A striking image of a captive gorilla watched through the glass of his enclosure by a small boy has won the prestigious 2003 Wildlife Photographer of the Year Competition.
The winning image was taken by German photographer Gerhard Schulz who was able to observe both gorillas and visitors to the Miami Metrozoo in Florida from a glass panel at the opposite end of the enclosure.
鈥淢any people came by, pointed at the lowland gorillas and continued on their way, but this boy stopped and stared in awe,鈥� Schulz says. 鈥淚t was their expressions that made such an impression on me. There was such a depth of feeling in the gorilla鈥檚 eyes, and the boy leant against the glass as if he wanted to reach through and make contact.鈥�
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A total of 90 images were commended by the competition鈥檚 judges, who chose from more than 20,000 entries from 60 countries. Categories include Animal Behaviour, Animal Portraits, The Underwater World and Wild Places.
Another poignant photograph from the same category, The World in our Hands, shows a dead lynx slung over the shoulder of Swedish hunter. Magnus Elander took the picture to illustrate the damage humans are causing to Sweden鈥檚 wild predators.
鈥淚t鈥檚 a big threat,鈥� Elander told New Scientist. 鈥淚 use four legged carnivores as a mirror of ourselves.鈥�
There are just 1400 lynx left in the wild in Sweden and they are killed by local villagers to protect roe deer, which are a valuable source of meat. Poachers also target brown bear, wolves and wolverines.
Elander was unable to find poachers willing to be photographed so his image is of a lynx killed as part of a controlled breeding program. 鈥淚 asked the keeper to drape the body across his shoulders so the focus would be on the animal and the conservation message came across loud and clear,鈥� he says.
The winning image from the Animal Behaviour: Birds category reveals a vole鈥檚 eye-view of a barn owl about to swoop down on its prey. Photographer Nick Oliver revealed that capturing such an unusual perspective required some trickery.
He attached a toy vole to a length of wire and poked it out of a tube to attract the hunting owl鈥檚 attention.
鈥淭o start off she was quite interested, then I thought it wouldn鈥檛 work鈥� Oliver says. 鈥淏ut I gave it one last try and she hovered just long enough for me to pull the trigger. It was the only way to get the picture.鈥�
All of the winning images in the 2003 competition will be displayed at the Natural History Museum, London, UK, from 18 October 2003 until 18 April 2004.
All photographs courtesy of The Wildlife Photographer of the Year Competition, organised by the Natural History Museum and BBC Wildlife Magazine.