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British photographer Mark Mescone spent four days trekking through Rwanda’s Virunga Mountains in search of gorillas, and his patience and determination finally paid off.
There he met a young male gorilla who was willing to show off his dancing skills. Mescone captured it on camera and won the top prize at this year’s Nikon Comedy Wildlife Awards.
“One young man was particularly enthusiastic about displaying his acrobatic talents, including pirouetting, tumbling and high kicks. It was a pure joy to watch him perform, and I’m thrilled to be able to capture his playfulness in this image,” Mescone said in a press statement, referring to his work “High Five,” which also won the mammal award.
Organizers said this year was a record year for the annual competition, with more than 10,000 entries from 109 countries received and winners announced at a ceremony in London on Tuesday night.
The judges narrowed down the entries to 40, which were then presented to a panel of judges to select the overall winner and category winners.
Finalists were judged in seven categories, including the Reptiles, Insects and Fishes category and the Young Photographer category. There’s also a People’s Choice Award, with public voting open until March 1 on the contest website. A further 10 applicants also received high marks.
Winners in this category include 13-year-old Grayson Bell from the United States, who won the Nikon Junior Photographer Award (for ages 16 and under), and won the Reptiles, Amphibians, and Insects category for his work “The Baptism of an Unwilling Convert,” which depicts two frogs wrestling in the water.
Paula Rustemeyer from Germany won the Nikon Young Category (for photographers under 25) for her playful shot of a fox entitled “Let’s go to the dance floor.”
“All of the category winners capture the natural world with joy, skill and imagination, and Mark’s winning image perfectly captures the playful spirit of wildlife. At Nikon, we support these visual storytellers and provide them with the tools to share their unique perspectives. We are very proud to be able to offer this service, which will inspire audiences around the world to connect with and care for our planet’s amazing wildlife,” Stefan Meyer, Nikon Europe’s senior general manager of marketing, said in a press statement.
The winner, along with the competition’s other finalists, will be on display at gallery@oxo in London until 14 December.
Editor’s note: Call to Earth is a CNN editorial series dedicated to reporting on the environmental challenges facing our planet and their solutions. Rolex’s Perpetual Planet Initiative has partnered with CNN to promote awareness and education on key sustainability issues and inspire positive action.
