Wildlife Photographer of the Year

Adrian Hepworth (United Kingdom)

Petal procession

'I discovered this scattering of tonka-bean-tree petals on the forest floor in Costa Rica and, sure enough, there was a column of industrious worker ants, busily transporting the petals away. I chose a slow shutter to create the pink blur and a flash at the end of the two seconds so the ants would stand out.' Leafcutter ants don't eat leaves or petals. They take them back to their nest and mash them up with their mandibles. They use the pulp to grow a fungus in special fungus gardens deep within their nests. The ants then eat the swollen tips of the fungus. A mature ant colony contains millions of ants, where some care for the fungus, some defend the nest and the rest go out to forage.

Canon EOS 5D + Canon 20mm f2.8 lens; 2 secs at f22; ISO 200; second curtain flash; tripod.