The National Audubon Society, which has been around for more than a century, has been set up to protect birds and the places they live throughout the Americas. Each year, the National Audubon Society allows photographers from across the United States and seven Canadian provinces to submit their best bird photographs. The contest, which is in its 11th year now, has been showcasing the talent of an array of photographers from all over the world who present our beautiful avian friends in their natural habitats.
The 2020 Audubon Photography Awards has yet again brought forth a majestic array of birds across the western hemisphere. Out of more than 6,000 entries, New York-based photographer Joanna Lentini secured the grand prize for her extraordinary photograph of a double-crested cormorant diving into the waters off Mexico. “I’ve spent many hours underwater at this California sea lion rookery in the Bay of La Paz, but I had never before encountered diving cormorants there,” she told Audubon.org. “Shifting my focus from the playful sea lions, I watched in awe as the cormorants plunged beak-first into the sea to snap at the sardines swimming by. Although I spent a long time admiring these birds, I didn’t see a single one catch a fish. Adding insult to injury, curious sea lion pups would zip by the hunting birds and nip at them from behind.”
Here, we present Lentini’s stunning award-winning photograph along with a few other winners from the 2020 Audubon Photography contest.
1. The Grand Prize Winner
Double-crested Cormorant in Los Islotes, Mexico. Photograph by Joanna Lentin.
2. Amateur Winner
Bare-throated Tiger-Heron in Tárcoles River, Costa Rica. Photograph by Gail Bisson.
3. Amateur Honorable Mention
Anna’s Hummingbird at Ardenwood Historic Farm, California. Photograph by Bibek Ghosh.
4. Fisher Prize Winner
American Dipper in Yosemite National Park, California. Photograph by Marlee Fuller-Morris.
5. Plants For Birds Winner
American Goldfinch on a cup plant in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Photograph by Travis Bonovsky.
6. Plants For Birds Honorable Mention
Tennessee Warbler on an eastern prickly gooseberry in Point Pelee National Park, Ontario.
7. Professional Winner
Magnificent Frigatebird in Genovesa Island, Ecuador. Photograph by Sue Dougherty.
8. Professional Honorable Mention
Greater Sage-Grouse in Jackson County, Colorado, USA. Photograph by Gene Putney.
9. Youth Winner
Northern Jacana in New River, Orange Walk District, Belize. Photograph by Vayun Tiwari.10. Youth Honorable Mention
Greater Roadrunner in San Joaquin River Parkway, California.
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