MARCH 14, 2024 KATE MOTHES
Ryan Stalker, “Ocean Drifter.” British Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2024 and Winner of Coast & Marine category. Goose barnacles (Thoracica), Portland, Dorset, England. All images © the photographers and British Wildlife Photographer of the Year
The winning images of the British Wildlife Photography Awards 2024 exhibit the beauty, spectacle, and fragile balance of the British Isles.
From urban scavengers to dramatic standoffs to microscopic molds, the winning images of the British Wildlife Photography Awards 2024 exhibit the beauty, spectacle, and fragile balance of the isles’ diverse animals and habitats. The final selection emerged from more than 14,000 submissions, featuring a wide variety of species, terrains, and behavior.
The overall winner, “Ocean Drifter” by Ryan Stalker, features a soccer ball floating in the water with dozens of goose barnacles attached to the bottom. An unlikely—and unnatural—host for the creatures, the object landed on the shore in Dorset after making a journey across the Atlantic Ocean.
“Goose barnacles are not native to the U.K. but can wash up on our shores during powerful Atlantic storms,” Stalker says. Curious about the ball’s journey, Stalker captured an example of the way human negligence or waste can accommodate potentially invasive species, which can have profound impacts on delicate ecosystems. […]
Simon Withyman, “Day Walker.” Winner, Urban Wildlife category., Red fox (Vulpes vulpes), Bristol, England
Max Wood, “Running on Water.” RSPB Young British Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2023 and winner of 15-17 Years category. Coot (Fulica atra), Frensham Little Pond, Surrey, England
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