Flora and fauna of Saskatchewan, Nova Scotia and Alberta among winners of 2nd Annual KBA Photo Contest Winners

The winners of the 2nd Annual KBA Photo Contest were announced this week, with photographs from Key Biodiversity Areas in Saskatchewan, Nova Scotia and Alberta taking first place across the four categories.

Aimed at photographers of all levels living in Canada, the KBA Photo Contest aims to showcase the natural beauty and ecological importance of Canada’s Key Biodiversity Areas (KBAs) and the flora and fauna that call them home.

This year’s contest saw 230 submissions from all corners of Canada, with entries from almost every province and territory. A full list of winners, runners-up and honorable mentions is available here: https://kbacanada.org/2024/12/17/announcing-the-winners-of-the-2024-kba-canada-photo-contest/

Our 2024 winners in each category were:

Fauna: Under the Rainbow by Cairang Jia
After a rainstorm, an elegant Long-billed Curlew stretches its wing under a beautiful rainbow. (Grasslands National Park and Area KBA - Saskatchewan)

Flora: Sand and Scarlet by Lauren Pitt A bright red Winged Dock leaf rests in the sand dunes of Great Sandhills KBA. This striking plant thrives in one of Canada’s unique and fragile ecosystems. (Great Sandhills Candidate KBA - Saskatchewan)

Landscape: A Sliver of Life by Nicole Harrington
This heart-stopping image is of the Western-most tip of Sable Island National Park, taken from a Canadian coastguard helicopter flying scientists in for another field season of studying grey seals. (Sable Island National Park Reserve KBA – Nova Scotia)

People: Counting Shadows by Jason Headley
This photo captures a group of biologists conducting a winter bat count in Cadomin Caves, a vital hibernaculum within the Whitehorse Wildland Key Biodiversity Area. The data gathered contributes to a deeper understanding of colony health and supports efforts to mitigate threats like White-Nose Syndrome. (Whitehorse Wildland KBA - Alberta)

Peter Soroye, Key Biodiversity Areas Assessment and Outreach Coordinator (WCS Canada) said: “This year’s submissions spotlighted the incredible variety and beauty of KBAs and demonstrated the remarkable ability of art to connect us to nature and biodiversity. A heartfelt thank you to all the talented photographers who submitted their entries and to the judges at KBA Canada, who faced the very challenging task of selecting our winners.”