Photo credit: globalnews.ca
A woman from Sunshine Coast, inspired by a Global News segment about wildlife photography, took it upon herself to document local fauna, achieving remarkable success.
Mary Beth Pongrac, an avid hiker, has always enjoyed the thrill of spotting wildlife during her excursions. “I’ve always enjoyed hiking and tracking and looking for wildlife while I’m out hiking,” she shared. However, she acknowledged the challenges of getting lucky with such encounters: “It’s hard. You have to go quietly and you have to be at the right time at the right place.”
Her journey into wildlife photography began after watching a Global Calgary story about a couple who strategically placed trail cameras around their property, revealing impressive footage of local creatures. Intrigued by their results, Pongrac decided to embark on a similar venture.
At 65, she set up her first motion- and heat-activated camera along a nearby trail, which quickly yielded astonishing images. The results were beyond her expectations.
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Pongrac’s camera work has captured the presence of cougars, bears, and bobcats, leading her to expand her project. She now manages 11 trail cameras scattered throughout the Sunshine Coast. This endeavor has provided her with extraordinary footage, including scenes of elk, a mother bear with her cubs, a spotted skunk, and even a rare glimpse of a Western Screech Owl.
One of her most cherished captures involved an unexpected close-up of a cougar. “What are the chances, in the middle of nowhere, that the cougar stopped, centred, in front of my camera, lying down for a bit?” she remarked, expressing her delight at the moment.
Pongrac takes great care when choosing camera placements, targeting areas where she has found wildlife tracks. To protect the animals, she chooses not to disclose the specific locations of her cameras. “People who hike in that area would be amazed to know how much wildlife uses the same trails,” she explained.
She emphasized that her findings challenge the common misconceptions about wildlife, stating, “It shows the animals aren’t out there to get us. They’re not. It’s quite phenomenal.”
Source
globalnews.ca