If you love nature photography, you will want to look at the winners of the British Ecological Society (BES) Capturing Ecology 2022 photography competition.
Founded in 1913, the BES is the oldest ecological society in the world. The BES promotes the study of ecology through its six academic journals, events, grants, education initiatives and policy work. The society has over 7,000 members from more than 120 different countries.
Since 2017, BES has held the annual Capturing Ecology competition, which showcases the natural world and artistic talents of its members.
This year, Capturing Ecology is generously sponsored by Dryad. Dryad is a Non-profit, community-designed and online service since 2008. They aim to help you make the most of your research data and meet emerging publisher and funder policies, worry-free.
Below are the five marine-themed images that won a prize this year. These and the rest of the winning photos are available to view for free at the Capturing Ecology 2022 virtual exhibition.
Takeout by Sam Eberhard
Student winner
A bald eagle navigates the harrowing process of escaping from Haystack Rock with a common murre that it snatched from the top of the rock.
Danger Spawning by Emma Weschke
Student prize: Dynamic ecosystems
Convict tangs (Acanthurus triostegus) aggregate in the thousands to spawn at a remote island atoll in the French Polynesia. Grey reef sharks (Carcharhinus amblyrhynchos) take advantage of the high densities of preoccupied prey.
Tourists in the wild by Mackenzie Meier
Student prize: People & Nature
A turtle swims through Hanauma bay in Hawaii with a group of tourists watching from behind.
Urban Kittiwakes by Joshua Copping
Highly commended: People & Nature
A group of Black-legged Kittiwake nesting on the side of a building in Bridlington. It has become increasingly common for this species of seabird to breed in coastal urban areas, on manmade structures which represent the cliffs they would traditionally call home.
Underwater research in Fiji by Andreas Eich
High commended: Ecology in Action
Scientific divers are installing cages to test what happens to a reef without fish.
