2009: Urban Wildlife - Highly Commended
Andrew Forsyth (United Kingdom)
Water fight
Two young rhesus macaques squabble over a leaking tap on the outskirts of Jaipur city, Rajasthan, India, in blistering 45°C (113°F) heat. Monkeys are an accepted part of city life, their presence tolerated in gratitude for their legendary role in the Hindu god Hanuman's defeat of the demon King Ravana. In the dry season, water resources for the 3 million human inhabitants are stretched to the limit. Though Hindu devotees feed the monkeys regularly, they don't necessarily give them water, and so a dripping tap is a valuable resource. Andrew is doing a long-term photographic study of the macaques and spotted these two youngsters just as one was yanking the other off the tap, hoping for access to a thirst-quenching drip. Both monkeys fell off the tap, but their squabble then turned into exuberant play.
Canon EOS-1D Mark II N + Canon EF 16-35mm f2.8 lens at 35mm; 1/200 sec at f9; ISO 200.
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