The Southeastern United States harbors more species of freshwater turtles, fish, and salamanders than most other places on the planet, according to National Geographic Explorer, and conservation photographer and filmmaker Mac Stone. Unfortunately, the area is rarely considered the biodiversity hotspot it is, which is what inspired Stone to spend the last two decades documenting what he dubs the “American Amazon.” His photos have been collected into a book, “American Amazon: Ancient Forests and Living Waters of the Wild Southeastern United States” (teNeues), a companion piece to an upcoming IMAX film and PBS series.

Says Stone of his photo of the mangroves and seagrass in Florida Bay inside Everglades National Park (above): “Mangroves provide structure for myriad animals, and seagrass is one of the building blocks of the fishery that has made the Everglades so famous because it fuels the prey base for thousands of wading birds, crocodiles, dolphins, and sharks. Snorkeling in these habitats is otherworldly because you encounter so much diversity of species.

“I hired a boat captain for a week to explore the underwater realms of the Everglades. The mangrove islands are where I found the most life. Sharks would cruise by and, if I wasn’t careful, disturbing the sediment would send up plumes of nematocysts, stinging cells of small jellyfish. When the sun got high enough, rays would pierce through the floating mats of seagrass and complement the scene. I was using a mirrorless camera in an underwater housing with two strobes to balance the light.” 

Amanda Arnold is a senior editor.