Skip to content
Arian Mavriqi
A black stork standing in golden water with a small fish held in its open red bill.

The wild,waited for.

● Focus lockedPl. 12 — Black storkCiconia nigra
Scroll to zoom

Pl. 12 — The shallows, held still

Black stork, Ciconia nigra

A small fish caught mid-toss, the shallows turned to gold.

Open the plate →

(01) The practice

Kamenica, Kosovo — 42°35′N 21°35′E

Since 2012, Arian Mavriqi has left Kamenica at six in the morning to wait for animals that would rather not be seen: Four fluffy tawny owl chicks huddled together inside a hollow tree trunk, looking up. owls in hollow trees, A white stork sitting on a large nest built on a metal dome beside a crescent finial, under a stormy sky. storks on rooftops, A young red fox peering out from behind a tree trunk, ears up, looking at the camera. foxes at the edge of the light. This is the archive of that patience.

Bird species photographed
210+
Species recorded in Kosovo for the first time through his photographs
11
Camera traps keeping watch across Kosovo
15
His longest wait in a single spot
72h

Species in the archive include Pandion haliaetus, Ciconia nigra, Upupa epops, Vulpes vulpes, Asio otus, Merops apiaster, Alcedo atthis, Phoenicopterus roseus, Vipera ammodytes, Strix aluco, Cervus elaphus, Pelecanus crispus, Lanius collurio, Sciurus vulgaris.

Chapter I — 10 plates

Sky

Raptors, storks and pelicans

A gull soaring directly overhead with wings spread, rim-lit in white against a dark navy sky.

Chapter I — Pl. 05, Gull, Divjakë, Albania

Sky, raptors, storks and pelicans

Birds held at the top of a wingbeat. The hardest frames to keep, and the reason he saved for his first long lens: to follow the migrating birds no phone could catch.

Field log — 10 plates in flight

Held at the top of a wingbeat.

Follow the flight line sideways. Move closer to the flock and it scatters, the way a real one does.

Keep scrolling

An osprey flying toward the camera with a fish in its talons, wings fully spread against a clear blue sky.
Pl. 01OspreyPandion haliaetus
01
A black stork flying overhead with wings spread, its white belly and red legs visible against a blue sky.
Pl. 02Black storkCiconia nigra
02
A Dalmatian pelican gliding overhead, its long wings and pale body lit against a deep blue sky.
Pl. 03Dalmatian pelicanPelecanus crispus
03
A little egret in flight, sunlight glowing through its white wings against a deep blue sky.
Pl. 04Little egretEgretta garzetta
04
A gull soaring directly overhead with wings spread, rim-lit in white against a dark navy sky.
Pl. 05GullLarus sp.
05
Five greater flamingos flying in loose formation, pink and black wings against a pale blue sky.
Pl. 06Greater flamingosPhoenicopterus roseus
06
A black-winged stilt in flight with long pink legs trailing behind, black wings against a blue sky.
Pl. 07Black-winged stiltHimantopus himantopus
07
A northern lapwing calling in flight with its bill open, wings raised against a bright blue sky.
Pl. 08Northern lapwingVanellus vanellus
08
An osprey flying toward the camera carrying a fish, against a muted grey background.
Pl. 09OspreyPandion haliaetus
09
A peregrine falcon perched on a rusted concrete ledge, looking to the side.
Pl. 10Peregrine falconFalco peregrinus
10
End of chapter IEvery bird in flightOpen the sky archive
I — SkyPl. 01–10

Chapter II — 8 plates

Water

Lagoons, lakes and rivers

An aerial view of Radoniq Lake under heavy clouds, with rays of light falling on the mountains behind.

Chapter II — Pl. 15, Radoniq Lake, Gjakova, Kosovo

Water, lagoons, lakes and rivers

Lagoons on the Albanian coast, reservoirs and mountain rivers in Kosovo. Water is where the wild gathers, and where it is easiest to lose.

0105

Pl. 11

Flamingo colony

Phoenicopterus roseus

Open the plate
An aerial view of a large flock of flamingos wading across blue lagoon water.
An aerial view of a small hut with a blue roof on a reed island surrounded by dark water.
A little egret standing on a stony shore in front of red and green glasswort, with water behind.
A long exposure of a turquoise river flowing over rocks beneath an old stone arch bridge in a dark gorge.
A common kingfisher perched on a thin branch, its turquoise back and orange breast against a warm brown background.

Chapter III — 13 plates

Forest

Under cover

A red fox standing in long grass and looking straight at the camera.

Chapter III — Pl. 20, Red fox, Kamenica, Kosovo

Forest, under cover

Owls in birch and oak, foxes at the tree line, deer in deep snow. Fifteen camera traps keep watch across Kosovo when he cannot.

Field log — 13 plates under cover

Look long enough and the forest looks back.

Owls in birch and oak, foxes at the tree line, deer in deep snow. Fifteen camera traps keep watch across Kosovo when he cannot.

A long-eared owl perched on a birch branch among yellow and green autumn leaves.
Pl. 22Long-eared owl
A young red fox peering out from behind a tree trunk, ears up, looking at the camera.
Pl. 19Red fox
A red squirrel with tufted ears clinging to a lichen-covered tree trunk, lit by low sun.
Pl. 21Red squirrel
“You cannot do anythingwithout patience in thiskind of photography.”

Arian Mavriqi — Interview with Active Albania, 2021

A red deer stag with antlers standing in deep snow among bare trees, in sepia tones.
Pl. 27Red deer
Four fluffy tawny owl chicks huddled together inside a hollow tree trunk, looking up.
Pl. 23Tawny owl chicks
Several spider webs stretched across thin thorny branches, with a misty blue-grey background.
Pl. 30Webs in the mist
A common buzzard perched in a leafless tree during rain, with a green hillside behind.
Pl. 25Common buzzard
All 13 forest plates

(02) The hide

Most of the workis looking.

Sweep the binoculars across the frame and find what Arian found. Hold the lens over the animal for a moment to tag it.

Spotted0 / 3

A raptor is sitting out the rain somewhere in this tree.

Chapter IV — 16 plates

Field

Close to the ground

A hoopoe in green grass with its orange, black-tipped crest fully fanned.

Chapter IV — Pl. 33, Hoopoe

Field, close to the ground

Hedgerows, wires and field edges: the ordinary places where the hoopoe, his favourite subject, comes to feed.

Field log — 16 frames close to the ground

Read it likea contact sheet.

Hedgerows, wires and field edges: the ordinary places where the hoopoe, his favourite subject, comes to feed. Every frame from the field, the keepers circled in grease pencil. Bring the loupe over any frame to look closer.

Contact sheet — Field — 16 framesPl. 32–47
A hoopoe with its crest partly raised, perched on a rusted metal pipe against a soft green background.
32› 32A
A hoopoe in green grass with its orange, black-tipped crest fully fanned.
33› 33A
A grey partridge standing on a grassy mound in warm low sunlight, with a soft brown background.
34› 34A
A fluffy northern lapwing chick running across a grey road surface.
35› 35A
Two European bee-eaters landing on a mound of dry earth, wings open, against a green background.
36› 36A
Three European bee-eaters on a wire, one upright, one calling with its bill open, one preening.
37› 37A
Arian Mavriqi — Field
A European goldfinch with a red face perched on a bare branch against an olive background.
38› 38A
A male red-backed shrike with a grey head and black eye mask perched on thorny twigs.
39› 39A
A black-headed yellow wagtail perched on a dry thistle stem against a soft beige background.
40› 40A
A close-up portrait of a hooded crow’s head and grey shoulders against a bright yellow-green background.
41› 41A
Two European turtle doves perched on a vertical wire against a blue sky with clouds.
42› 42A
Arian Mavriqi — Field
A green lizard’s head emerging from dark rocks into a narrow beam of light.
43› 43A
A close-up of a nose-horned viper’s head resting on a log, its small horn visible, against a dark green background.
44› 44A
A nursery web spider climbing a green stem while carrying a large white egg sac.
45› 45A
A white stork sitting on a large nest built on a metal dome beside a crescent finial, under a stormy sky.
46› 46A
Two white storks on a large nest, one with wings spread, with pieces of plastic caught in the branches.
47› 47A
Arian Mavriqi — Field

the keepers

Every frame from the field

(03) The wait, in the darkroom

Hours in one spot72
A green lizard’s head emerging from dark rocks into a narrow beam of light.

Up to three days in one spot,

a fraction of a second to keep it.

Pl. 43 — Green lizard, Lacerta sp.

Twelve yearsfor one wolf.

That is how long, he says, he waited before he could photograph a wolf in the municipality of Kamenica. The method behind it is simple to describe and hard to live: camouflage, stillness, patience and, above all, knowing how an animal will move before it does.

(04) Field notes

Three storiesbehind the frames.

Two white storks on a large nest, one with wings spread, with pieces of plastic caught in the branches.
Pl. 47 — White storks, Ciconia ciconia

Note 01

A nest of plastic

Look closely at the nest and you find plastic, woven in with the branches. For Arian, documenting wildlife has always meant documenting what we leave behind: from a stork’s nest full of garbage to one of Kosovo’s most beautiful birds, perched on a dumped appliance in Kamenica.

“Those who cause problems for them are us.”

Katror, 2023 — translated from Albanian

Note 02

The osprey of Badovc

Asked for his favourite frame, he names an osprey over Badovc Lake, near Prishtina. A colleague, Fatos Lajçi, pointed out that the species had been missing from Kosovo’s official records. It is the kind of photograph that does more than please its maker. It becomes evidence.

An osprey flying toward the camera carrying a fish, against a muted grey background.
Pl. 09 — OspreyFrom the archive
A nursery web spider climbing a green stem while carrying a large white egg sac.
Pl. 45 — Pisaura mirabilis

Note 03

It started with a phone.

His first wildlife pictures were macro studies of flowers and insects, made on a Samsung Galaxy S4 that Albanians living abroad had given him. Birds in flight were impossible on a phone, so he saved for a camera, then for a longer lens to follow the migrating birds. When he began posting them online, many people in Kosovo learned for the first time that these species lived alongside them.

“You can even start with a phone.”His advice to beginners

A Dalmatian pelican gliding overhead, its long wings and pale body lit against a deep blue sky.

(05) Prints, licensing, assignments & talks

Some moments take years.A message takes a minute.

Start an enquiry
Browse the archive

Pl. 03 — Dalmatian pelican, Pelecanus crispus

Made with Modulify