THE PANGOLIN STAYS IN THE PICTURE
September winners of the Sunday Times Wilderness nature photography competition
R2 000 WINNER: ENDANGERED AFRICA | NICKY SOUNESS
THE SECRET ANT FARMER: “This rarely seen ground pangolin (Smutsia temminckii) uses its strong sense of smell and extraordinarily long, sticky tongue to catch ants and termites,” says Nicky Souness, the winning photographer. “Pangolins are increasingly victims of the illegal wildlife trade, killed for their meat and scales.” Electric farm fences mete out a cruel death to these vulnerable animals, who curl around the ground wire in a defensive, ever-tightening ball when they come into contact with it. It is a tragic irony that the animal’s instinctive defence mechanism — meant to protect its soft underparts — is what ultimately kills it.
THE JUDGES SAID:
PA: Beautiful catch. Wonderful composition and lighting. A rare sight indeed. CR: A beautifully symmetrical image, great light and nicely framed with the extended tongue adding an intriguing element. HB: This is an unbelievable image. To see a pangolin is a once-in-a-lifetime sighting. To see its behaviour is something few people are fortunate enough to experience. To capture it is extraordinary. And to capture it as well as this — with perfect timing, perfect lighting and perfect composition — is astonishing. TW: I defy anyone to produce a better shot of a ground pangolin. This image represents a magical alchemy — revealing seldom-seen behaviour produced by a rare, spellbinding animal that is infamously hard to find, let alone observe going about its nocturnal life in such a relaxed way.
R2 000 WINNER: WILDLIFE BEHAVIOUR | LEEANNE ROBERTSON
APPREHENSION: “A young female leopard
(Panthera pardus) peers from behind a tree at her growling father who is protecting his kill up in the tree,” recalls photographer Lee-Anne Robertson. “She looked so sweet peeking out at him but was also quite brave as she suddenly ran up the tree fast as lightning to try to get a bite of the kill. He was up behind her in no time, and she was forced high up into the flimsy branches to avoid him.”
THE JUDGES SAID:
PA: Superb. Plenty of drama and tension because it is not clear what is going on, only that the younger leopard is very wary. Great composition, colour and lighting. CR: A striking, unusual image. The focal point on the female, as well as the male in the blurred foreground, mirror the diffidence, feigned distraction and ambivalence often displayed in such confrontational situations. The female’s half-hidden face says much about leopard behaviour. I love the balance of the autumn leaves against the male leopard’s auburn coat.
HB: Incredible. The interaction and female leopard’s facial expression say it all. Storytelling in a single image is the most difficult kind of art and this one gets it right. TW: The photographer has used everything at her disposal to capture an authentic, intimate portrait that celebrates the vulnerable, elusive leopard in all its intrigue. Masterful framing, composition and observation of behaviour.