(Image: Robin Orrow/BWPA)
You talking to me? This grey wagtail is squaring up to itself in a car’s wing mirror, demonstrating how highly territorial its species can be.
The photograph, taken by Robin Orrow, won the Animal Behaviour category in this year’s British Wildlife Photography Awards.
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The image shows a momentary flurry of activity, but took much effort to capture after Orrow noticed the bird attacking his car’s wing mirror in front of his house.
“He was clearly defending his territory against what he thought was a rival,” Orrow says. “Every time he attacked, it took a split second, and then he finished off with a quick poo on my car.”
Orrow, an amateur wildlife photographer, didn’t let the bird’s filthy finishing touch put him off the opportunity to capture a stunning image. He set up a portable hide and even moved the vehicle to get the light right. He then took several hundred shots over a period of nearly two days before the bird lost interest in its reflection.
The grey wagtail’s efforts were equally fruitful, Orrow says – the bird went on to successfully rear a clutch of little ones.
The Under-12 category was won by this image of a shocked hare by 8-year-old Liam Constantine (Image: Liam Constantine/BWPA)
The winning photos are on display at the Mall Gallery in London until 7 September, after which they will be on show at several museums and galleries in the UK. The images are also collected in a book, British Wildlife Photography Awards: Collection 4.
Spot the snail in this winning photo by James Knight in the Hidden Britain category (Image: James Knight/BWPA)
See more winners at the British Wildlife Photography Awards website.
For more fowl facts, read about the wondrous ways birds see the world and how birds are living dinosaurs.
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