‘An otherworldly beauty’: Wildlife Photographer of the Year crowns the best animal images of 2021

Published

3 years ago

October 12, 2021

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A shot of a rare underwater spawning that only takes place around a full moon once a year has been named as the winner of this year’s Wildlife Photographer Of The Year competition.

Judges said French underwater photographer and biologist Laurent Ballesta’s image, entitled Creation, has an “otherworldly beauty” and reveals a “fleeting moment of fascinating animal behaviour” that very few people have ever seen.

It has been selected as the winner of the Natural History Museum’s prestigious annual competition, now in its 57th year, from more than 50,000 entries from 95 countries.

Ballesta’s photograph captures camouflage groupers darting away from a milky cloud of eggs and sperm in Fakarava, French Polynesia. It was the result of returning to the lagoon every year for five years, diving day and night so as not to miss the annual spawning.

Writer and editor Rosamund Kidman Cox, chair of the judging panel, described the image as “surprising, energetic and intriguing” with “an otherworldly beauty”.

She added: “It also captures a magical moment – a truly explosive creation of life – leaving the tail-end of the exodus of eggs hanging for a moment like a symbolic question mark.”

Camouflage groupers are a vulnerable species threatened by overfishing, but in this area they are protected within a special biosphere reserve.

Natural History Museum director Dr Doug Gurr described Ballesta’s image as a “compelling reminder of what we stand to lose if we do not address humanity’s impact on our planet”, and said that “the protection provided to this endangered species by the biosphere reserve highlights the positive difference we can make”.

Elsewhere, 10-year old Vidyun R Hebbar was awarded the Young Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2021 award for Dome Home, a colourful image of a tent spider pictured near his home in the city of Bengaluru, in India, as a tuk-tuk passes by in the background.

Dr Natalie Cooper, a Natural History Museum researcher, said it was “a great reminder to look more closely at the small animals we live with every day, and to take your camera with you everywhere”.

The two overall winners were selected from 19 category winners, showcasing everything from stunning animal portraits to interesting behaviour, as well as photojournalism images and portfolios. Here are the 17 other category winners.

Grizzly Leftovers by Zack Clothier – Animals In Their Environment winner

US photographer Zack Clothier decided the remains of a bull elk in Montana provided the perfect spot to set up a camera trap to capture any interested animals passing by. But melted snow and fallen trees meant a challenging journey back to the scene, and when the photographer did return his set-up had been ruined. However, this surprising shot of a grizzly bear turned out to be his last frame.

Reflection by Majed Ali – Animal Portrait winner, and Bedazzled by Alex Mustard – Natural Artistry winner

Majed Ali, from Kuwait, trekked for hours to find Kibande, an almost-40-year-old mountain gorilla, but it was worth it to get this snap of the ape closing its eyes in the rain, seemingly enjoying the shower. Mountain gorillas are found at altitudes of over 1,400 metres in two isolated populations – at the Virunga volcanoes in Rwanda and in Bwindi, Uganda – and are endangered due to habitat loss, disease, poaching and disruption caused by human activity.

UK photographer Alex Mustard’s image is of a juvenile ghost pipefish hiding among the arms of a feather star – its loud colours signify that it had not long landed on the reef; its colour pattern would later have changed, enabling it to blend in.

Spinning The Cradle by Gil Wizen – Behaviour: Invertebrates winner

Gil Wizen (Israel/ Canada) discovered this fishing spider under some loose bark in a forest near his home in southern Ontario, and managed to capture it stretching out silk to weave into its egg sac. “The action of the spinnerets reminded me of the movement of human fingers when weaving,” Wizen said.

The Intimate Touch by Shane Kalyn – Behaviour: Birds winner

This picture by Canadian photographer Shane Kalyn shows a raven courtship display captured in midwinter, the start of their breeding season. Lying on the frozen ground, he watched as the couple exchanged gifts – moss, twigs and small stones – and preened and serenaded each other before coming together for the perfect picture.

Head To Head by Stefano Unterthiner – Behaviour: Animals winner

Stefano Unterthiner, from Italy, followed these Svalbard reindeer during rutting season and caught these two battling for control of a harem, clashing antlers until the dominant male chased his rival away. Reindeer populations in the Arctic are affected by climate change, as increased rainfall can freeze on the ground and prevent access to plants that would otherwise sit under soft snow.

Where The Giant Newts Breed by Joao Rodrigues – Behaviour: Amphibians and Reptiles winner

Joao Rodrigues, from Portugal, came across a pair of courting sharp-ribbed salamanders in a flooded forest – his first chance in five years to dive into the lake, which only emerges in winters of exceptionally heavy rainfall. He said he had a split second to adjust his camera settings and capture the moment before the newts swam away.

Nursery Meltdown by Jennifer Hayes – Oceans: The Bigger Picture winner

Following a storm, it took hours of searching by helicopter for US photographer Jennifer Hayes to find this fractured sea ice used as a birthing platform by harp seals. “It was a pulse of life that took your breath away,” she said of her image. Every autumn, harp seals migrate south from the Arctic to their breeding grounds, delaying births until the sea ice forms. But they depend on the ice – which means that future population numbers are likely to be affected by climate change.

Rich Reflections by Justin Gilligan – Plants And Fungi winner

Justin Gilligan, from Australia, created the reflection of a marine ranger among the seaweed for this striking photograph, taken at the world’s southernmost tropical reef. He said he wanted to show how careful human management helps preserve a vibrant seaweed jungle – and had just 40 minutes in which tide conditions were right to get his image.

The Spider Room by Gil Wizen – Urban Wildlife winner

A second winning spider shot for Wizen, who found this venomous Brazilian wandering spider hiding under his bed after noticing tiny spiders all over the room. Yikes. Rather than run away, he grabbed his camera to capture what is one of the world’s most venomous spiders, which is the size of a human hand.

Road To Ruin by Javier Lafuente – Wetlands: The Bigger Picture winner

Using a drone, Javier Lafuente, from Spain, captures the stark line of a road slicing through a wetland landscape, which is home to more than a hundred species of birds.

Elephant In The Room by Adam Oswell – Photojournalism winner

Adam Oswell, from Australia, said he was disturbed by this scene of zoo visitors watching a young elephant perform under water. Elephant tourism has increased across Asia and in Thailand there are now said to be more elephants in captivity than in the wild.

The Healing Touch by Brent Stirton – Photojournalist Story winner

Brent Stirton, from South Africa, profiled a rehabilitation centre caring for chimpanzees orphaned by the bushmeat trade in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. This image shows the director of the centre sitting with a newly rescued chimp she is slowly introducing to the others.

Cool Time by Martin Gregus – Rising Star Portfolio winner

This image by Martin Gregus (Canada/Slovakia) shows two female polar bears cooling off and playing in shallow waters around Hudson Bay in Canada. Captured with a drone, he said he felt the heart shape symbolises the apparent affection between the two animals and “the love we as people owe to the natural world”.

Face-Off by Angel Fitor – Portfolio Award winner

These cichlid fish might look like they’re having a kiss, but they’re actually fighting over a snail shell. Angel Fitor, from Spain, captured the pair in Lake Tanganyika, which is spread across Tanzania, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Burundi and Zambia in Africa. Fitor monitored the lake bed for three weeks – and while this struggle was over in seconds, it was just long enough to get a winning shot.

Sunflower Songbird by Andrés Luis Dominguez Blanco – 11-14 Years winner

Enjoying itself sitting in the sunflowers on a warm afternoon is a melodious warbler bird. Andres Luis Dominguez Blanco, from Spain, managed to shoot “the king of its territory” from his hide set up in his father’s car.

High-Flying Jay by Lasse Kurkela – 15-17 Years winner

Lasse Kurkela, from Finland, used pieces of cheese to get Siberian jays accustomed to his remotely controlled camera and to encourage them to follow a particular flight path so he could get the exact shot he wanted – one of the birds high in the sky, tiny against the forest trees.

Entertainment

Glastonbury Festival announces changes to ticket buying process

Published

11 hours ago

November 5, 2024

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Glastonbury Festival announces changes to ticket buying process

Glastonbury is changing the way fans can buy tickets for the world-famous festival.

While the booking process itself will remain the same, the way people join it is different.

Organisers warned hopefuls to log in “at least a few minutes” before the sale opens on 14 November, to avoid refreshing the page and not to attempt to game the system by using multiple devices.

Fans must be registered by 5pm GMT on Monday 11 November.

Tickets for the annual event at Worthy Farm in Somerset cost £373.50 plus a £5 booking fee, and are sold exclusively through the See Tickets website, with no third-party sellers involved.

The sale follows chaos earlier this year when tickets for the Oasis reunion went on sale, seeing a multitude of disappointed fans as well as those who felt cheated after being charged hundreds of pounds more for their tickets than was originally advertised.

The festival website explains: “Rather than refreshing the holding page to attempt to access the booking page, this year, when the ticket sale begins (at 6pm or 9am respectively) everyone who is already on the glastonbury.seetickets.com page will randomly be assigned a place in a queue to access the booking process.

“Anyone who logs on once the sale has started will automatically be added to the back of the queue, so it’s important to make sure you are online ready at least a few minutes before the sale opens.

“Once you are in the queue, a progress bar will indicate how close you are to reaching the booking page.

“Please do not refresh this page or use multiple devices or tabs or you may lose your place in the queue.”

Once fans reach the front of the queue and enter their registration details, they will be able to purchase a maximum of six tickets – but they will not have long to do so.

The site warns: “You will have 10 minutes to complete this page before your session expires, however tickets are not allocated at this point.”

It also cautions: “Do not attempt to minimise the tab or open new tabs. If you move away from the tab you are on your session may expire”.

The advice also says that if the amount of traffic on the website is particularly high, users may see a “reduced version of the See Tickets booking site, with a minimal holding page”.

It adds: “This does not mean the site has crashed”.

The site discourages users from using multiple devices to increase their chances of getting tickets, warning it could actively harm getting through.

It says: “Refreshing the page, using multiple tabs or many devices can look like suspicious behaviour and can harm your chances of getting through by triggering anti-bot software; therefore you must stick to one tab/device per IP address and please do not refresh your page once you are in the queue”.

One exception to the refresh rule is if the message, “All available tickets have now been allocated” pops up, at which point refreshing the page will mean any orders that haven’t been processed will go back on sale, and so may become available to buy.

Once the message “SOLD OUT” appears, it’s game over, and no more tickets will be released back for sale.

There will be another chance, however, when any returned tickets go on resale in the spring, offering festival fans a second bite of the cherry.

While next year’s acts won’t be announced until after tickets go on sale, Oasis have already ruled themselves out of performing, telling fans: “Despite media speculation, Oasis will not be playing Glastonbury 2025 or any other festivals next year. The only way to see the band perform will be on their Oasis Live ’25 World Tour.”

2026 is likely to be a fallow year for Glastonbury (a year off), with the festival traditionally taking place four out of every five years, and the fifth year reserved for rehabilitation of the land.

Glastonbury Festival takes place from 25 to 29 June 2025.

Entertainment

Taylor Swift ‘shares extremely important reminder’ to her fans on US election

Published

17 hours ago

November 5, 2024

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Taylor Swift 'shares extremely important reminder' to her fans on US election

Taylor Swift has given a “friendly but extremely important reminder” to her American fans to vote in the presidential election.

The neck-and-neck race between Kamala Harris and Donald Trump – which is believed to be the closest since 2000 – has seen US stars throw their weight behind both candidates.

It had been widely speculated that Swift would appear at Ms Harris’s final rally in Pennsylvania – where the 34-year-old singer grew up.

However, the Shake It Off singer was at Arrowhead Stadium to support her boyfriend – NFL star Travis Kelce – who was playing for the Kansas City Chiefs in a game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

US election latest: Voting begins for millions of Americans

Oprah Winfrey and Lady Gaga were the big names alongside Ms Harris at her final big event.

Swift’s election reminder came in a post she shared on the eve of polling night, celebrating the wrap of the US leg of her Eras Tour, and sharing images from her last three gigs.

In the Instagram post, the singer wrote: “Thank you to everyone who came out to see us on our last three American shows.

“And here’s a friendly but extremely important reminder that tomorrow is the US election and your last chance to vote.”

She will pick up her tour in Canada next week, with six shows in Toronto and three in Vancouver.

Her record-breaking shows – which have boosted the economy around the globe – will wrap on 8 December.

Swift publicly confirmed her support for Ms Harris in September, sharing the message on social media: “I believe we can accomplish so much more in this country if we are led by calm and not chaos.”

At the time, Swift also shared links to information on how to register to vote and find out early voting dates, reminding voters: “Your research is all yours to do, and the choice is yours to make”.

Shared with a photo of the star cuddling one of her beloved cats, she signed off her post “Childless Cat Lady,” in a nod to Republican vice-presidential candidate JD Vance’s now infamous 2021 remarks.

Entertainment

Quincy Jones: Oprah Winfrey, Elton John and Barack Obama among famous figures paying tribute to music legend

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1 day ago

November 4, 2024

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Quincy Jones: Oprah Winfrey, Elton John and Barack Obama among famous figures paying tribute to music legend

Oprah Winfrey, Sir Elton John and Barack Obama among the famous figures who have paid tribute to Quincy Jones following his death at the age of 91.

Following the announcement of his death on Monday, a string of friends, collaborators and admirers have been speaking out to praise the music producer and composer.

TV host Oprah Winfrey said her life “changed forever for the better” after meeting Jones as he helped secure her role in the 1985 film adaptation of The Colour Purple, which earned her an Oscar nomination.

Jones, the jazz musician known for collaborating with the likes of Frank Sinatra and Michael Jackson, wrote the film score and also co-produced the film.

Winfrey wrote on Instagram: “My beloved Q. The world’s beloved Q. The one and only Quincy Jones ‘discovered’ me for The Color Purple movie in 1985. My life changed forever for the better after meeting him.

“I had never experienced, nor have since, anyone who’s heart was so filled with love.

“He walked around with his heart wide open, and he treated everybody as if they were the most important person he’d ever met. He was the Light. No shadows.

“He was love lived out loud in human form and he was the first person I ever loved unconditionally.”

Whoopi Goldberg, who was also in The Colour Purple, also wrote on Instagram: “I was lucky enough to have him in my life for all these years.

“My heart is breaking for his friends and his extended family who loved and adored him… my condolences.”

Former US president Barack Obama, who honoured Jones with the US National Medal of Arts in 2010, said: “For decades, Quincy Jones was music.

“From producing Thriller, to composing the score for The Color Purple, to working with Frank Sinatra to Ray Charles, it seemed like every big record – and every big film – had Quincy’s name on it.

“His music appealed to listeners of every race and every age. And by building a career that took him from the streets of Chicago to the heights of Hollywood, Quincy paved the way for generations of Black executives to leave their mark on the entertainment business.”

He added: “Michelle and I send our thoughts to Quincy’s friends, family, and everyone who has lived their lives to his songs.”

Sir Elton John remembered Jones as someone who had a more “incredible” career in music than anyone else.

He shared a photo with him at the Elton John Aids Foundation Oscar viewing party, and called him a “loyal supporter of this important fundraiser”.

The singer added: “Nobody had a career as incredible as Quincy Jones. He played with the best and he produced the best. What a guy. Loved him.”

Rapper Ice T hailed Jones as a “genius”, while US Grammy-winner Lenny Kravitz said he was “speechless”, but added: “What a life. What an expression of authenticity. What a teacher. I am humbled that I was given the gift of your openness and friendship”.

Destiny’s Child singer Kelly Rowland thanked Jones for being “such a wonderful teacher” and creating the soundtrack to “some of the most extraordinary moments” in her life.

Jones also helped to launch and was an executive producer on the popular US sitcom The Fresh Prince Of Bel-Air, starring Will Smith.

Smith said: “Quincy Jones is the true definition of a mentor, a father and a friend. He pointed me toward the greatest parts of myself. He defended me. He nurtured me.

“He encouraged me. He inspired me. He checked me when he needed to. He let me use his wings until mine were strong enough to fly.”

Chic co-founder Nile Rodgers, who was friends with Jones, shared a video that said “Rest In Power Quincy Jones. The Greatest of All Time”.

Peter Hook, the bassist and co-founder of Joy Division and New Order, wrote on social media: “It’s so sad to hear about Quincy Jones. When he signed us to his label, he made us feel so welcome – inviting us to dinner at his home every time we were in town.

“He made us big in America. He was so humble & sweet that you immediately fell in love with him.”

Hook added: “And to this day I still got a lovely message from him every year on Christmas and birthday cards! A musical genius and a great, lovely man.”