The incredible winning photo contest for nature photographer of the year

Nature Photographer of the Year (NPOTY) has announced the incredible winners of its prestigious 2021 competition, which this year brought together a record number of competing images from over 97 countries.

Presented by Nature Talks, the organization also responsible for the Nature Talks Photo Festival which takes place every year in the Netherlands, the title of Nature Photographer of the Year 2021 has been awarded to Terje Kolaas from Norway for his image of thousands of Beaked Geese short in flight during their winter migration.

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The photo was taken literally from the photographer’s garden as some 80,000 birds made a stopover in the Trondheim Fjord wetland system on their annual trips each spring and fall between wintering grounds in Denmark, the Netherlands. Low and breeding grounds in Spitsbergen, Norway.

“This photograph immediately caught our attention, in large part due to the new perspective it offers – a view of the Northern Red-billed Geese migrating from the aerial flock,” juror Tony Wu explained.

The image on a pure and crisp snowy landscape, taken by a drone, is uplifting, aesthetic, well composed and unique at the same time.

The competition can be entered in 12 different categories and also for the Fred Hazelhoff Portfolio Prize – the latter was won by Lea Lee Inoue, a photographer from the United States. She has created an interesting and cute photo project of a family of round-tailed ground squirrels.

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All category winning, finalist and highly recommended photos can be viewed at www.naturephotographeroftheyear.com.

Prizes for this year’s winners are € 25,000, with the overall winner receiving € 3,000 while each category winner takes home € 500.

This year’s NPOTY competition supports the NGO Photographers Against Wildlife Crime.

Open to professional and non-professional photographers of all ages from around the world, entries to the competition begin on December 27, 2021, for the Nature Photographer of the Year 2022 edition.

People can also vote for their favorite photo for the People’s Choice Award from January 18 to March 18, 2022.

The Nature Talks Photo Festival 2022 will take place on November 12 and 13.

Birds

Submarine

Black and white

Other animals

Humans and nature

A staff member at Harajuku’s most popular otter cafe gives a snack to an Asian small-clawed otter (Aonyx cinereus). These snacks, often cheese or animal feed, are very unsuitable for otters, whose natural diet consists largely of invertebrates like crabs or crustaceans, supplemented by fish.

According to the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) guidelines for keeping Asian small-clawed otters in captivity, otters’ feeding times should be changed and manual feeding should only take place when necessary to prevent the development of begging. or other stereotypical behaviors.

In the otter cafes of Japan, however, the limited space and high concentration of otters, as well as the constant feeding and care of staff and guests not only accustomed these otters to humans, but made them dependent on them. ‘they.

Asian small-clawed otters are listed as “vulnerable” on the IUCN Red List.

Portraits

Low lands

Mammals

Plants and fungi

Countryside

Nature Art

Wallet

Lea Lee Inoue decided to photograph this family of round-tailed ground squirrels, hoping to show that these animals think, feel and have emotions.

Often people think that dogs and cats are the only animals that have feelings. Could it be that people are thinking this because spotting is easier with a pet?

Through photography, Inoue felt that she could show that all animals think and feel emotions.

“This is a paradigm shift in thinking that conservation can start early, at ground level, with everyone awakening to the natural world,” she said. “With this awareness comes the respect, conservation and welfare of animals.”