th, 2009|

Singapore Slideshow!

If you happen to be in Singapore on October 27 with nothing to do at 7 pm, join us at the Botanical Gardens, as we shall be presenting our expedition so far through a 40-minute slideshow. Here's WWF Singapore's leaflet-invitation to announce the event!

By | October 26th, 2009|

Say Tuna!

5 - 10 October 2009 Skip jacks - one of the many monuments in Bitung. The others are a mini Eiffel Tower and a cement bag monument. Go figure After intensive diving in Lembeh, it was again time to shift gears and swing to the other extreme of [...]

By | October 13th, 2009|

Twittering “24 Hours in the Life of WWF” from Lembeh Strait

23 September 2009 I am now enlightened on the world famous place called Lembeh Strait. I'm no longer a Lembeh virgin! Hurrah! We're here in Lembeh Resort to show what biodiversity is all about. Coincidentally, we're also here to Twitter our activities, joining in the worldwide celebration of WWF Founder Sir Peter [...]

By | September 23rd, 2009|

Diving with Tauch Terminal, Tulamben – North Bali

Tauch Terminal Dive Resort - 100 meters walk away from fantastic diving in the Marine Protected Area of Liberty Wreck 12 - 19 September 2009 First I have to pay tribute to the women porters of Tulamben. They literally risk their necks for us, and it's quite embarrassing [...]

By | September 18th, 2009|

Live Reef Fish Trade and People of Pulau Mesa

20 August 2009 We got off our 12-day liveaboard on the Seven Seas and hired ourselves a local floating home named Merannu, or Bajo language for “happy.” Our four-night floating hotel - Flores style We swung again from luxury to basic and as always, found ourselves pleasantly surprised. [...]

By | September 6th, 2009|

The Different Marine Habitats of Komodo National Park

6 - 24 August 2009 It is very interesting that mangroves and seagrass beds do not hold as much tourist attraction as flamboyant coral reefs. Fair enough as coral reefs are magical and full of variety of shapes and animals. But there is beauty in each ecosystem - so much [...]

By | August 31st, 2009|

Underwater Wilderness – Komodo National Park

6 - 22 August 2009 It was both Yogi and my first time to see the underwater world of the World Heritage Site Komodo National Park. About 15 years ago Yogi spent time here on land, photographing Komodo dragons. Not much was known about underwater Komodo, and there were few dive [...]

By | August 31st, 2009|

Mr. Linder

In the beginning of our journey, we knew part of this expedition was going to be about food. About eating. But it was far from our minds to eat well in Jamursbamedi. In fact, we thought we were going to survive on instant noodles or instant anything, as this was [...]

By | August 29th, 2009|

More Leatherback Turtles and Faces of Papuan Kids

24 - 29 July 2009 Our Warmamedi tent beside the WWF turtle hatchery For the next four nights, we consistently saw two leatherback turtles laying eggs. We didn’t have as many companions now as the first night, and we developed some sort of nightly ritual.  A long boat [...]

By | August 5th, 2009|

Kudat, Malaysia: The Faces of a Marine Park

By Alya B. Honsasan Trawler catch being sorted into baskets in Kudat Bay In the Kudat-Banggi Priority Conservation Area (PCA) in Sabah, Malaysia, fish is a big deal. You see it everywhere, from the fish cages outside settlements like Tampakan and Sibogo, to the dozens of trawlers and purse seiners docked [...]

By | July 30th, 2009|

WWF Malaysia in Kudat-Banggi Priority Conservation Area

25 – 30 June Kudat Harbour Pulau Banggi The efficient WWF Malaysia machinery was immediately felt when I started getting a series of text messages regarding transport, hotel accommodations and our overall visit to Kudat from Betty of the WWF KK office. Then Sofia Johari, the CEPA or Community Education, Protection, and Awareness [...]

By | July 15th, 2009|

Giant Clams Spawning, Seaweed Farming, Fisheries

11 – 15 June Pulau Bohey Dulang Seaweed farming community Purse Seiner fishing grounds Maybe it was our good vibes and positive aura.  We got lucky this time in Semporna, Sabah, Malaysia. On to the second leg of our expedition, we visited, with our WWF Malaysia companions, Pulau Boheydulang.  The [...]

By | June 19th, 2009|

Aerials, Slash and Burn, Seaweed Farming, and Pearl Farmers After Office Hours

11 – 15 May 2009 Our pilot was none other than Jewelmer's boss JB, as Jacques Branellec is fondly called. Upon hearing of approaching bad weather in the coming days, he immediately offered to fly us around the pearl farm and neighboring islands. He had the two back doors of the 8-seater [...]

By | May 26th, 2009|

Typhoon, Fishing, Capiz, and Manny Pacquiao

2 – 4 May 2009 Tropical downpour! Typhoon Crising went past the Western side of Occidental Mindoro, causing a downpour in Taytay, Palawan. These were unusual times, the locals said. The town fiesta on May 1-4 had always been graced with sunny weather and Amihan (or northeast tradewinds) in the [...]

By | May 4th, 2009|

Reef Mother

By Alya B. Honasan Angelique Songco manages the Tubbataha Reefs Natural Park in Palawan with a lot of passion It's late one summer morning, the sun is illuminating the crystal-clear waters of the magnificent Sulu Sea—and it’s a fierce war zone in the 4,737-hectare lagoon of the North Atoll of  the Tubbataha [...]

By | May 2nd, 2009|

Out in the Blue: Tubbataha Reefs, Sulu Sea

2 May 2009 By Alya B. Honasan The sting Expedition writer Alya Honasan (middle) with the Freund Factory It's been over a week since I got back from the first leg of the WWF Coral Triangle Initiative Photographic Expedition of J�rgen and Stella Freund to Tubbataha in the Sulu Sea, but [...]

By | May 2nd, 2009|

Roxas Fisheries

26 April 2009 Many thanks to Boy Bonoan and Ofie Rondina of the Palawan Provincial Government, our land transport to Northern Palawan was all organized. Once in Roxas, a scenic two-hour coastal ride north from Puerto Princesa, our guide Albert Ladica met us at our Pension.  Albert is the Fisheries [...]

By | April 26th, 2009|

COTS Once More and So Long Ranger Station

21 April 2009 Luli Arroyo infected with our COTS quest The guests onboard Oceana Maria joined in gathering COTS. Among them was Luli Arroyo, the Philippine President’s daughter and Southeast Asia Policy Officer for WWF Coral Triangle Programme. The fervor did not abate and as the stabbing sticks [...]

By | April 21st, 2009|

Oh no! Rain!

19 April 2009 Woke up at 5:45am – gee it’s overcast. By 6:30, while I was using nature’s toilet, the heavens opened. We all thought it was a good thing the rains didn’t happen at night! Equipped with raincoats, we continued shooting after breakfast. Secille and Choy found a dead [...]

By | April 19th, 2009|

August 2007 – Nautilus

Chambered nautilus (Nautilus pompilius) Now how did these beautiful deep-sea living fossils become so vulnerable? Our untiring quest to get them protected is unwavering. We must learn more about them before we can fight for their preservation. Guests help out Undersea Explorer marine biologist Qamar to engrave, photograph and [...]

By | August 31st, 2007|

July 2007 – Mike Ball Spoil Sport

Minke whale passing Lighthouse Bommie Mike Ball Dive Expedition in Pixie's Pinnacle - split level Mike Ball's luxurious liveaboard Spoil Sport brought us to the Great Barrier Reef's famous Ribbon Reefs to interact with the playful minke whales. Moored in Lighthouse Bommie, minkes [...]

By | July 31st, 2007|

June 2007 – The German Invasion

Lars and Carolin jetlagged and walking 2km Nandroya Falls Lars and Carolin walking Mossman Gorge's hanging bridge Somehow friends and family often make it to visit us during Aussie winters. This year was no different with Lars & Carolin Abromeit visiting first. Jet-lagged [...]

By | June 30th, 2007|

May 2007 – Sharks, Nautilus and Planktons

Undersea Explorer crew collect tissue samples of a grey reef shark (Carcharhinus amblyrhynchos) at Osprey Reef North Horn on the UE back deck. Karl measuring a nautilus as part of the marine research done onboard the Undersea Explorer And yet another exciting trip [...]

By | May 31st, 2007|

April 2007 – Daintree Slideshow

Yogi's Daintree EcoLodge slideshow flyer We were invited to give a public slideshow in a wonderful place called the Daintree EcoLodge & Spa. With our brochure nicely done and announcements in the Port Douglas Gazette, the turnout was pretty good and it was an altogether fantastic 2 hour affair [...]

By | April 30th, 2007|

February 2007 Glowing Fungi

One of the best-known bioluminescent fungi in Australia possibly Pleurotus nidiformis. This large, irregular-shaped fungus with a small stem often grows in dense clusters at the base of living or dead eucalypts. Bioluminescent mushroom light is created by a chemical reaction with a substance called luciferin which reacts with [...]

By | February 28th, 2007|

January 2007 – Stingers and Cassowaries

Yogi and our first 4WD Carla in the red outback We often tell friends how we need to rough it in the wild to be able to be at our shooting best. Roughing it means camping - sometimes sleeping in our van Carla sometimes pitching tent and camping [...]

By | January 31st, 2007|

December 2006 – box jellyfish

Associate Professor Dr. Jamie Seymour or the “Jelly Dude from Nemo land” showing Irukanji jellyfish swimming around the Kreisel tank in the James Cook University aquarium facility. Irukandji box jellyfish feeding on; catching fish (Carukia barnesi). The deadly Irukandji jellyfish is found in north Australian [...]

By | December 31st, 2006|

November 2006 – Western Australia

Split level coral reef shallows and snorkelling Stella with Kimberley Escape in the Rowley Shoals, Western Australia Colourful gorgonian fan and soft corals with diver in the Rowley Shoals Stella drift snorkelling in Clerke Reef channel of the Rowley Shoals November [...]

By | November 30th, 2006|

August 2006 – Remembering Ambrose

Remembering Daddy - Ambrose Chiu August came the emotional task for Stella to finish and launch the Chiu Family book, Remembering Ambrose - a commemorative memorial book of heartfelt stories from family and friends on her father Ambrose Chiu, 30 years after his passing. The quick two-week trip [...]

By | August 28th, 2006|

June 2006 Minke season

The LEGENDARY Undersea Explorer Undersea Explorer's minke girl Susan Sobtzick and Stella Undersea Explorer's Rosco, Debbie and guest Bennet pointing at minke direction and helping out with minke research in the Great Barrier Reef Finally home in June and just recovering [...]

By | June 30th, 2006|

March 2006 – Kimberleys

Kimberley Escape against the magnificent King George Falls backdrop Kim and Allan Wilson with a fresh caught barramundi!  End March to early April were 13 fascinating days on board a liveaboard, the Kimberley Escape. We experienced the spectacular Kimberley coast's stunning waterfalls, barramundi filled rivers and [...]

By | May 31st, 2006|

February 2006 – The New Australian

Yogi attended a dive show in Dusseldorf and just got back home in February in time to attend Stella's citizenship ceremony at the Cairns City Council.  Presided by Cairns City Mayor Kevin Byrne, this special occasion was co-celebrated by good friends John and Linda Rumney of the Undersea Explorer and [...]

By | February 28th, 2006|

Life in 2005

Barron Falls the day after a passing tropical cyclone It is incredible that the year is over again. We had the worst anticipation of a category 5 cyclone named Ingrid. Although used to typhoons from the Philippines, we were ill prepared for an inconceivable hit. Ingrid moved northwest [...]

By | December 31st, 2005|

Life in 2003-2004

June 2003. We emigrated from the Philippines to North Queensland, Australia. Now based near Cairns: the gateway to the Great Barrier Reef and the Daintree National Park (the world's oldest rainforest), we concentrate on Australian subjects as well as Asia and the Pacific Island region. Stella & Yogi's first years in Far [...]

By | December 31st, 2004|

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