Photo of cuckoo being ‘mobbed’ near York wins top prize

By Simon Walton From York Press

A DRAMATIC shot of a cuckoo being mobbed by a tiny warbler has won an international photo prize.

The shot that beat hundreds of others to the top place of the Living World competition run by the Society of International Nature and Wildlife Photographers, was taken from a hide near York.

A British snapper also bagged second place, having to trudge for three miles through knee-deep snow on pack ice in Antarctica to get her shot of a colony of Emperor Penguins.

Entrants from across the globe were highly commended with a stunning shot of a monkey in the forest in Bangladesh, a bright blue lizard in Oman and a ray gliding through the shallows in the Cayman islands.

Winner Keith Bannister from Burnley in Lancashire had to get up at 3.30am to get his picture.

The retired 69 year old said: “My image was taken from a hide near York. I got up at 3.30am to drive to Aberford near Leeds to meet a friend who has a hide in a field near York.

“I was settled in the hide for about 5.30am so not to disturb the birds.

“I had not been in the hide long when a male cuckoo landed on a perch, just in front of the hide, a sedge warbler came in from nowhere and started to mob the surprised cuckoo. The cuckoo just hunched his back and stared at the warbler, who then started to back off.”

Colin Jones The Societies Director said: “The images entered into this competition were of a very high quality and standard, the winning image was chosen due to its expert timing and capture in which fulfilled the theme of the competition.’’

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