This was published 3 years ago
Comedy Wildlife Photo Awards 2020 winner named: Funniest animal photos of the year
By Craig Platt
Take a look at this year's 44 finalists in the photo gallery above.
An Australian turtle that expressed how we're all feeling about 2020 is the winner of this year's prize for the funniest wildlife photo.
Mark Fitzpatrick's Terry the Turtle flipping the bird image won the overall award from among more than 7000 entries.
The photo was taken off Lady Elliott Island on the Great Barrier Reef.
The image captures Terry as his flipper is pulling back, as he swims towards the camera. It creates the illusion he is making a rude gesture.
"It's been amazing to see the reaction to my photo of Terry the Turtle flipping the bird, with Terry giving people a laugh in what has been a difficult year for many, as well as helping spread an important conservation message," Fitzpatrick, from Mackay, said.
"Hopefully Terry the Turtle can encourage more people to take a moment and think about how much our incredible wildlife depend on us and what we can do to help them. Flippers crossed that this award puts Terry in a better mood the next time I see him at Lady Elliot Island!"
This year's other finalists included a very smiley fish, a greedy puffin, a fox in heated negotiations and a bird with COVID hair. The People's Choice Award winner, voted by the public, went to Roland Kranitz for his charming shot of a singing ground squirrel taken in Hungary and entitled O Sole Mio!
Created by professional photographers and conservationists Paul Joynson-Hicks and Tom Sullam, the global competition aims to highlight wildlife conversation while also giving people a much-needed laugh.
Fitzpatrick will receive a safari trip to the Masaai Mara in Kenya as his prize.
A diverse panel of judges, including photographers, travel editors and comedians, made the decision. There's also a People's Choice Award that the public can vote for online at comedywildlifephoto.com
Several of this year's other finalists were also from Australia: Wei Ping Peng from Sydney captured the snow monkey enjoying a hot bath in Japan; Sue Hollis from Summerland Point on the NSW coast took the pic of the sea lion performing yoga in the Galapagos Islands.
Last year's winner, titled 'Grab life by the ....', by Sarah Skinner featured a male lion about to experience something rather painful, courtesy of a cub.
"Grab life by the ..."Credit: Sarah Skinner/Comedy Wildlife Photo Awards 2019
The awards this year are sharing the following five conservation messages:
SHOP LOCALLY AND RESPONSIBLY
With the recent lockdown, we have all got used to doing things slightly differently, including shopping closer to home, so why not carry on? It helps in all sorts of ways from supporting small, local businesses to shrinking your carbon footprint and is way more fun. And if you can avoid buying un-recyclable products and one-use plastics/packaging, even better.
PUT PLANT BOXES ON YOUR WINDOWSILLS
One of the easiest things to do... put a plant box on your windowsill, grow some flowers, and give the bees somewhere to go. We've all heard of the importance of bees, and this little nod towards their daily requirements is already a huge step in the right direction. Imagine if every windowsill had a flower box! It would be an absolute miracle, so let's start that process.
ONLY FLY LONG HAUL IF YOU REALLY HAVE TO
Something else lockdown has taught us is how amazing the internet is at keeping us in touch with each other. We're all Zoom experts now. Let's embrace this new whizz technology and only take those flights if there is really no other way.
BECOME A "WILD INFLUENCER"
This is a special person who may be not a mega activist, but someone who really cares about the environment and wants to do something to help.
See also: Beastly beach encounters: The ten best Aussie beaches to see wildlife
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