Sadly, I also came to realize that this extraordinary diversity often goes unnoticed and underappreciated by the public, with very little representation in mainstream media. Currently, freshwater biodiversity is being lost at rates two to three times faster than that of marine and terrestrial environments, yet these ecosystems and the life within them continue to receive very little attention. And if you’re a wildlife photographer hoping to make the cut next year, you’re in luck—entry to the 58th annual competition closes December 9. This year, more than 500,000 images from photographers in 95 different countries were entered into the museum’s 57th annual Wildlife Photographer of the Year competition. The Museum has already chosen its winners of the overall competition, which includes pictures of grizzlies chowing down, reindeer locking antlers, and giant newts-making sweet, sweet love.

Amateur Honorable Mention: Reddish Egret

In the meantime, zoo staff hope these new additions will inspire a new generation of conservationists. In this secure setting, Tián has chosen her preferred nest box and has been diligently caring for the cubs, who are now 3 months old and beginning to explore their environment by learning to climb. The photos above and below were included among six that formed the winning Photo Story entry. The effects of the Covid-19 pandemic will likely linger for years to come — including those on our environment. The production of single-use plastics has skyrocketed, largely driven by the surge in epidemiologically-necessary but ecologically-devastating personal protective equipment. The climate in the reserve is arid and cold and the growing season is limited to about two months a year. So, vegetation is scarce and mineral-streaked mountains provide the landscape with an otherworldly atmosphere.

Pay a visit to Fontainebleau, the town cradled at the heart of the forest, with a UNESCO-listed palace that was a home for monarchs from the 1200s up to Napoleon III in the 19th century. The forest is so vast that it’s worth popping into the tourist office for trail maps, whether you’re walking or mountain biking. Later the tombs were designed during the monarchs’ lifetimes and become very elaborate, like the renaissance marble sculpture for Louis XII and Anne de Bretagne. Two of the trees in this garden have been awarded the label “Arbre Remarquable de France”, a weeping https/jakefitzjones.com/ blue atlas cedar and a myrsine-leaved oak, an extremely rare variety. Sprawling over 60 hectares, the Parc de la Vallée-aux-Loups is a set of parks and gardens on the southern fringe of Paris. Those lovely 17th-century outbuildings have housed the Musée d’Ile-de-France since 1973, with exhibitions about the history of Paris and special attention paid to the Parisian art scene in the early-1900s.

This lounging Ethiopian wolf is one of just a few hundred of its kind in the world. The species is the planet’s rarest wild dog, threatened by habitat loss and diseases caught from domestic dogs, such as canine distemper and rabies. They placed their camera among the cerulean-hued cornflowers in a nearby meadow and waited for one of the swallows to fly overhead. Using a remote shutter, they snapped this image as one of the birds passed above, framed amid the blossoms against a white sky. A monkey lifts a plastic bottle to its mouth on a beach covered in them, in this image by photographer Claire Waring of the U.K.

Bird Photographers

Focusing on this cub, he was lucky enough to capture the moment it lifted its head from the water, licked its lips and gazed straight into the camera. Spain Iberian lynx are among the world’s most endangered cats due to habitat loss, decreasing food sources, car collisons and illegal hunting. The international jury of industry experts has been announced and the entry fee for photographers entering from 50 countries will be waived. Amateur photographer Nathan Arnold spotted this reddish egret while kayaking at sunrise in San Carlos Bay–Bunche Beach Preserve, in Fort Myers, Florida. Joel is the founder of the Photo Ark, a groundbreaking effort to document species before they disappear—and to get people to care while there’s still time. The Photo Ark is honored to be supported by and grant funded by National Geographic.

This mushroom, illuminated by a simple flashlight, was one of many fungi growing around the photographer’s house in Toplepada, India’s countryside. During the monsoon season, the mushrooms release a golden plume of spores throughout the day for almost a month, a common but often-ignored phenomenon. What looked to be mountains from the ground turned out to be extinct volcanoes as captured by this drone shot taken on a cloudy day in June during the period of the midnight sun in Fjallabak Nature Reserve. This Kermode bear, also known as ‘spirit bears’ or ‘ghost bears’, due to their unusual white color, is one of only a few hundred in this subspecies of the American black bears living on remote islands in northern British Columbia. Lentorre, nestled alongside the Maasai Mara grasslands in Kenya, is a highland region known for its breathtaking natural beauty.

These bugs often display bold colors that not only make them stand out but also serve as warning signals to predators. In Northern California, scientists have discovered that salamanders contribute to carbon storage by preying on invertebrates that feed on decomposing organic matter. These creatures engage in behaviors such as shredding and tearing leaves, a process that releases carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. By controlling the populations of these leaf-feeding invertebrates, salamanders effectively help prevent excess carbon from being released, allowing more of it to remain locked in the organic matter on the forest floor. This not only contributes to the overall health of the forest ecosystem but also supports the critical process of carbon storage.

Yet, over the last 50 years, the reality is that such experiences have become increasingly rare. With so many old-growth forests lost to logging and environmental stressors, many people today never have the chance to walk among these giants or witness the complex ecosystems they support. This loss of connection has created a shifting baseline and a new normal for what the public perceives as a healthy forest. Late December, under the Northern lights, after the fish are finished, the bears move to the high mountains to dig their snow dens and start hibernation. That role reversal, a plant that eats animals, has become a popular novelty for many people, driving a lucrative market in cultivated plants — and sadly, the poaching of wild ones. A pod of sperm whales in the Indian Ocean tolerated the photographer’s proximity long enough for him to catch one of the mothers nursing her baby, almost at the water’s surface. Not so easy to hold your breath and drink at the same time — for the baby whale, that is.

The body of the European Firebug is black with red vertical, diagonal, and horizontal stripes. Nymphs are especially easy to spot as they tend to congregate, living in colonies as a defensive strategy, making them less likely to be preyed upon. Their unique coloring and habitat preferences distinguish them from other seed bugs. The bug’s elongated oval body makes it easily recognizable, and it thrives in diverse habitats, including various elevations and regions across the U.S., as well as Asia and Oceania. Their populations are often left unchecked, as they have few natural predators due to their unpleasant taste. A mythical place opened in 1994, where modernity meets history and science to tell the story of the great adventure of biodiversity. In a realm of giants, the role of some of the smaller organisms can’t go unstated.