Science
13 marvelous images from the European Wildlife Photographer of the Year awards
A polar bear sits seemingly unbothered by a heavy snowstorm pummeling down. Photographer Daniel Valverde Fernandez captured the moment (seen above) the bear gave a vigorous shake to send the powder flying into the swirling winds. The image earned runner-up honors in the Mammals category of the 2024 European Wildlife Photographer of the Year.
Spanish photographer Jaime Rojo took the top prize for his ethereal image (seen below) of monarch butterflies in the trees of Mexico’s El Rosario Monarch Butterfly Sanctuary.
Huddled together, overwintering monarch butterflies (Danaus plexippus) hang in the trees of Mexico’s El Rosario Monarch Butterfly Sanctuary. At these high altitudes it is cool and relatively humid, and the monarch butterflies have adapted to the same ecological conditions as the trees, mostly Oyamel firs (Abies religiosa). The butterflies are well protected from the elements by the tree canopy and also by their congregation in huge numbers, but even the smallest changes in the forest cover can have a negative impact on the sensitive microclimate to which the butterflies have adapted. Despite the conservation measures that led to the establishment of the protected area, deforestation was still a problem in the early 2000s. A Mexican-led international coalition of governments and non-profit conservation organisations established a trust fund during this time to work with local communities to reduce the rate of deforestation, which has been steadily declining since 2009.
Credit: Jaime Rojo / European Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2024
Almost 1,000 photographers submitted upwards of 18,000 images. The judges gathered in Potsdam, Germany to select honorees across 12 categories.
“We should finish where we began, with viewing an old subject through a new lens,” judge Marcus Westberg wrote on behalf of the jury. “After a weekend of intense debates and split votes, it is somehow fitting that selecting the overall winner was among the easiest decisions of the entire judging process, requiring virtually no discussion. Jaime’s classically beautiful Monarch butterfly photograph, with its layers of depth and detail, is timeless. ‘Suddenly, an animal that you have seen many times before becomes something altogether new,’ in the words of one judge. The image contains within it ‘a slow dawning of magnificence … an awe of discovery, a testament to the power of photography’.” The full gallery can be viewed on the German Society for Nature Photography website.
“Of all the animals that roam the savanna, spotted hyenas (Crocuta crocuta) get the most ‘bad press.’ They are often derided as one of the ‘ugly five’ and viewed as scavenging opportunists. For me, however, hyenas are extremely interesting creatures. Over the years, I have taken countless wonderful pictures capturing many different aspects of their behavior. In this photo, we see the gentle side of these often misunderstood, highly social animals: a hyena cub snuggles up lovingly to its disheveled and battered-looking mother.”
Credit: Vanessa Beadling / European Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2024
“During my visit to Svalbard, I was able to observe numerous Svalbard reindeer (Rangifer tarandus platyrhynchus), a small subspecies of the reindeer common in Northern Europe. During the summer months, these animals lose their thick winter coat. On a hike, I watched as a strong gust of wind blew off a large part of this reindeer’s winter coat. Even the reindeer looks a little surprised.”
Credit: Christian Biemans / European Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2024
“For common mergansers (Mergus merganser) in Warsaw, the breeding season has become rather stressful. Ducklings hatch in a park about one kilometer away from the river Vistula. Each female duck has to relocate its ducklings to the river as quickly as possible because this is the only place in the park with food and shelter. To get to the river, the ducks must cross two canals and go through three underground passages created especially for this purpose. The final obstacle is a wide six-lane motorway. Every year, a group of volunteers help the ducks cross this dangerous road by holding up traffic. This image shows a duck crossing a smaller road because it refused to use the nearby dark underground passage. The volunteer blocks traffic while the cameraman captures the scene. Let’s hope there will always be enough volunteers to stop traffic for ducklings.”
Credit: Grzegorz Długosz / European Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2024
“A common octopus (Octopus vulgaris) crawls across the seabed at night in search of prey. Thanks to a sophisticated combination of tactile abilities and nocturnal vision, octopuses are among the most effective nocturnal hunters in the sea. Everything about how octopuses perceive the world is beyond our imagination. In addition to their unique eyes, octopus skin contains special light-sensitive proteins called opsins that allow the entire body to perceive light. Given this, it is not surprising that these animals use more than two-thirds of their brain for visual processing. Although colour-blind, octopuses use polarized vision to improve contrasts and detect enemies, conspecifics and even camouflaged prey. Last but not least, the position of the eyes on an octopus’ head and its horizontal pupils mean that the animals have 360° vision with no “blind spots”. Who can beat that?”
Credit: Angel Fitor / European Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2024
“This photograph shows one of the numerous European bison (Bison bonasus) reintroduced to Poland’s Białowieża National Park, near the border with Belarus. In 1927, the last free-living bison in the Caucasus was shot and the species was considered extinct in the wild in Europe. With the help of a small group of animals from zoological gardens and private owners, the European bison was saved from extinction. As of 2023, about 7,200 individuals exist in Europe. However, habitat fragmentation and low genetic diversity continue to pose challenges to the survival of this species.”
Credit: Florian Smit / European Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2024
“I have been using camera traps and flashes to photograph lynx in southern Sweden for more than six years. After many attempts with classic image composition, I tried to rethink my approach. My aim was to photograph a backlit lynx on a tree trunk at night as a silhouette with a ‘golden edge.’ A softened main flash, whose light was bundled through a narrow tube about 40 cm long, was intended to simply reflect the animal’s eyes. The gentle rain that night was a welcome bonus.”
Credit: Felix Heintzenberg / European Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2024
Credit: Francesco Visintin / European Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2024
Credit: Staffan Widstrand / European Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2024
Credit: Kjell Vikestad / European Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2024
“A female bee wolf (Philanthus triangulum) returns to its burrow with a honey bee (Apis mellifera) that it has paralyzed and will place in the burrow as a food source for its emerging offspring. Bee wolves lay their eggs in burrows that they dig in sandy soil.”
Credit: Kevin Sawford / European Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2024
“The encounter with this superpod of spinner dolphins (Stenella longirostris) was one of the most extraordinary experiences of my life. It was impossible to keep track of the number of individuals. There were dolphins everywhere; their vocalizations filled the ocean. Some of them stoically passed by, while others eyed me with curiosity.”
Credit: Merche Llobera / European Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2024
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