European Wildlife - Photo Gallery - National Geographic Magazine

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Europe's Wild Side

A dream team of European photographers captures the continent’s wildlife and landscapes.

/2010/05/wild-wonders/img/01-brown-bears-714.jpg /2010/05/wild-wonders/img/europe-60-01.jpg Wild Wonders of Europe]]> Kuhmo, Finland Ursus arctos Standing his ground, a Eurasian brown bear play-fights with his mother in remote woodlands along Finland's border with Russia. Across Europe, big bruins and other wildlife are making a comeback.]]> http://pictopia.com/perl/ptp/natgeo?photo_name=1308820 /2010/05/wild-wonders/img/02-mount-blanc-714.jpg /2010/05/wild-wonders/img/europe-60-02.jpg Wild Wonders of Europe]]> Mont Blanc, France Capra ibex Dwarfed by Mont Blanc and a glacial lake, an alpine ibex (left) pauses on its journey back from the brink. Down to fewer than a hundred animals in the 1800s, ibex now number 40,000, thanks to aggressive reintroduction.]]> http://pictopia.com/perl/ptp/natgeo?photo_name=1308810 /2010/05/wild-wonders/img/03-great-gray-owl-714.jpg /2010/05/wild-wonders/img/europe-60-03.jpg Wild Wonders of Europe]]> Oulu, Finland Strix nebulosa Long on charisma, short on habitat, the great gray owl was once so feared as an evil omen that it was shot on sight. Now protected, it is reclaiming lost territory and thriving on voles, mice, and other small mammals.]]> http://pictopia.com/perl/ptp/natgeo?photo_name=1308819 /2010/05/wild-wonders/img/04-loggerhead-714.jpg /2010/05/wild-wonders/img/europe-60-04.jpg Wild Wonders of Europe]]> Azores, Portugal Caretta caretta; Naucrates ductor Trailed by pilotfish, a young loggerhead cruises Atlantic waters around the Azores, where all sea turtles are protected by the EU. Juveniles typically reside within 15 feet of the surface, where waters are warm.]]> http://pictopia.com/perl/ptp/natgeo?photo_name=1308814 /2010/05/wild-wonders/img/05-northern-gannet-714.jpg /2010/05/wild-wonders/img/europe-60-05.jpg Wild Wonders of Europe]]> Saltee Islands, Ireland Morus bassanus The northern gannet spends most of its life at sea, plunging into the water for prey. But during the summer breeding season, the migratory birds pause to colonize rocky outcrops.]]> http://pictopia.com/perl/ptp/natgeo?photo_name=1308807 /2010/05/wild-wonders/img/06-monk-seal-714.jpg /2010/05/wild-wonders/img/europe-60-06.jpg Wild Wonders of Europe]]> Madeira Islands, Portugal Monachus monachus Once common in the Mediterranean, the monk seal is now the world's most endangered seal species. In the protected waters of the Madeira Islands, its population has increased from six to 35 individuals since the late 1980s.]]> http://pictopia.com/perl/ptp/natgeo?photo_name=1308815 /2010/05/wild-wonders/img/07-macaques-714.jpg /2010/05/wild-wonders/img/europe-60-07.jpg Wild Wonders of Europe]]> Gibraltar, United Kingdom Macaca sylvanus Transplants from North Africa, Barbary macaques have colonized the Rock of Gibraltar for hundreds, perhaps thousands, of years. Besides humans, macaques are the only European primates.]]> http://pictopia.com/perl/ptp/natgeo?photo_name=1308817 /2010/05/wild-wonders/img/08-red-deer-714.jpg /2010/05/wild-wonders/img/europe-60-08.jpg Wild Wonders of Europe]]> Oostvaardersplassen, Netherlands Cervus elaphus Herds of red deer, abundant in primeval Europe, range free at Oostvaardersplassen, a 14,000-acre preserve where Dutch ecologists nurture a mixed landscape of forest and heavily grazed grasslands.]]> http://pictopia.com/perl/ptp/natgeo?photo_name=1308813 /2010/05/wild-wonders/img/09-eagle-chicks-714.jpg /2010/05/wild-wonders/img/europe-60-09.jpg Wild Wonders of Europe]]> Kalmykiya, Russia Aquila nipalensis Stretching stubby wings, steppe eagle chicks share a nest at Cherniye Zemliye reserve. Ranging from southern Russia to Mongolia, these birds are born opportunists, feeding on carrion, small mammals, and other birds.]]> http://pictopia.com/perl/ptp/natgeo?photo_name=1308811 /2010/05/wild-wonders/img/10-kemeri-woodlands-714.jpg /2010/05/wild-wonders/img/europe-60-10.jpg Wild Wonders of Europe]]> Kemeri, Latvia Left behind when the Baltic receded millennia ago, the bogs, fens, and woodlands of Kemeri National Park are part of the European Union's Natura 2000 network, which protects 27,000 sites.]]> http://pictopia.com/perl/ptp/natgeo?photo_name=1308808 /2010/05/wild-wonders/img/11-red-squirrel-714.jpg /2010/05/wild-wonders/img/europe-60-11.jpg Wild Wonders of Europe]]> Inverness, United Kingdom Sciurus vulgaris Losing ground and numbers, Europe's native red squirrel is poorly matched against Sciurus carolinensis, an invader from North America that muscles in on food supplies and carries a virus lethal to reds.]]> http://pictopia.com/perl/ptp/natgeo?photo_name=1308816 /2010/05/wild-wonders/img/12-male-grey-seals-714.jpg /2010/05/wild-wonders/img/europe-60-12.jpg Wild Wonders of Europe]]> Donna Nook, United Kingdom Halichoerus grypus Kicking up sand, male gray seals fight over females at Donna Nook on the English coast, where a Royal Air Force bombing range doubles as a nature preserve, home to a breeding population of 2,000 seals.]]> http://pictopia.com/perl/ptp/natgeo?photo_name=1308812 /2010/05/wild-wonders/img/13-european-bison-714.jpg /2010/05/wild-wonders/img/europe-60-13.jpg Wild Wonders of Europe]]> Białowieża, Poland Bison bonasus In Europe's wild east, conservationists reintroduced the iconic European bison to Poland's Białowieża Forest in 1952, bringing back an animal that had once inhabited the continent's woodlands.]]> http://pictopia.com/perl/ptp/natgeo?photo_name=1308818 /2010/05/wild-wonders/img/14-chamois-714.jpg /2010/05/wild-wonders/img/europe-60-14.jpg Wild Wonders of Europe]]> Gran Paradiso, Italy Rupicapra rupicapra Cousin to both antelope and mountain goat, a chamois cruises a snowfield in the Italian Alps. As Europeans abandon farming for other livelihoods and the countryside for cities, wildlife is reclaiming lost territory.]]> http://pictopia.com/perl/ptp/natgeo?photo_name=1308809 /2010/05/wild-wonders/img/15-barrika-fog-714.jpg /2010/05/wild-wonders/img/europe-60-15.jpg Wild Wonders of Europe]]> http://pictopia.com/perl/ptp/natgeo?photo_name=1308850 /2010/05/wild-wonders/img/16-black-stork-714.jpg /2010/05/wild-wonders/img/europe-60-16.jpg Wild Wonders of Europe]]> http://pictopia.com/perl/ptp/natgeo?photo_name=1308837 /2010/05/wild-wonders/img/17-alpine-ibex-714.jpg /2010/05/wild-wonders/img/europe-60-17.jpg Wild Wonders of Europe]]> http://pictopia.com/perl/ptp/natgeo?photo_name=1308839 /2010/05/wild-wonders/img/18-european-wildcat-714.jpg /2010/05/wild-wonders/img/europe-60-18.jpg Wild Wonders of Europe]]> http://pictopia.com/perl/ptp/natgeo?photo_name=1308840 /2010/05/wild-wonders/img/19-riffel-lake-714.jpg /2010/05/wild-wonders/img/europe-60-19.jpg Wild Wonders of Europe]]> http://pictopia.com/perl/ptp/natgeo?photo_name=1308849 /2010/05/wild-wonders/img/20-griffon-vulture-714.jpg /2010/05/wild-wonders/img/europe-60-20.jpg Wild Wonders of Europe]]> http://pictopia.com/perl/ptp/natgeo?photo_name=1308842 /2010/05/wild-wonders/img/21-mount-etna-714.jpg /2010/05/wild-wonders/img/europe-60-21.jpg Wild Wonders of Europe]]> http://pictopia.com/perl/ptp/natgeo?photo_name=1308843 /2010/05/wild-wonders/img/22-arctic-fox-714.jpg /2010/05/wild-wonders/img/europe-60-22.jpg Wild Wonders of Europe]]> http://pictopia.com/perl/ptp/natgeo?photo_name=1308844 /2010/05/wild-wonders/img/23-riisitunturi-park-714.jpg /2010/05/wild-wonders/img/europe-60-23.jpg Wild Wonders of Europe]]> http://pictopia.com/perl/ptp/natgeo?photo_name=1308846 /2010/05/wild-wonders/img/24-finland-snow-714.jpg /2010/05/wild-wonders/img/europe-60-24.jpg Wild Wonders of Europe]]> http://pictopia.com/perl/ptp/natgeo?photo_name=1308844 /2010/05/wild-wonders/img/25-flamingos-714.jpg /2010/05/wild-wonders/img/europe-60-25.jpg Wild Wonders of Europe]]> http://pictopia.com/perl/ptp/natgeo?photo_name=1308848 /2010/05/wild-wonders/img/26-camargue-horse-714.jpg /2010/05/wild-wonders/img/europe-60-26.jpg Wild Wonders of Europe]]> http://pictopia.com/perl/ptp/natgeo?photo_name=1308851