Really there are some species or taxa I want to see SO badly that one day I want to travel JUST for them.
Some of mine:
A (new genus) I know from images on some websites from Guadalcanal.
Philippine Terentiini.
Tengicephalus tengu
(some more, I forgot.)
Kakapo! There are only 235 adults (but they had a great breeding season this year!)
Sadly (for me, not the birds), they all live on remote islands which are fiercely protected from the invasion of mammals.
I once looked into volunteering with the program. Volunteers have to pay their own way (including a several thousand dollar fee to cover their costs on the island), have to be comfortable carrying heavy tracking equipment over barely-passable terrain, carry their own tents into locations that could be many kilometers from any other humans, and aren’t guaranteed to actually see a kakapo.
The only one I might be able to see one day is Sirocco, their spokesbird. He’s the only kakapo that can fly (he gets his own seat on the plane), and he probably doesn’t count as wild.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3fjaHZQJ7dk&t=241s found a video
I first read about them in Douglas Adams’ book “Last Chance to See”. It’s an amazing and hilarious book about endangered species.
Here’s a funnier video of Sirocco.
I was thinking of that video, and wondering if it was the same bird!
Maratus volans, or Maratus tasmanicus! I love peacock spiders and their beautiful colors. I adore jumping spiders, and someday I hope I can be lucky enough to see one of these guys. I first found out about them when I was only a toddler, and I’ve always thought they were beautiful. It’s impressive how nature works, and how they’ve evolved to have such stunning beauty.
Bombus Excellens
While it isn’t particularly extraordinary, I’d love to see some Steelblue Ladybeetles again. I used to find them when I was a kid, but I haven’t really seen any ladybugs too recently.
I’d also love to see some nudibranchs one day, I just think they’re so cute, and I love how small they can be.
Telephone-pole beetles (Micromalthus debilis), notopterans, or arrow-worms (Chaetognatha).
Those three are my favourite animals of all, mostly because of how strange they are.