{"id":17748,"date":"2022-09-08T23:00:55","date_gmt":"2022-09-08T21:00:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.sciencefocus.com\/?p=127388"},"modified":"2022-09-08T23:17:19","modified_gmt":"2022-09-08T21:17:19","slug":"facing-the-storm-head-on-the-bird-photographer-of-the-year-competition-winners","status":"publish","type":"rss_feed","link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcsciencefocus\/rss_feed\/facing-the-storm-head-on-the-bird-photographer-of-the-year-competition-winners\/","title":{"rendered":"Facing the storm head-on: The Bird Photographer of the Year Competition winners"},"content":{"rendered":"

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By James Cutmore\n \t\t<\/p>

Published: Thursday, 08 September 2022 at 12:00 am<\/p>

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Birds are one of the most diverse groups of animals on the planet.\u00a0Every year, this diversity is celebrated by the passionate people at the Bird Photographer of the Year, in their annual photography awards<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Bird Photographer of the Year is a global photographic competition, open to amateurs and professionals of all ages and abilities. This year, over 20,000 images were submitted, showcasing an incredible variety of birds from around the world. In our gallery we have highlighted our favourites from the winners and runners-up, including many impressive images from younger photographers.<\/p>\n

For more information about the competition, and to explore more images, fly over to the official\u00a0Bird Photographer of the Year<\/a> website.<\/p>\n

Overall winner \u2013 Rock ptarmigan flight<\/h2>\n
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A rock ptarmigan (Lagopus muta<\/em>)\u00a0flies over the unforgiving landscape of Tysfjorden, a fjord in Nordland county, Norway. The ptarmigan thrive in this area, battered by harsh winds, snow and freezing temperatures throughout the long winter months. Photo by Erlend Haarberg\/BPOTY<\/span><\/figcaption><\/div>\n

Gold award for attention to detail \u2013 Sleeping beauty<\/h2>\n
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While most images of king penguins (Aptenodytes patagonicus<\/em>) seem to be of striking adult birds, there is a undeniable cuteness to the chicks with their brown \u2018teddy bear\u2019 plumage. This chick was asleep at Volunteer Point in the Falkland Islands, United Kingdom, and the photographer was able to capture the details around the beak, eye and ear; the latter seldom seen. Photo by Andy Pollard\/BPOTY<\/span><\/figcaption><\/div>\n

Bronze award for birds in flight \u2013 Schalow\u2019s turac<\/h2>\n
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A Schalow\u2019s turaco (Tauraco schalowi<\/em>) captured in flight in the Maasai Mara, Kenya. These stunningly-dressed birds spend most of their time high in the dark jungle canopy, and are extremely fast flyers. Because of this, they are rarely photographed in flight (if ever), making this image incredibly rare.\u00a0<\/span>Photo by Aaron Baggenstos\/BPOTY<\/span><\/figcaption><\/div>\n

Silver award for birds in the environment \u2013 Kaleidoscope<\/h2>\n
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This image shows a small flock of lesser flamingoes (Phoeniconaias minor<\/em>) and greater flamingoes (Phoenicopterus roseus<\/em>), as they fly over Lake Logipi in northern Kenya. Recent rains had covered the previously empty lake with a shallow depth of water. This had awakened dormant microscopic algae in the lake bed, which caused the red coloration in the image and mixed with yellow and brown sediment washed into the lake from the Suguta River. Photo by Paul McKenzie\/BPOTY<\/span><\/figcaption><\/div>\n

Gold award for best portrait \u2013 Strut performer<\/h2>\n
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A male sage grouse (Centrocercus urophasianus<\/em>) performs a strutting display on the prairies of the Great Basin, USA. On these traditional display grounds, males of this Red List \u2018Near Threatened\u2019 species perform in the hope of winning the right to mate. This behaviour is for the benefit of the females, which judge the talent show and select the best genes to pass on to the next generation. Photo by Ly Dang\/BPOTY<\/span><\/figcaption><\/div>\n

Bronze award for best portrait \u2013 The doting couple<\/h2>\n
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Purple-crested turacos (Gallirex porphyreolophus<\/em>) like these are very shy and tend to avoid cameras, which makes this image unique. This couple were photographed at Lower Mpushini, near Pietermaritzburg, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa.\u00a0Photo by Richard Flack\/BPOTY<\/span><\/figcaption><\/div>\n

Gold award for black and white \u2013 Between two worlds<\/h2>\n
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A double-crested cormorant (Nannopterum auritus<\/em>) dives towards a school of fish, at Esp\u00edritu Santo, Baja California Sur, Mexico. The cormorant in this image was having trouble catching a fish. Every time it dived down into the water, the school would move in unison to escape the bird\u2019s sharp beak, making it difficult to isolate a single target. Photo by Henley Spiers\/BPOTY<\/span><\/figcaption><\/div>\n

Gold award for urban birds \u2013 Over the city<\/h2>\n
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A group of greater flamingoes (Phoenicopterus roseus<\/em>) fly over the morning skyline of a foggy Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates.\u00a0Photo by Ammar Alsayed Ahmed\/BPOTY<\/span><\/figcaption><\/div>\n

Young bird photographer of the year winner \u2013 Facing the storm<\/h2>\n
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A dunlin (Calidris alpina<\/em>) struggles to make headway through a sandstorm at Heligoland, Germany. Heligoland is a tiny North Sea island, known for its generally mild weather, although the weather in this image is anything but. Photo by Levi Fitze\/BPOTY<\/span><\/figcaption><\/div>\n

Silver award for attention to detail \u2013 Crazy<\/h2>\n
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Western capercaillie (Tetrao urogallus<\/em>) peers around a tree trunk in Stockholm, Sweden. The capercaillie is a member of the grouse family, and the largest of the grouse species.\u00a0<\/span>Photo by Isabella Chowra\/BPOTY<\/span><\/figcaption><\/div>\n

Gold award for 9 to 13 years \u2013 Droplets<\/h2>\n
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Anna\u2019s hummingbird (Calypte Anna<\/em>) bathes in a water fountain, at Fremont, California, USA. A fast shutter speed was able to capture the water droplets and the quick motion of the bird\u2019s wings. Photo by Parham Pourahmad\/BPOTY<\/span><\/figcaption><\/div>\n

Bronze award for 9 to 13 years \u2013 Hop, skip and jump<\/h2>\n
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A plum-headed parakeet (Himalayapsitta cyanocephala<\/em>) jumps from one branch to another. The pink hue of the feathers around its head identifies this individual as a male. Photographed at Hosanagara, Karnataka, India.\u00a0Photo by Achintya Murthy\/BPOTY<\/span><\/figcaption><\/div>\n

Gold award for bird behaviour \u2013 Duelling on the lek<\/h2>\n
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Sage grouse (Centrocercus urophasianus<\/em>) engaged in a fight, Colorado, USA. During the spring breeding season, male sage grouse gather on traditional lekking sites and often engage in short but violent fights. They have an elaborate display designed to attract and impress females, and show their superiority. Inevitably this leads to rivalry between males and challenges on the lek.\u00a0<\/span>Photo by Peter Ismert\/BPOTY<\/span><\/figcaption><\/div>\n

Silver award for 14 to 17 years \u2013 Pied avocet chick<\/h2>\n
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A pied avocet (Recurvirostra avosetta<\/em>) drinks from\u00a0a soda lake called Nagysz\u00e9ks\u00f3s-t\u00f3, near the town of M\u00f3rahalom,\u00a0<\/span>Kinskuns\u00e1g National Park, Hungary. Photo by Tam\u00e1s Koncz-Bisztricz\/BPOTY<\/span><\/figcaption><\/div>\n

Gold award for birds in flight \u2013 Silo mural<\/h2>\n
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A pair of galah (Eolophus roseicapilla<\/em>) fly past a large grain silo that has been decorated with a mural, at Yelarbon, Queensland, Australia. Large areas of Australia are flat, dry and given over to wheat farming. Towns can consist of as little as a truck stop and a collection of grain silos. In some locations, these silos have become popular palettes for enormous murals, drawing tourists into otherwise desolate areas. Photo by Raoul Slater\/BPOTY<\/span><\/figcaption><\/div>\n

More images from Science Focus<\/em>:<\/strong><\/p>\n