Ye Ye, a 16-year-old giant panda, lounges in a massive wild enclosure at a conservation center in Wolong Nature Reserve.Ami Vitale for National Geographic Magazine, winner in the Nature - Second Prize, Stories category.
The human thirst for progress means animals’ natural habitats are increasingly under threat. Francis Perez’s distressing image of a sea turtle entangled in fishnets perfectly captures this tension between nature and its artificial enemy and won First Prize in the World Press Nature Singles category.
Meanwhile, as the endangered species Red List increased by 16,118 last year alone, Brent Stirton’s documentation of rhino poaching in Africa serves as a painful reminder of man’s complicity. The series was awarded first prize in the Stories category.
“We have to recognize that the way we treat animals is a mark of our humanity,” says Magnum photographer Stuart Franklin, the chair of this year’s jury. “It’s as much about humanity as it is about nature. I respect hugely what Brent Stirton has tried to show.”
Ami Vitale’s playful depiction of giant pandas in captivity took second place and Bence Máté’s starry portraits of nature’s majestic heavyweights took third place, both in the Stories category.
The winning photographs were selected from among 80,408 images submitted by 5,034 photographers from 125 different countries. In the end, 45 photographers from 25 countries made up the winning list. They will receive their awards at a ceremony in Amsterdam on April 22.
A sea turtle entangled in a fishing net swims off the coast of Tenerife, Canary Islands, Spain, on June 8, 2016.Francis Pérez, winner in the Nature - First Prize, Singles category.A wild leopard strolls through Sanjay Gandhi National Park, a protected area in the northern part of Mumbai city, India, on Sept. 24 2016.Nayan Khanolkar, winner in the Nature - Second Prize, Singles category.A carpet of monarch butterflies cover the forest floor of El Rosario Butterfly Sanctuary, in Michoacan, Mexico, on March 12, 2016, after a strong snowstorm hit a few days earlier.Jaime Rojo, winner in the Nature - Third Prize, Singles category.A Black Rhino Bull is seen dead, poached for its horns less than eight hours earlier at Hluhluwe Umfolozi Game Reserve, South Africa.Brent Stirton—Getty Images for National Geographic Magazine, winner in the Nature - First Prize, Stories category.Two rhino poachers, one 19, the other 28 years old, apprehended by an anti-poaching team in Mozambique close to Kruger National Park border.Brent Stirton—Getty Images for National Geographic Magazine, winner in the Nature - First Prize, Stories category.Dawie Groenewalt, South Africa's alleged Rhino horn kingpin and the subject of a six-year-old court case involving multiple charges related to illegal Rhino horn theft and money laundering amongst other charges. He is seen on his game farm in Polokwane where he breeds high-end game for sale and hunting purposes.Brent Stirton—Getty Images for National Geographic Magazine, winner in the Nature - First Prize, Stories category.Care For Wild Africa is a donor-run organization that specializes in caring for wounded animals. They have a special focus on rhino and have taken in many rhino orphans from the poaching wars across South Africa at this time. Their latest orphan is Lulah, her mother was killed in Kruger National Park and when the rangers found her she was estimated to be one month old. Hyenas had attacked the tiny calf and chewed off her ears and parts of her nose, as well as a big bite off of her rear right leg.Brent Stirton—Getty Images for National Geographic Magazine, winner in the Nature - First Prize, Stories category.Ye Ye, a 16-year-old giant panda, lounges in a massive wild enclosure at a conservation center in Wolong Nature Reserve. Ami Vitale for National Geographic Magazine, winner in the Nature - Second Prize, Stories category.Seven-year-old giant panda Min Min had a baby girl at Bifengxia Giant Panda Breeding and Research Center in Sichuan Province, China.Ami Vitale for National Geographic Magazine, winner in the Nature - Second Prize, Stories category.Caretaker Li Feng cradles her precious charge by the window of Bifengxia’s panda nursery, the most popular stop for visitors touring the facilities. More than 400,000 people visit each year to glimpse and snap photos of China’s most beloved baby animals.Ami Vitale for National Geographic Magazine, winner in the Nature - Second Prize, Stories category.The Chinese know how to breed the popular bears. Now they're releasing them into the wild, where the animals and their habitat face risks.Ami Vitale for National Geographic Magazine, winner in the Nature - Second Prize, Stories category.Buffalos at the drinking station.
Bence Máté, winner in the Nature - Third Prize, Stories category.Hippopotamus under the starry sky.Bence Máté, winner in the Nature - Third Prize, Stories category.African Elephant under the starry sky.Bence Máté, winner in the Nature - Third Prize, Stories category.Fallow deer walk in the silence of the night.Bence Máté, winner in the Nature - Third Prize, Stories category.
