![\"Durdle](\"https:\/\/www.naturepl.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/naturepl_01699794-360x240.jpg\" "\\"Durdle")
<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure>![\"Northern](\"https:\/\/www.naturepl.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/naturepl_01700027-360x240.jpg\" "\\"Northern")
<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure>![\"Striped](\"https:\/\/www.naturepl.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/naturepl_01700830-360x240.jpg\" "\\"Striped")
<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure>![\"Caribbean](\"https:\/\/www.naturepl.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/naturepl_01699584-360x240.jpg\" "\\"Caribbean")
<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure>![\"Polar](\"https:\/\/www.naturepl.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/naturepl_01698408-360x240.jpg\" "\\"Polar")
<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure>![\"Quiraing](\"https:\/\/www.naturepl.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/naturepl_01700936-360x240.jpg\" "\\"Quiraing")
<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\nJohn Waters – Squirrel Athletes<\/h2>\n
Photographer John Waters would have preferred to photograph native red squirrels. However, since the 1890\u2019s the arrival of grey squirrels from North America has decimated their population in England. Waters spent most of his professional career filming for wildlife film productions but when not filming he gets his image making fix from stills photography.<\/p>\n
\u201cI walk through this churchyard near Bristol most days on my way to the shops and noticed the squirrels using the gravestones as stepping stones,\u201d says Waters. Grey Squirrels can be seen throughout the year but are more energetic and active in the Autumn months. During this time their main priority is to eat as much as possible to fatten up and store food for the winter.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt took many hours before I started to get good photos of the squirrels jumping across the grave stones. They needed to get used to me plus my camera and long lens. The squirrels often get food scraps from local people on lunch breaks and so their trust in people made it easier for me to get close. I love gaining the trust of a wild animal and that\u2019s what I like about these photos. They show the squirrels as they are: plucky, bold, charming and fantastically athletic!\u201d<\/p>\n
![\"Grey](\"https:\/\/www.naturepl.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/naturepl_01700101-360x240.jpg\" "\\"Grey")
<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure>![\"Grey](\"https:\/\/www.naturepl.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/naturepl_01700081-360x240.jpg\" "\\"Grey")
<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure>![\"Grey](\"https:\/\/www.naturepl.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/naturepl_01700102-360x240.jpg\" "\\"Grey")
<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\nAlejandro Prieto – The Future of Jaguars<\/h2>\n
Solitary, beautiful and elusive, the jaguar is the biggest native feline to roam the Americas. Over the past 20 years, though, jaguars have become even more elusive as their population has dropped by more than half. With fewer than 3,500 left in the wild, they are considered a critically endangered species in many countries, including Mexico. Here they have suffered habitat fragmentation, illegal hunting, loss of prey and conflict with humans (especially ranchers trying to protect their livestock). This photo story, by Alejandro Prieto, captures the beauty of the jaguar and the difficult reality it faces in Mexico.<\/p>\n
A Risky Shot<\/h3>\n
Jaguars have disappeared from the US in the last century, mostly due to habitat loss and control programs intended to protect livestock. \u201cI aimed to capture a jaguar crossing the Mexico-US border,\u201d says Prieto. \u201cSince this task is practically impossible, it occurred to me to symbolically project an image of a wild jaguar on to a section of the US-Mexico border wall.\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n Efficiency was the key to capturing this image. \u201cThe main challenge was without a doubt the insecurity,\u201d Prieto explained. \u201cCartels use this area to cross drugs and people into the US. I had some scary encounters with them, but luckily it didn’t get any worse. I was able to project images of jaguars I took in Mexico onto the wall and use a long exposure to bring out the starry sky, adding more drama to the image. <\/span>Eventually, I captured this image in Sky Island, between the states of Sonora and Arizona.<\/span> This is the last area a jaguar was recorded crossing from Mexico to the United States.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI wanted to show wild jaguars from an angle never seen before,\u201d says Prieto. The vision was to capture the animals from below. However, the task proved to be very difficult and full of challenges. \u201cFirst, I needed to find a path where the jaguars pass often and then locate a narrow section, channelling the jaguars to the particular spot where I will place my camera. I found a spot in \u2018La Papalota\u2019, a private reserve located in the south part of Marismas Nacionales, Nayarit. Here, I buried a camera trap pointing upwards. I had to bury everything, including all the cables, making it tricky to check the trap as I had to dig it up every time. I also had to clean the lens every two days as it was constantly getting dirt on it. Patience was definitely the key to getting these images.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n Every year on the 15th<\/sup> August the people of the little town of Chilapa de Alvarez in Guerrero, Mexico dress<\/span> up in jaguar costumes during the festival \u2018La Tigrada.\u2019 Each costume is unique and handmade using wooden masks and the hair and teeth of wild pigs. The celebration is probably the most important celebration dedicated to any animal in the country. Jaguars have a very strong influence on both pre-Hispanic and modern cultures. During the festival people pray to the jaguar god, known as Tepeyollotl, for fertile earth and plentiful of rainfall. However, the modern reality of this town is that jaguars disappeared many years ago. Now the town is a very violent place and crime rates are among the highest in the country. <\/span><\/p>\n Jaguars are endangered across Mexico, partly due to illegal hunting. In Quintana Roo <\/span>Prieto<\/span> discovered a man with two jaguar skins in his house. \u201cAfter a long time searching small towns, I eventually found someone with skins,\u201d says <\/span>Prieto.<\/span> \u201cHe agreed to let me photograph them if I kept his identity hidden.\u201d The increasing demand for jaguar parts in Asian markets has directly worsened the problem. \u201cDuring this documentary I heard several stories of Chinese people looking for jaguar fangs and skins,\u201d says <\/span>Prieto.<\/span> Unfortunately, the strict measures taken by the Chinese government against tiger poaching, has meant that China has found the perfect substitute for the lust for tiger parts: jaguars. <\/span><\/p>\n On the Italian coast near Naples lies an area of exceptional heritage known as the Phlegraean Fields or Campi Flegrei. Literally translated as the “burning fields”, this is a huge 13 kilometre wide caldera containing multiple volcanic craters. The volcanic field has seen some extremely violent eruptions, although during historic times the eruptions have only been small. However, frequent episodes of major ground deformation, in the form of large-scale uplift and collapse, have had consequential impacts on Baia. Built during the Roman era, the city was once chosen by rich Romans for holidays, vices and pleasures. Now due to the ground collapsing, the settlement is populated by fish under the sea.<\/p>\n Photographer Franco Banfi took the opportunity to explore and capture this underwater Atlantis, which is more than 2000 years old. As Banfi finned his way along an ancient paved road running through Baia, he saw the ruins of villas, palaces and spas. \u201cNo other place in the world has such treasures,\u201d says Banfi. \u00a0\u201cSwimming through the various zones of this now marine protected area, revealed what life was like in Baia.\u201d<\/p>\n Zone A covered the Villa dei Pisoni, occupying approximately 290 x 270 m of the seabed, at 5 to 8 m depth. Baia was built for nobility and was home to the imperial family. Extravagance and luxury resulted in bizarre and refined architectural forms.<\/p>\n Close to the villa lie the remains of the Nymphaeum Triclinium (banquet hall) of the Emperor Claudio. The entry of the building was built on the side of the sea and water came inside the rooms surrounding a U-shaped platform. On the platform were Triclinium beds on which people lay while dining and having parties. Foods were probably served on floating plates sailing on the water giving the impression of eating suspended in the waves.<\/p>\n \u201cI finned along spaces once frequented by the emperor, his court, his lovers and Roman statesmen. They spent time eating and drinking, making alliances and conspiracies, doing business and indulging their wildest desires,\u201d says Banfi. \u201cAristocrats could come and shed their public persona and pursue pleasures in private. What happened at Baia stayed at Baia, which was a scandalous and luxurious party town.\u201d<\/p>\n The building was covered with natural limestone, coloured marble and polychrome mosaics made of glass gems and shells. \u201cI swam among statues adorning the nymphaeum that represented the family of the Emperor. The sculptural decoration seemed to incite the visitors to enjoy the joys of life.\u201d<\/p>\n At the end of the fourth century A.C., the first signs of the slow downward movement began. Later, the entire land of Baiae dropped more than six meters when the underlying magma chamber of this volcanically active region emptied. If the sea had not swallowed the coast, much of this heritage would have been lost forever.<\/p>\n Now it is impossible to separate the archaeological aspects from the biological ones. The symbiosis between human history and marine life is evident since most of the marine organisms adhere, proliferate and find shelter on the submerged archaeological structures. A wide variety of organisms like octopus, small crustaceans and reef fish prowl among the submerged city. The city is also adorned by\u00a0 sedentary organisms, such as algae, sponges, sea anemones, sea urchins and starfish.<\/p>\n \u201cFirst, I made a reconnaissance dive and a deep study of the map and historical representations. It was important to plan my pictures so that I didn\u2019t forget something. During the dives I followed a certified guide, who temporarily fanned away the sediments covering floors and mosaics before covering everything again after I took my photos. If he didn\u2019t, the marine fauna and flora will attack the ruins. I often played hide and seek with schools of fishes grazing above the tiles. Everywhere the guide pointed there were treasures I was excited to capture.\u201d<\/p>\n Churchill is a small town situated on the southern shores of the Hudson Bay. This place is special as it is situated smack bang in the middle of a historic migration route for polar bears. In the Autumn a good number of polar bears cover the tundra and shores. Photographer Danny Green has been travelling here for over 10 years now to capture the spectacle.<\/p>\n \u201cThis is what the bears have been waiting for,\u201d explains Green. \u201cWhen four or five males come together in Churchill something special happens. The males start to play fight.\u201d Scientists think this is to test their strength so that when the polar bears fight for the right to breed, they know which males they cannot compete with. \u201cI personally think it is just a bit of fun to pass the time as they wait for the ice to form,\u201d says Green. \u201cThis sparring is unique to Churchill and is one of the best things to witness in the natural world. Two of the largest predators on earth just messing around.\u201d<\/p>\n Females avoid the sparring males and stay further inland. As the ice starts to form along the coast the males are the first to head out in the search for their first meal since the spring. \u201cIt is at this point you can start to see females with cubs,\u201d says Green. \u201cThey can be very nervous at this critical stage because they could bump into a large male at any time. As a result, I haven’t had many opportunities to photograph females with young cubs. When I spotted this female and two cubs walking across the frozen lake it was pretty special (below left).\u201d<\/p>\n Photographer Steven Kazlowski has been photographing polar bears since 1999. Not a lot of photographers chose to capture the arctic environment at this time. Kazlowski decided to take on the challenge. He lived in a station wagon and worked in a local hotel in Kaktovik on Barter Island, photographing the bears in his spare time. Kaktovik was one of the best places to photograph the bears as they stay there a long time. Today Kazlowski has an incredible collection of polar bear images, including the following most recent of his images.<\/p>\n Photographing one of nature\u2019s most formidable predators, weighting up to 700kg, in the harsh arctic environment does not come without its challenges. Careful assessment of weather conditions and the behaviour of the polar bears is vital, otherwise the task can be very dangerous. Kazlowski explains that 20 years of observing and learning to understand the animals has allowed him to predict where the bears will be and whether it is safe to approach them. Understanding their behaviour and biology is imperative for getting intimate shots of the animals.<\/p>\n The image below is described by Kazlowski as one of the \u201cmost special pictures I have ever taken.\u201d By positioning a camera with a remote trigger on the end of a pole Kazlowski was able to capture this polar bear looking directly towards the camera. Multiple encounters with the bear meant its shy personality began to shine through. \u201cHe was a gentle giant, curious by nature but jumping back at any movements I made,\u201d says Kazlowski. \u201cI had to hold my breath to capture this image.\u201d<\/p>\n Every day of photographing bears in the arctic is a new unique scenario. \u201cThe day this image was taken (bottom right) it was freezing cold. The lagoons were icing over, by a millimetre per hour, and there was going to be no boating tomorrow,\u201d says Kazlowski. \u201cAs this polar bear shook water from its head the droplets froze mid-air.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cAnother special shot for me is this low angle, telephoto image of a polar bear at sunset (bottom left). The black silhouette of the bear is the same colour as the land, connecting the bear to its environment. The bear and the land are one and the same, symbolising the interconnected nature of our natural environment.\u201d<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Eight Mile Rock of the Adang-Rawi Archipelago, Thailand held no interest to divers, until the pandemic. The location was an ugly sight, covered in ghost nets from commercial fishing boats. However, \u201cduring the pandemic a few divers discovered, from local artisanal fishers of the Urak Lawoi ethnic group, that whale sharks often visit this site,\u201d says photographer Shin Arunrugstichai. The whale sharks feed on plankton soup and the site is now reported to have the highest sightings of whale sharks in Thai waters.<\/p>\n However, this revelation has come with problems. The local Urak Lawoi group deploy fish traps on the pinnacles. The cleverly designed and carefully located fish traps are highly selective, targeting specific groups of fish. The catch is generally low in contrast to the destructive, non-selective fishing gear utilized by industrial fishers. These techniques largely contribute to overfishing in Thai waters. Unfortunately, recreational divers do not understand the difference and occasionally destroy the traps or release the fish caught.<\/p>\n \u201cSome engagement and understanding would help ease this conflict between small scale fishers and recreational divers,\u201d says Arunrugstichai. \u201cThis way everybody can use the pinnacle and its marine resources in a sustainable way.\u201d<\/p>\n Photo Ark is a ground breaking effort to document species before they disappear. Founder and photographer, Joel Sartore, shares his recent experience capturing the personalities of some of the quirkier species:<\/p>\n \u201cThe naked mole rat was the first species I photographed for the National Geographic Photo Ark some 16 years ago at the Lincoln Children\u2019s Zoo in Lincoln, Nebraska, USA. I have photographed more than 13,000 species since then, including this reshoot of the naked mole rat at the St. Louis Zoo. They have a social structure similar to bees, with a queen, soldiers and workers. These fascinating animals are basically blind, living in a complex of tunnels they dig with their teeth. Really amazing in every way.\u201d<\/p>\n <\/p>\n![\"An](\"https:\/\/www.naturepl.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/naturepl_01698689-360x240.jpg\" "\\"An")
<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\nA New Perspective<\/h3>\n
![\"Jaguar](\"https:\/\/www.naturepl.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/naturepl_01698682-360x240.jpg\" "\\"Jaguar")
<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure>![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.naturepl.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/naturepl_01698680-360x240.jpg\" "\\"Low")
<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\nJaguars in Local Culture<\/h3>\n
![\"Local](\"https:\/\/www.naturepl.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/naturepl_01698678-360x240.jpg\" "\\"Local")
<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure>![\"A](\"https:\/\/www.naturepl.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/naturepl_01698656-360x240.jpg\" "\\"A")
<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\nFranco Banfi – Atlantis<\/h2>\n
A Place of Royalty<\/h3>\n
![\"Ancient](\"https:\/\/www.naturepl.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/naturepl_01699551-360x240.jpg\" "\\"Ancient")
<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure>![\"Statue](\"https:\/\/www.naturepl.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/naturepl_01699566-360x240.jpg\" "\\"Statue")
<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\nLife in Baia<\/h3>\n
![\"Scuba](\"https:\/\/www.naturepl.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/naturepl_01699556-360x240.jpg\" "\\"Scuba")
<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure>![\"Detail](\"https:\/\/www.naturepl.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/naturepl_01699570-360x240.jpg\" "\\"Detail")
<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure>![\"Ancient](\"https:\/\/www.naturepl.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/naturepl_01699572-360x240.jpg\" "\\"Ancient")
<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\nSinking City<\/h3>\n
Capturing the Ruins<\/h3>\n
![\"Scuba](\"https:\/\/www.naturepl.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/naturepl_01699562-360x240.jpg\" "\\"Scuba")
<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\nDanny Green – Polar Bear Battle Ground<\/h2>\n
The Males<\/h3>\n
The Females<\/h3>\n
![\"Female](\"https:\/\/www.naturepl.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/naturepl_01701038-360x240.jpg\" "\\"Female")
<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure>![\"Two](\"https:\/\/www.naturepl.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/naturepl_01701012-360x240.jpg\" "\\"Two")
<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\nSteven Kazlowski – Bear Necessities<\/h2>\n
Challenges of the Arctic<\/h3>\n
![\"Polar](\"https:\/\/www.naturepl.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/naturepl_01698439-360x240.jpg\" "\\"Polar")
<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure>![\"Young](\"https:\/\/www.naturepl.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/naturepl_01698430-360x240.jpg\" "\\"Young")
<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\nSpecial Shots<\/h3>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.naturepl.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/naturepl_01698397-300x121.jpg\")
\n![\"Adult](\"https:\/\/www.naturepl.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/naturepl_01698437-360x240.jpg\" "\\"Adult")
<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure>![\"Young](\"https:\/\/www.naturepl.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/naturepl_01698442-360x240.jpg\" "\\"Young")
<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\nShin Arunrugstichai – A Marine Misunderstanding<\/h2>\n
![\"Whale](\"https:\/\/www.naturepl.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/naturepl_01699976-360x240.jpg\" "\\"Whale")
<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure>![\"Bigeye](\"https:\/\/www.naturepl.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/naturepl_01699977-360x240.jpg\" "\\"Bigeye")
<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\nJoel Sartore \/ Photo Ark – Portraits of the Weird and the Wonderful<\/h2>\n
Naked Mole Rat<\/h3>\n