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These 13 stunning photos won gold in the 2021 World Nature Photography Awards

See how talented photographers capture the beauty and wonder of our world.

Tom Vierus/World Nature Photography Awards

Photographers capture some of nature's best moments.

The World Nature Photography Awards showcase the best of nature's moments caught on camera, and each year, the world's best photographers compete for gold in a range of categories. In the 2021 photo contest, Amos Nachoum from the United States won the top cash prize award of $1,000 for his image of a leopard seal about to capture a defenseless gentoo penguin. Four years later, the images are still unforgettable.

Getting the split-second photo was no easy task. Nachoum had to wait for hours on the remote island of Plano, off the Antarctic Peninsula, for the right moment at low tide when the seals entered a lagoon to catch their prey. Unfortunately, the photo is one of the last moments of the young penguin’s life. “The terrified penguin tried to escape as the game continued. But soon, the end came,” Nachoum said in a statement.

leopard seal, penguin, nature photographyWorld Nature Photographer of the Year and Gold Winner in "Behavior - Mammals" — Amos Nachoum, USA Amos Nachoum/World Nature Photography Awards

Nachoun's full photo statement: "For hours, I waited for the low tide to arrive along a shallow lagoon on a remote island off the Antarctic Peninsula. Like clockwork, the leopard seal arrived in the lagoon just before low tide. It put its head in the water and looked just like a rock sitting in the receding water. The young Gentoo penguins only dare to enter the water when it is shallow and when they got close enough to the seal, it turned its head at lightning speed, catching one of the penguins by its feet and taking it to deep water. Once the seal reached open water, I followed it and swam parallel to it, observing its actions. To my surprise, it let go of the penguin twice. Each time, the seal chased after the penguin again, as if it was enjoying the game. The terrified penguin tried to escape as the game continued. But soon, the end came."

Other winners included a remarkable shot of a humpback whale just outside New York City, a majestic photo of an orangutan in a river, and an arctic fox braving the frozen tundra in Iceland.

The photographs are a wonderful example of the dedication and care taken by nature photographers, but they’re also a reminder of our duty to care for the environment.

“The World Nature Photography Awards were founded in the belief that we can all make small efforts to shape the future of our planet in a positive way and that photography can influence people to see the world from a different perspective and change their own habits for the good of the planet. 2021’s competition saw entries come in from 20 countries across 6 continents,” the World Nature Photography Awards said in a press release.

Here are the other photographers who won gold in the 2021 contest.

macaques, baby macaque, nature photographyGold Winner in "Animal Portraits" — Tom Vierus, FijiTom Vierus/World Nature Photography Awards

"Long-tailed macaques enjoy the warmth of each other during a hot day in Bali, Indonesia. These animals show very similar behaviour to us humans including enjoying each other trusting company. The macaques are used to humans and are commonly found around temples where they tend to feed on food sacrifices by the locals."

frog, pacific tree frog, nature photographyGold Winner in "Behavior - Amphibians and Reptiles" — Shayne Kaye, CanadaShayne Kaye/World Nature Photography Awards

"This shot came out of a 'nothing' outing to a local park. It was the middle of a sunny summer day with harsh light and little activity. After going out with low expectations, I came across this tiny Pacific Tree Frog on a flower. After waiting for it to move into a more photogenic position on the flower, and trying repeatedly to catch the mottled light through the tree’s leaves above it at exactly the right spot, I got exactly what I was hoping for. It proved to me that there’s really no bad time to head into nature with a camera!"

wildebeest, vulture, africa wildlife, nature photographyGold Winner in "Behavior - Birds" — Ashok Behera, Indiavia Ashok Behera/World Nature Photography Awards

"A wildebeest’s eyes being gorged by an African vulture, keenly watched by an African fox for an opportunity to scavenge. Taken at Masai Mara, Kenya."

red ants, reflection, nature photographyGold Winner in "Behavior - Invertebrates" — Chin Leong Teo, Singaporevia Chin Leong Teo/World Nature Photography Awards

"The common red ant is ingenious at traversing terrain. When front scout ants encounter a water obstacle, they intuitively form an "ant-bridge" with their bodies, so that their ant-mates at the back of the party can cross."

tuscany, italy, landscape photography, nature photographyGold Winner in "Nature Art" — Federico Testi, ItalyFederico Testi/World Nature Photography Awards

"The natural creativity of San Quirico d'orcia, in Tuscany, Italy. Waves, shapes and tone created by light, in harmony with the universe."

lake baikal, russia, ice, nature photographyGold Winner in "People and Nature" — Sabrina Inderbitzi, SwitzerlandSabrina Inderbitzi/World Nature Photography Awards

"I crawled into this ice cave on the totally frozen Lake Baikal in Russia. First I didn't like the fact that the car and the people were in the middle of my picture, but then on a second view I found it just perfect."

goa, india, hut, nature photographyGold Winner in "Plants and Fungi" — Gautam Kamat Bambolkar, IndiaGautam Kamat Bambolkar/World Nature Photography Awards

"Entrance to a room inside an abandoned house in Goa, India. It is fascinating how mother nature takes over from where man has left."

humpback whale, new york, ocean, nature photographyGold Winner in "Urban Wildlife" — Matthijs Noome, USAMatthijs Noome/World Nature Photography Awards

"Finally got the shot I wanted: a humpback's fluke with the New York City downtown skyline in the distance. As water quality measures and conservation efforts have started to show real results over the last years, humpback whales are becoming a common sight more and more in New York waters."

new zealand, mountain reflection, nature photographyGold Winner in "Planet Earth's Landscapes and Environments" — Sam Wilson, AustraliaSam Wilson/World Nature Photography Awards

"Travelling down random dirt roads can be so rewarding when you are greeted with scenes like this. Taken on South Island, New Zealand."

arctic fox, Iceland, black and white photography, nature photographyGold Winner in "Black and White" — Vince Burton, United KingdomVince Burton/World Nature Photography Awards

"A recent trip to Iceland where we were lucky to view and photograph the rare 'blue morph' Arctic fox. The weather conditions were extreme, but that didn't seem to bother the fox."


orangutan, wildlife, nature photographyGold Winner in "Animals in Their Habitat" — Thomas Vijayan, CanadaThomas Vijayan/World Nature Photography Awards

"Mature male orangutans have large flappy cheek-pads, known as flanges, a throat sac used to make loud verbalisations called long calls. Once they reach maturity, they spend most of their time alone, about 90%. I was lucky enough to get this fully-grown, matured orangutan giving me the best pose possible."


baby orangutan, wildlife rescue, nature photographyGold Winner in "Nature Photojournalism" — Alain Schroeder, BelgiumAlain Schroeder/World Nature Photography Awards

"Sibolangit, SOCP Quarantine Centre, North Sumatra, Indonesia. The whole SOCP team works together to prepare Brenda, an estimated 3-month-old female orangutan (she has no teeth yet), for surgery. A sedative is administered, the arm is shaved, her temperature is taken, while others hold her head or her hand out of compassion for the baby. During the three-hour procedure, Dr. Andreas Messikommer, a renowned orthopaedic surgeon invited from Switzerland, will place a pin and screws to secure the damaged humerus. Brenda was confiscated from a villager in Blang Pidie on the west coast of Aceh who was keeping her as a pet."

You can find the latest World Nature Photography Award contest detail and winners at worldnaturephotographyawards.com.

This article originally appeared four years ago.






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Science

From eagles to cheetahs to porcupines: 7 animals that sound nothing like people expect

That bald eagle screech we hear in movies? Not a bald eagle sound at all.

Photo credit: Canva

Cheetahs and bald eagles both chirp like little songbirds.

The shriek of a bald eagle is a sound we're all used to hearing in TV and movies. In fact, it's so distinctive that you can probably hear it in your mind as you picture an eagle swooping down to catch unsuspecting prey in its talons, right? But if you were to see a bald eagle in real life, you'd never hear it make that sound. Why? Because that screech is not a bald eagle sound at all. What we think of as an eagle screech is actually the call of a red-tailed hawk.

Yep, we've all been duped. Bald eagles, oddly enough, sound much more like a chirpy little songbird than a big scary raptor, which is probably why the hawk cry is so often used instead. Check it out:

Isn't that pretty? And odd? And they're not the only surprisingly chirpy predator. Cheetahs—yes, the super fast spotted big cat—chirps like a little birdie too. Oh they growl and purr as well as meow like a housecat, but their chirps (technically called a chirrup) are used when they're excited or communicating with their young. Take a listen:

- YouTubewww.youtube.com

There are lots of animals that we don't really associate with a particular sound because we rarely hear what vocalizations they make. If you ask a child what a pig says, they'll say "oink." If you ask what a cow says, they'll "moo." Horses neigh, lions roar, elephants trumpet, and so on.

But what about a porcupine? Nope, no idea. Do they even make sounds? Apparently yes, they do, and it is downright hilarious. They sound like background characters on a video game or a cartoon or something. Check it:

- YouTubewww.youtube.com

That's almost impossible to listen to without laughing, isn't it?

And speaking of laughter, remember that song, "What Does the Fox Say?" It turns out what foxes actually say is, "Hahahahaha." That's right, foxes giggle like schoolchildren.

@arcticfoxdaily

Cleo’s “smile” and her happy giggles are the BEST! Love Arctic fox vocalizations. #wildliferescue #wildliferehab #foxsanctuary #wolfdog #wolfsanctuary #redfox #arcticfox #babyfox #furfarm #furfarmrescue

What about rhinos? Or specifically, baby rhinos? I personally had never even thought about what a rhinocerous sounded like, but assumed they just sort of grunt or make a "humph" sound. Then I saw this video of baby rhinos squeaking and…singing? Almost like whales? Hard to describe, but listen:

- YouTubewww.youtube.com

And, speaking of baby animals, we know that bears can make a fearsome growl when they're all grown up, but baby bears are another story. When they're safe, comfortable, and content, they purr kind of like kittens, only with a bit of a different quality to it.

Watch:

How about an animal that literally sounds like a squeaky toy? The desert rain frog is an adorably tiny frog that lives in a narrow strip of land along the southwestern coast of South Africa and Namibia, and it makes the highest-pitched little squeak you just have to hear to believe.

- YouTubewww.youtube.com

No matter where in the world we live, we hear animal sounds all around us that we likely don't pay much attention to. Birds, frogs, crickets, cicadas, and more make up part of the background noise of daily life—in fact, what we think of as silence usually includes some ambient animal sounds. Some people find certain animal sounds so pleasing and comforting they use recordings of them to relax or fall asleep.

Then there are animal sounds that send chills down our spine. No one wants to be hiking and hear a growl of a bear or the scream of a cougar. A lion's roar or a rattlesnake's rattle is enough to stop someone in their tracks. It's interesting—and understandable—that we are conditioned to enjoy some animal sounds and fear others. But it's the animal sounds we would never expect that make our planet a continuously fascinating world to explore.

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Joy

'Girl, I get it': Opossum devours a whole tuxedo cake from Costco and people totally relate

The wildlife rescue's report was hilarious.

Photo credit: Nebraska Wildlife Rehab, Inc.

The Nebraska Wildlife Rehab center treated an opossum for overindulgence.

When you work at a wildlife rescue, you never know what kind of clientele you're going to get. But the folks at Nebraska Wildlife Rehab found themselves helping an adorable and extra-relatable opossum who devoured almost an entire Costco cake, all by herself, the week before Valentine's Day.

The opossum was caught red-handed by real estate agent Kim Doggett, who had set the Costco chocolate mousse tuxedo cake outside to stay cold when she ran out of room in her refrigerator. Her son was taking another dessert outside to chill as well when he told his mom there was the opossum on the patio sofa.

"I really thought he was messing with me," Doggett told CNN. "So I went over and I turned the light on, I opened the door, and I was like, ‘Oh my.' And then I was like, ‘Oh, it ate the Costco cake.’" Full-bellied, the opossum was lying there panting among the chocolate handprints she'd left behind.

After trying to shoo away the animal without success, Doggett began to worry that maybe the cake was poisonous to the opossum, so she called the American Humane Society. They picked up the indulger and transported her to Nebraska Wildlife Rehab.

Nebraska Wildlife Rehab, Inc.Photo credit: Nebraska Wildlife Rehab, Inc.

The rehab shared a photo of the opossum on Facebook with the message:

"Sometimes a sweet tooth just can’t wait until Valentine's Day! This Virginia opossum was admitted today after reportedly devouring an ENTIRE Costco chocolate cake. With some time in rehab (and a diet reset), this choco-holic should be stabilized enough to return to the wild but until then, she is definitely a little cranky about our strict 'zero chocolate' policy! Same, opossum.... same."

Nebraska Wildlife Rehab said it's actually a good thing she ate so much that she barely move, as it prompted the call to have her evaluated and treated for possible toxicosis.

Not your average intake notePhoto credit: Nebraska Wildlife Rehab, Inc.

People were happy to know she was going to be okay and also welcomed her to the club of cake lovers:

"I relate to this opossum on a spiritual level."

"We’ve all been there, girl."

"I have also begun to breath heavily after eating an entire cake by myself. Maybe not Costco but it definitely has happened more than once. I get it gurl. I get it."

"Sometimes a gal needs a little chocolate."

"STOP SHAMING HER. An entire Costco cake in one sitting is totally normal. Nothing to see here."

"Well, technically if she ate the whole cake at once, she only had one piece. That's my math and I'm sticking to it."

Anyone who's had Costco's tuxedo cake understands. It's…well, just look at it.

Laura Stastny, Executive Director of Nebraska Wildlife Rehab tells Upworthy that the opossum is is being "a model patient" for their staff as she continues to be treated for lead toxicity (not cake related). The staff are delighted that the opossum's story been so popular. "We thought it was funny and entirely relatable—who doesn't want to eat that Costco cake?" Stastny says.

The Doggett family "did everything right" once they discovered the opossum, making sure that she got the care she needed, Stasney explains. "We definitely recommend that people don't leave food unattended outside, but I don't think they could have predicted an opossum would have come out during the day, looking for food on their deck table!" she says.

"Opossums are peaceful and beneficial animals, and we hope this story helps people love and respect them as much as we do," she adds. "We're so happy this family is awaiting her return to their neighborhood."

People have become so enamored with the "Cake Bandit" that Nebraska Wildlife Rehab has created "Wanted: Cake Bandit" shirts that fans can buy to support their rehabilitation efforts. People can also donate to her care directly here.


t-shirt"Wanted: Cake Bandit" t-shirts help support Nebraska Wildlife Rehabdynamic.bonfireassets.com


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Animals & Wildlife

The real reason birds are taking over parking lots all over the country

What in the Alfred Hitchcock is going on here?!

Unsplash & acameronhuff/Flickr

I can't remember the last time I went to a store—say a Target, Walmart, or a big chain grocery store—and didn't encounter roving gangs of birds in the parking lot. Sometimes it's only a few pigeons picking at crumbs and discarded sandwiches, and sometimes it's hundreds of seagulls fanning out like you might sometimes see them on the beach. Sometimes it's even geese, who are notoriously the meanest of the bunch. I've always been curious about why birds love parking lots so much, but never gave it a lot of thought.

Then I realized this is a phenomenon that has been happening all over the country for years. Not just gatherings of birds, but in some cases literal takeovers! Stories out of Texas and Louisiana show crows and grackles invading large parking lots by the thousands, making for amazing viral social media moments.

What in the Alfred Hitchcock is going on here? I wish I could ask the birds what's so appealing about asphalt parking lots? Well, I can't; but I can consult with bird experts.

a black duck on a snowy sidewalk A duck. acameronhuff/Flickr

There are four main reasons birds gather in large numbers in parking lots. First? They look like bodies of water.

I've always thought it was weird that waterbirds like seagulls, ducks, geese, and grebes are so common in parking lots.

The Audobon Society (bigtime bird folks) writes, "To a bird flying at night, [parking lots] resembles bodies of water, especially if their surfaces are wet. Even more so if made to glisten by artificial light." Even during the day, it's easy to see how a big patch of asphalt could look like a lake or pond to a flying bird. It makes sense that they'd want to land there and check it out.

Did you know that some waterbirds like certain kinds of grebes, loons, and swifts have trouble taking off from land due to the composition of their bodies? That means the presence of these confounding-looking parking lots can, sadly, cause some waterbirds to get stranded.

Second: They are open and safe from predators.

Being out in the open when you're a small, vulnerable bird seems like a bad idea, but it might actually be brilliant.

"Most of the bird species mentioned (e.g. Canada geese, seagulls, grackles) tend to find safety in numbers, and in parking lots, as well as open fields, it is easier for the group to be aware of predators, since there are not a lot of places to hide," says Dr. Allison Sacerdote-Velat, Curator of Biology and Herpetology and VP of Conservation Research at the Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum.

That helps explain not just birds' presence in parking lots, but their sometimes extremely large numbers! In a big group, they can help lookout for one another.

Well-lit parking lots are also a safe place for birds to hang out at night. Crows, for example, are a common food source for owls—a predator with notoriously excellent night vision. Crows don't operate as well at night so they sometimes descend on parking lots with bright artificial lights for better visibility and protection.


Three: They're full of free food.

Oh, do we humans love to litter in parking lots! They seem to make an excellent place to toss half a hot dog, a gristly chicken nugget, or dump out our toddler's snack bowl.

That makes parking lots relative buffets for birds who like to scavenge for food. It's a lot easier to wait for humans to drop something than it is to go hunting around for insects and seeds. Parking lots, though, just so happen to have a lot of that kind of food too—most big box parking lots have trees, shrubs, and bushes around the periphery which gives cover and access to natural food sources for birds.

Parking lots also collect puddles which can be used as a water source or a way to grab a quick bath.

gif of a flock of birds flying over scientists Schitts Creek Attack GIF by CBCGiphy

Four: Their usual habitats are disappearing thanks to humanity and climate change

Probably the saddest reason that birds love to gather in parking lots is that they often don't have another choice.

"Habitats such as mudflats, plains, and old fields would provide a similar resource," as parking lots, according to Sacerdote-Velat, but those natural ecosystems are getting harder and harder to come by. If you live in an urban or suburban area (with plenty of parking lots) you've probably seen rapid expansion that's cleared out fields and trees to make room for more development. This habitat destruction has been a major factor in the overall bird population in the United States declining by almost 3 billion since 1970—a staggering, heartbreaking number.

Some people get annoyed or even frightened by large numbers of birds in parking lots. To be fair, grackles—big-time parking lot birds—can be fairly aggressive, as can geese. It's not fun navigating your way around a flock of stubborn and feisty birds when you're just trying to grab a shopping cart and run your errands!

But remember, they're just looking for a safe space to not get eaten by an owl. It's not their fault all the open fields and mudflats are gone—it's ours. The least we can do is respectfully share the back half of our Walmart parking lots with them. Just don't feed them old French fries or even bird seed. They're crafty foragers, these parking lot birds, and they'll do just fine with a couple hundred of their brethren helping them keep a lookout.

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