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Photo Contest.
A hardy kangaroo, a hungry leopard seal and a rare white bear: The poignant winning images in natural world photo contest that showcase Earth's mesmerising biodiversity
A rare white bear, a curious sea lion and preening ravens. They are just some of the stars of poignant winning images in this year's BigPicture Natural World Photography Competition , hosted by the California Academy of Sciences. Entrants to this year's contest were asked to submit images that showcased the Earth's biodiversity and the 'mounting threats to the natural world'
This jaw-dropping shot was declared the winner of the Landscapes, Waterscapes, and Flora category. It was taken by Fran Rubia, a Spanish electrician who has studied photography through the Centro Andaluz de la Fotografía. The image was snapped via drone at the Fjallabak Nature Reserve in Iceland. bioGraphic said: 'What looks at first glance to be lava flowing down the sides of these Icelandic volcanoes is, in fact, iron oxide deposited during past eruptions. Unlike Geldingadalir, a volcano just 20 minutes away from Reykjavík that has been actively erupting since March 19, 2021, the last eruption here in FjallabakNature Reserve took place in 1480'
This dramatic image is one of a series of six that won the Photo Story category. It was taken by Canadian photojournalist Peter Mather in Yukon Territory, Canada. bioGraphic explained: 'In Canada’s Yukon Territory, grizzly bears delay their hibernation to catch the last salmon runs of the season. As temperatures drop below -20C, the grizzlies’ water-soaked fur freezes into a chandelier of icicles that jingle with each step. Local indigenous peoples tell stories of arrows unable to penetrate the icy armour of the bears. Unfortunately, Yukon’s ice bears, as they are known, are facing new threats for which their armour is no match. Climate change and other human activities are leading to sparse salmon runs, reduced river flows, and shorter winters, all of which put the ice bears’ way of life in jeopardy
Shane Kalyn, a self-taught photographer who works as a fisheries technician with the Canadian government, is the man behind this incredible image. It came out on top in the Winged Life category. bioGraphic revealed: 'Common ravens usually mate for life, and this intimate, open-beaked moment captured by Shane Kalyn is likely an example of allopreening - reciprocal grooming that serves both to solidify social bonds and to keep plumage clean'
This stunning photo won the Art of Nature category. It was taken in Toplepada, India, by Sarang Naik, a nature and wildlife photographer who specialises in creative and abstract photography. It shows a mushroom releasing spores during the monsoon season. bioGraphic said: 'In due time, this magical pixie dust will create more mushrooms - and not only in the way that you might think. While a small number of these mighty motes will land on soil suitable enough for producing the branching underground filaments that beget new mushrooms, many more spores will find their way into the atmosphere to serve an equally important purpose. Each year, millions of tons of fungal spores are aerosolised into the atmosphere where they provide the solid core for the condensation of water into clouds and rainfall, breathing life into forests around the world and sustaining future generations of fungi'
Spanish snapper Angel Fitor was a finalist in the Art of Nature category with this incredible image he took in the Mar Menor lagoon in southern Spain. bioGraphic said: 'This beautiful and mesmerising view may very well be the last thing that many hapless ocean-going creatures see before falling victim to the barrel jellyfish. Also known as the dustbin-lid jellyfish for the size and shape of its bell when washed up on UK shorelines, the species is one of the largest jellies in the world, reaching 90 centimetres (35 inches) or more in diameter'
Dallas photographer Nick Kanakis is behind this striking image, which was chosen as a finalist in the Landscapes, Waterscapes, and Flora category. It shows a Venus flytrap capturing a hoverfly. bioGraphic explained: 'In its native long leaf pine forests of the Carolinas, carnivory is a means of survival. There, the species makes its living much like other plants, harnessing energy from sunlight to make its food. In contrast to many other plants, however, the Venus flytrap must also catch vital nutrients that are missing from the soils in which it grows. With hinged leaves that snap shut at the slightest touch of hair-like triggers on their surfaces, it’s highly specialised to do just that, as this hoverfly going about its business in a North Carolina forest last November learned the hard way'
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/travel/travel_news/article-9651359/The-winning-images-BigPicture-Natural-World-Photography-Competition-2021.html
A rare white bear, a curious sea lion and preening ravens. They are just some of the stars of poignant winning images in this year's BigPicture Natural World Photography Competition , hosted by the California Academy of Sciences. Entrants to this year's contest were asked to submit images that showcased the Earth's biodiversity and the 'mounting threats to the natural world'
This jaw-dropping shot was declared the winner of the Landscapes, Waterscapes, and Flora category. It was taken by Fran Rubia, a Spanish electrician who has studied photography through the Centro Andaluz de la Fotografía. The image was snapped via drone at the Fjallabak Nature Reserve in Iceland. bioGraphic said: 'What looks at first glance to be lava flowing down the sides of these Icelandic volcanoes is, in fact, iron oxide deposited during past eruptions. Unlike Geldingadalir, a volcano just 20 minutes away from Reykjavík that has been actively erupting since March 19, 2021, the last eruption here in FjallabakNature Reserve took place in 1480'
This dramatic image is one of a series of six that won the Photo Story category. It was taken by Canadian photojournalist Peter Mather in Yukon Territory, Canada. bioGraphic explained: 'In Canada’s Yukon Territory, grizzly bears delay their hibernation to catch the last salmon runs of the season. As temperatures drop below -20C, the grizzlies’ water-soaked fur freezes into a chandelier of icicles that jingle with each step. Local indigenous peoples tell stories of arrows unable to penetrate the icy armour of the bears. Unfortunately, Yukon’s ice bears, as they are known, are facing new threats for which their armour is no match. Climate change and other human activities are leading to sparse salmon runs, reduced river flows, and shorter winters, all of which put the ice bears’ way of life in jeopardy
Shane Kalyn, a self-taught photographer who works as a fisheries technician with the Canadian government, is the man behind this incredible image. It came out on top in the Winged Life category. bioGraphic revealed: 'Common ravens usually mate for life, and this intimate, open-beaked moment captured by Shane Kalyn is likely an example of allopreening - reciprocal grooming that serves both to solidify social bonds and to keep plumage clean'
This stunning photo won the Art of Nature category. It was taken in Toplepada, India, by Sarang Naik, a nature and wildlife photographer who specialises in creative and abstract photography. It shows a mushroom releasing spores during the monsoon season. bioGraphic said: 'In due time, this magical pixie dust will create more mushrooms - and not only in the way that you might think. While a small number of these mighty motes will land on soil suitable enough for producing the branching underground filaments that beget new mushrooms, many more spores will find their way into the atmosphere to serve an equally important purpose. Each year, millions of tons of fungal spores are aerosolised into the atmosphere where they provide the solid core for the condensation of water into clouds and rainfall, breathing life into forests around the world and sustaining future generations of fungi'
Spanish snapper Angel Fitor was a finalist in the Art of Nature category with this incredible image he took in the Mar Menor lagoon in southern Spain. bioGraphic said: 'This beautiful and mesmerising view may very well be the last thing that many hapless ocean-going creatures see before falling victim to the barrel jellyfish. Also known as the dustbin-lid jellyfish for the size and shape of its bell when washed up on UK shorelines, the species is one of the largest jellies in the world, reaching 90 centimetres (35 inches) or more in diameter'
Dallas photographer Nick Kanakis is behind this striking image, which was chosen as a finalist in the Landscapes, Waterscapes, and Flora category. It shows a Venus flytrap capturing a hoverfly. bioGraphic explained: 'In its native long leaf pine forests of the Carolinas, carnivory is a means of survival. There, the species makes its living much like other plants, harnessing energy from sunlight to make its food. In contrast to many other plants, however, the Venus flytrap must also catch vital nutrients that are missing from the soils in which it grows. With hinged leaves that snap shut at the slightest touch of hair-like triggers on their surfaces, it’s highly specialised to do just that, as this hoverfly going about its business in a North Carolina forest last November learned the hard way'
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/travel/travel_news/article-9651359/The-winning-images-BigPicture-Natural-World-Photography-Competition-2021.html
Comments
Some cracking photos there @HAYSIE
Loved the one with the soon-to-be-ex Penguin, & the two Crows or whatever they were.
Ravens are Crows.
God, I wish I'd not replied to that. He'll not let it go now.
Well I've corrected him now.
How to tell the difference between crows and ravens. What's the Difference Between Crows and Ravens? Ravens and crows are both all-black birds that have a lot in common and belong to the same family ( Corvidae ), but they are definitely not the same.
https://www.woodlandtrust.org.uk/blog/2020/01/rook-crow-or-raven/
@HAYSIE
There is no consistent distinction between "crows" and "ravens", and these appellations have been assigned to different species chiefly on the basis of their size, crows generally being smaller than ravens.
Incidentally, the collective term for Ravens is an unkindness.
Weasels are weasily recognised and stoats are stoatally different.
And the collective term for crows is a murder