The overall winner of the competition is the image of a flying Dalmatian pelican by Alvin Hardenball, organizers said in a press release on Thursday.
There were several winning categories and an additional 16 highly admirable images.
Hardenball said he took thousands of pictures trying to make the shot perfect.
“I gave this image the title ‘Art of Flight’ because of how impressive the wings of this bird look in the picture, you can almost see a bird flying in front of you despite being a still image.”
“Winning such a competition as an ecologist gives me the opportunity to continue to combine my research with my passion for nature photography.”
Jane Mammott, president of the British Ecological Society, said Hardenball’s photo “captures the bird’s movement, grace and beauty perfectly.”
Hardenball also collected awards for the “People and Nature” category, along with a photo of a black-legged kittywick painted on a building in VV Ranger, Norway.
Other winners include an image of a great shady Swift on a cliff at Iguazu Falls in Argentina, taken by overall student winner Pablo Javier Marrow. The birds fly in and out of the 80-meter waterfall and are locally known as the “Waterfall Swift”.
“Iguza National Park is of significant importance because it protects a very diverse natural ecosystem, and the Waterfall Swift is an important symbol of Iguza and its diversity.”
The six-person judging panel also included wildlife photographer Gabriela Stabler, who congratulated the people behind the impressive pictures.
“Standout images show not only great photographic skills, but also love and spirit for wildlife.” “By their impact on people they will contribute to the preservation of nature.”
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