The British Ecological Society has announced the winners of its annual ecology-themed photo competition. From boas, birds, and birches, through to a three-toed sloth trying to cross the road, this year’s crop is a wondrous celebration of our planet’s remarkable diversity.
Hundreds of ecologists and students from around the world submitted their photos for this year’s BES contest, of which only 15 were chosen as winners. The judging panel included six ecologists and award-winning wildlife photographers who selected photos that best conveyed our planet’s diverse ecology, whether animal or plant.
The overall winner shows a Malagasy tree boa perched in a tree, in a photo taken by Roberto García Roa. Other winners included a stunning birch forest, a glowing scorpion, and a Southern rhino having its horn trimmed to dissuade poaching.




The winning images will go on display in Belfast next month, in a BES conference that will bring together 1,200 international ecologists to discuss their research.
DISCUSSION
After staring at it for awhile, the leafcutter bee nest is an engineering marvel. Very good stuff. It’s got form, function and HVAC all figured out. Freaking amazing how mother nature can build without plans and specs. She makes engineers feel superfluous. But hey, that doesn’t mean mother leafcutter bees have time for poetry and journaling of thoughts.