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In Good Hands
Photograph by Mattias Klum
Zoologist Roland Kays of the New York State Museum gently removes Lotus from a trap in Panama's rain forest after giving her a sedative, his fingers sinking into her dense coat. "It's closer to velvet than to wool," he says. Kays suspects that the animal's fur is key to repelling water—it's covered with an oily substance called squalene that's also found in the pelts of beavers and otters. While the kinkajou is tranquilized, Kays affixes a radio collar, inspects for injuries, checks teeth, and draws blood for genetic analysis. It's all part of his ten-year-long study, the most extensive ever done of kinkajous in the wild. He then returns Lotus to the cage for a couple of hours until the drug wears off and she can safely return to the trees.
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Camera: Nikon F5
Film Type: Ektachrome 200
Lens: Nikon AFS 28mm f/1.4
Speed and F-Stop: 1/30 @ f/8
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Weather Conditions: Unrecorded
Time of Day: Early morning
Lighting Techniques: Flash
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