Joel Sartore Joel Sartore

National Geographic Photographer and Speaker

Keyword: Hold

Picture of a vulnerable adult female white bellied pangolin (Phataginus tricuspis) with her baby, part of Pangolin Conservation, a non-profit organization in Saint Augustine, Florida.

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A vulnerable baby white-bellied pangolin (Phataginus tricuspis) clings to her mother’s back at a facility in Florida. At just 70 days old, this captive-born baby was a first in captivity! This vulnerable species, like many other pangolin species, is illegally taken from the wild. Unfortunately, it is falsely believed that the protective keratin scales have curative properties.

A biologist holds up an endangered (IUCN) relict leopard frog (Lithobates onca) near the Hoover Dam. This animal's habitat has been reduced over the years substantially. Though it is a candidate species for federal protection, federal and state agencies are working to ensure that it doesn't need to be listed.

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A biologist holds up an endangered (IUCN) relict leopard frog (Lithobates onca) near the Hoover Dam. This animal’s habitat has been reduced over the years substantially. Though it is a candidate species for federal protection, federal and state agencies are working to ensure that it doesn’t need to be listed.

Photo: A Fulniô man prepares for a ceremony at a private home in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

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A Fulniô man prepares for a ceremony at a private home in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

A woman carrying a white pelican (Pelecanus erythrorhynchos) through her garage.

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A woman carrying a white pelican (Pelecanus erythrorhynchos) through her garage.

Photo: Two biologists catch snakes in the Ozarks of southern Missouri.

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Two biologists catch snakes in the Ozarks of southern Missouri.

Photo: Two biologists catch snakes in the Ozarks of southern Missouri.

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Two biologists catch snakes in the Ozarks of southern Missouri.

Photo: At Megahertz quality-control lab a technician scans for defects in electronic equipment.

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At Megahertz quality-control lab a technician scans for defects in electronic equipment. The company is one of 1,700 high-tech firms centered on the Wasatch Front in Utah.

Photo: Quinceanera party at Our Lady of Guadalupe church, Salt Lake City, Utah.

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Quinceanera party at Our Lady of Guadalupe church, Salt Lake City, Utah. The celebration is a traditional rite of passage for 15-year-old Hispanic girls.

Photo: A young man carries his girlfriend away after graduating from high school in Salmon, Idaho.

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A young man carries his girlfriend away after graduating from high school in Salmon, Idaho.

Photo: Fragmentation of fragile habitat has added to the woes of the once-hardy desert tortoise (Gopherus agassizi). They are collected from soon-to-be-developed lands and sent to a center where they are adopted, euthanized (if ill), or used for research.

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Fragmentation of fragile habitat has added to the woes of the once-hardy desert tortoise (Gopherus agassizi). They are collected from soon-to-be-developed lands and sent to a center where they are adopted, euthanized (if ill), or used for research.

Photo: This tiny snail darter (Percina tanasi) stalled the construction of Tellico dam on the Little Tennessee river.

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This tiny snail darter (Percina tanasi) stalled the construction of Tellico dam on the Little Tennessee river. Though the dam was built, the Endangered Species Act was henceforth seen in many quarters as an enemy of progress.

Photo: A Marine soldier cradles a little boy in a Florida city relief camp after hurricane Andrew.

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A Marine soldier cradles a little boy in a Florida city relief camp after hurricane Andrew.

Photo: The snake pit at the 45th annual Mangum Rattlesnake Derby in Mangum, Oklahoma.

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The snake pit at the 45th annual Mangum Rattlesnake Derby in Mangum, Oklahoma. This rattlesnake festival takes in between 1,500 and 2,000 pounds of western diamondback rattlesnakes (Crotalus atrox) each year. Some 30,000 people come here on the last weekend of April to see such things as a photo booth in which people can pose with a live rattler that’s been defanged and had its mouth stitched shut, a safari bus tour in which folks can pick up a live rattlesnake, a cafe serving rattlesnake meat, and a butcher shop.

Photo: The snake pit at the 45th annual Mangum Rattlesnake Derby in Mangum, Oklahoma.

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The snake pit at the 45th annual Mangum Rattlesnake Derby in Mangum, Oklahoma. This rattlesnake festival takes in between 1,500 and 2,000 pounds of western diamondback rattlesnakes (Crotalus atrox) each year. Some 30,000 people come here on the last weekend of April to see such things as a photo booth in which people can pose with a live rattler that’s been defanged and had its mouth stitched shut, a safari bus tour in which folks can pick up a live rattlesnake, a cafe serving rattlesnake meat, and a butcher shop.

Photo: The snake pit at the 45th annual Mangum Rattlesnake Derby in Mangum, Oklahoma.

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The snake pit at the 45th annual Mangum Rattlesnake Derby in Mangum, Oklahoma. This rattlesnake festival takes in between 1,500 and 2,000 pounds of western diamondback rattlesnakes (Crotalus atrox) each year. Some 30,000 people come here on the last weekend of April to see such things as a photo booth in which people can pose with a live rattler that’s been defanged and had its mouth stitched shut, a safari bus tour in which folks can pick up a live rattlesnake, a cafe serving rattlesnake meat, and a butcher shop.

Herpetologists look for central newts (Notophthalmus viridescens louisianensis) at a vernal pool in Bennett Springs State Park near Lebanon, Missouri.

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Herpetologists look for central newts (Notophthalmus viridescens louisianensis) at a vernal pool in Bennett Springs State Park near Lebanon, Missouri.

Photo: An Eastern ringnecked snake (Diadophis punctatus edwardsii) found on the Snake Road, near Ware, Illinois.

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An Eastern ringnecked snake (Diadophis punctatus edwardsii) found on the Snake Road, near Ware, Illinois. This three mile stretch of road is closed to traffic when the snakes are migrating from limestone cliffs to the swamp nearby.

Photo: The snake pit at the 45th annual Mangum Rattlesnake Derby in Mangum, Oklahoma.

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The snake pit at the 45th annual Mangum Rattlesnake Derby in Mangum, Oklahoma. This rattlesnake festival takes in between 1,500 and 2,000 pounds of western diamondback rattlesnakes (Crotalus atrox) each year. Some 30,000 people come here on the last weekend of April to see such things as a photo booth in which people can pose with a live rattler that’s been defanged and had its mouth stitched shut, a safari bus tour in which folks can pick up a live rattlesnake, a cafe serving rattlesnake meat, and a butcher shop.

A bull trout (Salvelinus confluentus) in Bighorn Creek which is part of the Kootenay river system in British Columbia, Canada. (IUCN: Vulnerable; US: Federally threatened)

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A bull trout (Salvelinus confluentus) in Bighorn Creek which is part of the Kootenay river system in British Columbia, Canada. (IUCN: Vulnerable; US: Federally threatened)

Biologists collect samples from a vulnerable (IUCN) and federally threatened bull trout (Salvelinus confluentus) Clark Fork River, Idaho.

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Biologists collect samples from a vulnerable (IUCN) and federally threatened bull trout (Salvelinus confluentus) Clark Fork River, Idaho.

Photo: A biologist holds a bat that was killed by a wind turbine on a wind farm in southwest Pennsylvania.

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A biologist holds a bat that was killed by a wind turbine on a wind farm in southwest Pennsylvania. Biologists calculate that an average of 32 bats and nearly 5 birds are killed per turbine per season here, having a deadly effect on migrating wildlife.

Biologists tag a male bobolink (Dolichonyx oryzivorus) in Nebraska. They will put tiny geolocators, which track sun intensity as well as sunrise and sunset, the birds' backs. When the birds are recaptured (months from now) and the data is downloaded and used to calculate the birds' migratory route. The species winters in South America, but little is known of its specific route.

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Biologists tag a male bobolink (Dolichonyx oryzivorus) in Nebraska. They will put tiny geolocators, which track sun intensity as well as sunrise and sunset, the birds’ backs. When the birds are recaptured (months from now) and the data is downloaded and used to calculate the birds’ migratory route. The species winters in South America, but little is known of its specific route.

A male bobolink (Dolichonyx oryzivorus) near Wood River, Nebraska.

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A male bobolink (Dolichonyx oryzivorus) near Wood River, Nebraska.

A biologist holds a male bobolink (Dolichonyx oryzivorus), captured for a study near Wood River, Nebraska. They will put tiny geolocators, which track sun intensity as well as sunrise and sunset, the birds' backs. When the birds are recaptured (months from now) and the data is downloaded and used to calculate the birds' migratory route. The species winters in South America, but little is known of its specific route.

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A biologist holds a male bobolink (Dolichonyx oryzivorus), captured for a study near Wood River, Nebraska. They will put tiny geolocators, which track sun intensity as well as sunrise and sunset, the birds’ backs. When the birds are recaptured (months from now) and the data is downloaded and used to calculate the birds’ migratory route. The species winters in South America, but little is known of its specific route.

Biologists capture a male bobolink (Dolichonyx oryzivorus) near Wood River, Nebraska. They will put tiny geolocators, which track sun intensity as well as sunrise and sunset, the birds' backs. When the birds are recaptured (months from now) and the data is downloaded and used to calculate the birds' migratory route. The species winters in South America, but little is known of its specific route.

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Biologists capture a male bobolink (Dolichonyx oryzivorus) near Wood River, Nebraska. They will put tiny geolocators, which track sun intensity as well as sunrise and sunset, the birds’ backs. When the birds are recaptured (months from now) and the data is downloaded and used to calculate the birds’ migratory route. The species winters in South America, but little is known of its specific route.

Biologists capture a male bobolink (Dolichonyx oryzivorus) near Wood River, Nebraska. They will put tiny geolocators, which track sun intensity as well as sunrise and sunset, the birds' backs. When the birds are recaptured (months from now) and the data is downloaded and used to calculate the birds' migratory route. The species winters in South America, but little is known of its specific route.

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Biologists capture a male bobolink (Dolichonyx oryzivorus) near Wood River, Nebraska. They will put tiny geolocators, which track sun intensity as well as sunrise and sunset, the birds’ backs. When the birds are recaptured (months from now) and the data is downloaded and used to calculate the birds’ migratory route. The species winters in South America, but little is known of its specific route.

An endangered (IUCN and US) golden-cheeked warbler (Dendroica chrysoparia) caught in a mist net by scientists from the Nature Conservancy. Scientists net and band golden-cheeked warblers at Fort Hood in Killeen, Texas.

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An endangered (IUCN and US) golden-cheeked warbler (Dendroica chrysoparia) caught in a mist net by scientists from the Nature Conservancy. Scientists net and band golden-cheeked warblers at Fort Hood in Killeen, Texas.

Photo: A sea turtle that was rescued from the deep water horizon oil spill being rehabilitated at the Audubon Nature Institute in New Orleans, Louisiana.

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A sea turtle that was rescued from the deep water horizon oil spill being rehabilitated at the Audubon Nature Institute in New Orleans, Louisiana.

Photo: A sea turtle that was rescued from the deep water horizon oil spill being rehabilitated at the Audubon Nature Institute in New Orleans, Louisiana.

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A sea turtle that was rescued from the deep water horizon oil spill being rehabilitated at the Audubon Nature Institute in New Orleans, Louisiana.

Photo: Sea turtles that were rescued from the deep water horizon oil spill being rehabilitated at the Audubon Nature Institute in New Orleans, Louisiana.

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Sea turtles that were rescued from the deep water horizon oil spill being rehabilitated at the Audubon Nature Institute in New Orleans, Louisiana.

A crew working to clean a brown pelican (Pelecanus occidentalis) at the rehab center in Fort Jackson, Louisiana. This is where the majority of the oiled birds were brought in from the deep water horizon oil spill.

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A crew working to clean a brown pelican (Pelecanus occidentalis) at the rehab center in Fort Jackson, Louisiana. This is where the majority of the oiled birds were brought in from the deep water horizon oil spill.

A crew working to clean a brown pelican (Pelecanus occidentalis) at the rehab center in Fort Jackson, Louisiana. This is where the majority of the oiled birds were brought in from the deep water horizon oil spill.

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A crew working to clean a brown pelican (Pelecanus occidentalis) at the rehab center in Fort Jackson, Louisiana. This is where the majority of the oiled birds were brought in from the deep water horizon oil spill.

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