James H. Mahoney, Jr., known to all as Jim, died suddenly on Saturday, 20 October 2018 at his home in Jupiter, Florida. Born 23 May 1958 in Radford, Virginia, Jim was the son of the late James H. Mahoney, Sr., and Kae Riggs Mahoney of Wilmington, North Carolina. Jim grew up with his family in many locations, as his father was a construction engineer for Hercules, Inc. In addition to Virginia, the family also lived in Missouri, Canada, New Jersey, and Delaware and finally settled in the Carolinas. After finishing his formal education, Jim moved to West Palm Beach in 1983 where he started a long, successful career in the financial services industry. His skills as an advisor were in constant demand from both clients and many financial firms. Jim was at the pinnacle of his career while working as a Managing Director and Portfolio Manager with UBS in Palm Beach Gardens. His time off was filled with trips to countless exotic locations, including multiple trips to Africa, Asia, and Antarctica in search of the perfect shot of lions, bears, penguins, and most recently, great white sharks. Many of his shots were featured in national publications of The National Wildlife Federation, the National Geographic Magazine, and the international coastal marine science Journal of Coastal Research (JCR).
As friend and neighbor of Charlie Finkl, Jim was a special friend of the JCR, not only for his enthusiasm of what the journal published but also for his contributions of outstanding wildlife photography in coastal settings. Several of his memorable photographs were reproduced on the covers of JCR issues that provided stunning views and evidence of his artistic and technical dexterity in their acquisition. I always enjoyed listening to Jim's accounts of the details that were required to get the perfect shot that he was after. He knew what he wanted and was far braver than me in his efforts to photograph bears in Alaska and great white sharks in tropical waters. His most recent trip, just a few weeks before his death, was to Guadalupe Island (Isla Guadalupe), a volcanic island located about 240 km off the west coast of the State of Baja California, Baja California Peninsula, Mexico, to collect underwater photographs of great white sharks feeding on chum and tuna. His penultimate trip was to Iceland, where he demonstrated amazing cliff climbing abilities to photograph puffins. Jim will be sadly missed, not only on account of his technical expertise in collecting stunning photographs of life in the coastal zone, but for his enthusiasm in life and exuberance for everything positive. We include here, in memory of his talents, an example of his work in this photograph of an Icelandic puffin. Jim lives on in our hearts through his photographs.
