News release

From: Springer Nature

Peeping damselfly wins the 2026 BMC journals image competition

An eye-catching photograph of an orange-tailed marsh dart damselfly peering through a hole in a leaf is the winner of the 2026 BMC Ecology and Evolution and BMC Zoology image competition.

The annual competition showcases the beauty and diversity of life on Earth, while also celebrating researchers and the work they undertake to understand and protect the natural world. This year, the judges selected an overall winning image and a runner-up, alongside winners and runners-up in three categories: Relationships in Nature, Protecting Our Planet, and Research in Action.

Overall winner: ‘Window to the Wetlands’, Sritam Kumar Sethy

The overall winning picture shows an orange-tailed marsh dart damselfly (Ceriagrion cerinorubellum) framed by a hole in a leaf in a freshwater wetland in the state of Odisha, India. The photograph was taken by Sritam Kumar Sethy, a student at Berhampur University, Odisha, who explains that his photo “offers a glimpse into the often-overlooked world of freshwater biodiversity.”

Damselflies are important predators in wetland ecosystems and are widely recognised as indicators of ecosystem health. Their reliance on both aquatic and terrestrial habitats makes them particularly sensitive to pollution, habitat loss, and climate change.

Praising the picture, BMC Ecology and Evolution Senior Editorial Board Member David Ferrier comments: “It is hard not to smile at this beautifully composed and vivid image, in which the damselfly seems to display a remarkable sense of character and presence.” Jennifer Harman, Editor of BMC Ecology and Evolution and BMC Zoology, adds that the photo “highlights the importance of wetlands, which support a remarkable diversity of species yet are among the world’s most threatened and rapidly disappearing habitats”.

The overall runner-up image shows two students at work in the field on a dark, rainy night near Portland, Oregon, USA, attaching a radio transmitter to a northern red-legged frog (Rana aurora). Captured by Ryan Wagner of Washington State University, USA, the photograph demonstrates how technology is being used by researchers to understand animal movement and habitat use, which could help to create safer environments for at-risk species.

Relationships in Nature winner: ‘Giant Cuttlefish in Breeding Battle’, Victor Huertas

Victor Huertas, from James Cook University, Australia, won the Relationships in Nature category with a dramatic snapshot of two male giant Australian cuttlefish (Ascarosepion apama) competing for a female during the species’ annual spawning aggregation in South Australia’s Upper Spencer Gulf. The photo captures the way tens of thousands of cuttlefish use their skin’s pigmentation to vie for mating rights.

David Ferrier describes the image as showing “both the intimacy and intensity of a complex and highly competitive mating display”.

The runner-up picture in the category, photographed by Alwin Hardenbol of the Natural Resources Institute Finland, captures noisy friarbirds (Philemon corniculatus) mobbing a brown goshawk (Tachyspiza fasciata) in Australia. BMC Ecology and Evolution Senior Editorial Board Member Christy Hipsley describes the image  of this common anti-predator behaviour in birds as “like charcoal smudges on white paper”.

Research in Action winner: ‘Intertidal Education’, Liam Brennan

The winning image of the Research in Action category was taken by Liam Brennan of the University of New Brunswick, Canada. His atmospheric photo shows undergraduate students investigating the local fish population under a moonlit sky in the shallow coastal waters of the province.

Edward Narayan, Senior Editorial Board Member for BMC Zoology, says that giving undergraduate students opportunities for research projects can “transform classroom science into action to support crucial ecological and environmental monitoring research”.

The runner-up photograph, captured by Brandon Güell of Florida International University, USA, depicts researchers monitoring aquatic life in the Everglades National Park, Florida, as part of a long-term effort to assess the progress of the ecosystem restoration project currently underway.

Protecting Our Planet winner: ‘A Bridge Between Past and Present’, Allen Tian

Allen Tian, a researcher at Queen’s University in Ontario, Canada, wins the Protecting Our Planet category with a creative drone shot of Long Sault Parkway at the western end of the St. Lawrence Seaway. The stereographic photograph illustrates the environmental disruption caused by past dam construction, alongside the ecological recovery that can follow conservation efforts.

The picture was captured during Tian’s biodiversity research on the seaway, using environmental DNA sampling and drone surveys to monitor ecosystem health without disturbing the resident wildlife.

The runner-up image, photographed by Abhijeet Bayani of MES Abasaheb Garware College, India, celebrates community-led conservation efforts along India’s west coast. It shows an olive ridley sea turtle hatchling (Lepidochelys olivacea) being escorted to the sea by the locals who had safeguarded the nest.

Highly commended images

The judges also highlighted several additional entries which they thought deserved special mention. These include photographs of Florida manatees (Trichechus manatus latirostris) drinking from a freshwater source in the Everglades National Park; a researcher sheltering in a Himalayan cave while searching for evidence of an endangered Himalayan brown bear (Ursus arctos isabellinus) den; and a researcher perched high above the forest floor while monitoring tree bark microbial communities in the Northern Territory, Australia.