2012: Behaviour: Birds - Commended
Sergey Gorshkov (Russia)
The duel
In late May, about a quarter of a million snow geese arrive from North America to nest on Wrangel Island, in northeastern Russia. They form the world’s largest breeding colony of snow geese. Sergey spent two months on the remote island photographing the unfolding dramas. Arctic foxes take advantage of the abundance of eggs and, later, goslings, caching surplus eggs for leaner times. But a goose (here the gander) is easily a match for a fox, which must rely on speed and guile to steal eggs. ‘The battles were fairly equal,’ notes Sergey, ‘and I only saw a fox succeed in grabbing an egg on a couple of occasions, despite many attempts.’ Surprisingly, ‘the geese lacked any sense of community spirit’, he adds, ‘and never reacted when a fox harassed a neighbouring pair nesting close by.’
Nikon D300S + 600mm f4 lens; 1/2000 sec at f5; ISO 640; Gitzo tripod.
View other winners in this category
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Winner Frozen moment Paul Nicklen
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Runner-up The eye of the baitball Cristóbal Serrano
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Commended Dive robbers Jean Tresfon
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Commended Snatch and grab Stefan Huwiler
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