Overview

• BMC Ecology and Evolution named Andrey Giljov’s photo of two male Saiga antelopes locking horns in the Central Asian steppe as the competition’s top winner.
• Editors praised the shot for highlighting the antelopes’ tubular noses and posed a question about the males’ chances of surviving this breeding season under modern threats.
• Sritam Kumar Sethy’s image of newly hatched leaf bugs clustering on a leaf’s underside won a prize for capturing a behavior that boosts group protection and moisture retention.
• Abhijeet Bayani’s photo of a beetle in a defensive posture shows the insect headbutting the camera and remains taxonomically unresolved despite consultation with experts.
• The annual contest aims to bridge field research and public engagement by showcasing animal behaviors and underscoring conservation and taxonomic challenges.