Getting Close and Animals in Action

After reading the section Getting Close, I was reminded of a few tips and enlightened of a few more. Here are the highlights:
To begin, you should not head out and shoot animals before you know about their them. Get on the internet and look them up, see what your subject is all about. See what season they are out so you don't waste hundreds on a plane ticket b/c you didn't get them in the right season for the animal that you are shooting.
Next bring the proper equipment for the job. A lens that is 300mm or more is better than not having any telephoto power. Animals will not be in their natural state if you are two feet away from them and cramping their style so to speak. Though animals can smell your sent and pick up on your actions it is sometimes beneficial to have a blind, be it a portable blind or your car. In some cases strobes may be beneficial for shooting wildlife. It is good to be prepared for all situations.
After you have the proper equipment and have educated yourself it is time to start shooting. When approaching wildlife there are a few guidelines: stay low, talk low and soft to let the animal know you are not a threat, it is good to approach from an angle without making eye contact (when you make eye contact it sets most animals into defense mode b/c you come off as a predator), and lastly move slowly with subtle movements. If your subject seems uneasy sit down and wait. Patience is a virtue when working with animals that are not used to you. It is not likely that you will go in shoot the shot and still have the entire day ahead of you. The day will be spent waiting and convincing the animals that you aren't going to hurt them.
To get even closer some photographers bribe their subjects with peanut butter or other natural food products, but personally I think it is cheating and taking the adventure out of it. In addition bribing the animals takes away from the fun of becoming one with nature and the subjects.
The last thing to remember is to never corner in your subject. Leave them an out. If you don't you are going to increase your chances of getting attacked a thousand fold.

The next section was Animals in Action:
There are many tips in this section that are very similar to the previous section. First you must do your homework again. You must know about the subject you are shooting. What are their habits, when do the come out? Are they nocturnal? How do they land on a perch? How do they react to threats (if you accidentally threaten them)?
After you have done this you need to change your sleep patterns. To get the best shots of animals in action one must be set up in their position before sunrise. During sunrise and sunset are the best times to shoot animals in action and coincidentally the best time to shoot photos in general.
While you are setting up, you must choose the height of your tripod. Since the key to wildlife photography is shooting the eye in sharp focus it is common to set up your pod to be eye level with your subject. And while setting up your camera to shoot put it on burst mode. Make sure you have enough memory to take many shots and not have to go through and delete. You can sort later, if you sort on site you will miss opportunities.
Next you need to work on your focusing technique. Auto focus takes time to work, if you know a subjects behavior you can focus on a perch or to the destination and be ready when they move. Again patience is a virtue.
In some cases, for example humming birds, you can build a set for your shot. Get the subject used to coming to your set. Then you will be able to set up strobes and get the best shot possible.