Here it is, the ever anticipated results of this year’s photo competition.
This year was one of the most successful yet, with 56 applications, highlighting the diverse array of work, hobbies, fungi, plants and animals encountered by you all. We feel very fortunate to have seen each application. We want to thank each and every one of you for your submissions. Every year, the competition to be the new image of the blog is fierce, and this year was no exception.
With 56 applications, we somehow had to create a short list. Thankfully for us, the wonderful Siobhan McDonald, an Irish artist that has collaborated with Trinity’s School of Natural Sciences on numerous occasions, took on this job. Siobhan was tasked with selecting 8 photos, which she did in her stride. Thank you so much Siobhan for selecting such an amazing shortlist – we couldn’t have done it without you!
Next came the task of selecting which one of the 8 would be our winner. This is where you came in. Thank you to everyone who voted on this year’s competition! We had great engagement in the poll, which saw three images constantly battling for the top position. One image in particular started to take the lead, and received over 30% of the votes. Before we jump ahead and announce the new face of EcoEvo, let’s take a look at the top 8, who are all worthy of the title.
The 2023 Shortlist
Blue rayed limpets by Katrin Schertenleib
When snorkeling in Wicklow, I found some of these beautiful, mysterious marine gems: blue-rayed limpets (Patella pellucida) sitting between encrusting bryozoans on some serrated wrack. Their bright blue, iridescent stripes are marvellous to look at and reflect far under water. The stripes are caused by special mineralized (not organic) structures in the limpet shells and might be some mimicry to trick potential predators (DOI: 10.1038/ncomms7322).
Katrin is a PhD student in Zoology, working in the O’Connor lab in the Zoology Dept., who just recently submitted her thesis, and was the winner of last year’s competition. Her Twitter handle is @KatMarSci
Vervet Monkey by Niamh McCartan
This image was taken at a campsite on Lake Baringo, Kenya, in October 2018 while on a field course trip with the Zoology Department.
Niamh is a PhD student in the Luijckx Lab in the Zoology Dept., researching disease dynamics and outbreaks on host-parasite interactions in Daphniamagna.
Proboscis pollination by Elena Zioga
The plant Lilium chalcedonicum can be found in Greece, parts of Italy and Albania. This lily has an interesting way of ensuring pollination. The blooms hang downward, offering nowhere for pollinators to perch, so this lily is usually pollinated by insects with a long proboscis. These include moths, like Zygaena ephialtes which fly from bloom to bloom, and suck out the nectar with their long proboscis. In the picture, you may observe its proboscis rolled under its head.
Elena is a PhD student in the Stout Lab in the Botany Dept., who just recently submitted her thesis, and is evaluating the potential for pesticide contamination of floral resources and its impacts on plant-pollinator relationships as part of the PROTECTS project.
Puffed Robin by Whitney Parker
This robin (Crepe Bench Robin) was trained during a Biodiversity and Conservation master’s thesis project, which tested whether European Robins generalized their experience with familiar food by presenting them with an assortment of food arranged in a color gradient.
Whitney is a PhD student in the Luijckx Lab in the Zoology Dept., researching how disease burden and prevalence differs between Daphnia magna individuals that vary in both genotype and geographic origin.
The Poached Egg Fungus by Luke Quill
Pictured is Oudemansiella mucida, known as the poached egg fungus, growing from a tree.
Luke is a PhD student in the lab in the Botany Dept., identifying species of Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi that are present in an agro-ecosystem, which will be incorporated into a myco-phytoremediation plan for edge of field control of agricultural runoff.
Facing Upstream by Frank Spellman
Standing on Mendenhall Glacier looking up-glacier towards its source. Pollen from the surrounding coniferous forests of Tongass National Forest add a brown dusting on top of the ice, and low groans echo as the ice slowly moves down the valley.
Frank is a research masters student in the O’Connor lab in the Zoology Dept., applying ecological theory to improve the stability of yields of cultivated macroalgae, and quantifying the ecological impact.
Endophytic filamentous fungi by Diego Bianchi
Fungi isolated from leaves and roots of wild relatives of barley.
Diego is a PHD student in Hodkinson and Murphy group in the Botany Dept., researching Biostimulants and Biopesticides for Crop production.
The Winner Is…..
Eyes up to the sky submitted by Jenny Bortoluzzi
Dr. Aoibheann Gaughran pictured while bird netting in Áras an Uachtaráin as part of the biodiversity survey carried out by the TCD team of ecologists. This image being the winner of the photo competition this year is even more meaningful, as Aoibheann’s bright presence is continually missed in the department. Aoibheann is pictured here doing what she loved, which is how she will always be remembered.
Jenny is a PhD student, who just submitted her thesis, in the Jackson and Payne lab group in the Zoology Dept., focusing on the ecology and conservation of elasmobranchs, studying variation in trophic niches, blue shark feeding ecology, and socio-economic links between angling and conservation in Ireland.
Once again, thank you to everyone who submitted a picture – the competition was very strong! A special thanks again to Siobhan for creating the shortlist and to everyone who voted.
As the semester flies by, the EcoEvo annual Photo Competition draws ever closer!
The 2022/2023 showcasing will be the sixth instalment in the series and if previous years are anything to go by, the judges will have an extremely tough time choosing a winner. Year on year, the bar seems to have risen ever higher so we’re excited to see what you have in store for us!
For those of you in the dark, the EcoEvo Photo Competition is one of the most highly anticipated events of the year for Botany and Zoology, with the winner receiving prestige and respect from the Trinity Natural Sciences cohort. If that isn’t enough for you, the photo that claims first prize also gets to be shown off for year, becoming the new cover photo for the EcoEvo Blog and profile image on all social media pages. This competition gives us all a chance to present the amazing and strange snippets of our research that often miss out on the opportunity to be shared, so send us on whatever you’ve got!
Katrin Schertenleib captured a beautiful moment between two adult Puffins (Fratercula arctic) off the coast of Wexford on the Great Saltee island last year. Currently the poster image for the EcoEvo blog, is it soon to be succeeded by the 2022/23 winner! Clickhere to see the other entries from last year’s Photo Competition
To enter into the competition, all you have to do is send your photo along with a short caption and/or story to the EcoEvo email account (ecoevoblog@gmail.com). Following on from the successful system of previous years, the entries will be anonymized and sent to an unbiased third party to be judged, ensuring that an equal and fair opportunity is given to each and every participant.
Winners From Earlier Competitions
The five previous exhibitions have each produced a fantastic array of photos. With snapshots coming from the corners of Southeast Sulawesi to the Galapagos Islands and even up to high latitudes of the Arctic. Members of Botany and Zoology have brought us to some of the most amazing and beautiful landscapes on Earth.
To see the 2017 Photo Competition entries, clickhere
The winner of the inaugural Photo Competition back in 2017 stole the show with a wandering Alpine Salamander (Salamandra atra). This little guy was captured by Alain Finn high up in the Swiss Alps.
To see the 2018 Photo competition entries, click here
Dr Laura Russo was next to snatch first prize in 2018, with the winning snapshot being taken closer to home. This chocolate mining bee (Andrena scotica) found a comfy spot on Laura in the Trinity Botanic Gardens at Darty.
To see the 2019 Photo competition entries, click here
Jenny Bortoluzzi claimed the 2019 win with an incredible photo from her expedition to the high Arctic where she and her team had the once in a lifetime opportunity to see a female polar bear (Ursus maritimus) in her natural environment. While stunningly beautiful, this image also strikes a chord – a daunting reminder of the uncertain future of the polar regions.
To see the 2020 Photo competition entries, click here
A male Rufous-tailed hummingbird (Amazilia tzacatl) snatched the win in the 2020 showcasing of the Photo Competition, and rightfully so! These tiny birds are notoriously difficult to photograph but Floriane O’Keeffe managed to capture one mid-flight, an impressive feat.
We hope that seeing some of the past winners and runners up strikes ambition within you to photograph everything in the natural world around you. With all that said and done we eagerly await your submissions! Please send them in before the end of December. Winner to be announced in the New Year.
We wish you all the best of luck in the sixth annual EcoEvo Photo Competition!
An interview with basking shark researcher Haley Dolton
The basking shark, Cetorhinus maximus, is the second largest shark in the world and is regularly seen swimming off the coast of Ireland. But how much do we really know about these ocean giants? In this installment of the EcoEvo blog our co-editor, Lucy Harding sat down with PhD candidate and basking shark researcher, Haley Dolton to find out what it’s like studying these enormous sharks.
Lucy: So Haley, what was it about sharks that first got you interested in them?
Haley: I remember first being interested in sharks when I was reading an encyclopedia of animals and I read that sharks were fish! And that kind of blew my mind because of what I knew about sharks, they were more like mammals in my head; really powerful, can birth live young, can be social. So yeah, that really intrigued me. And when I started reading about them (because this was before the Internet!), and learnt more, like that they have these amazing senses, electrical senses, and they’re capable of doing amazing behavioural things, I think that really sparked my interest in sharks.
Three basking sharks swimming together in Irish waters (photo captured by Haley Dolton).
Lucy: What sets basking sharks apart from other large-bodied sharks, for you? Why study them over white sharks for example?
Haley: I know this sounds almost like a throw-away answer but I actually kind of fell into basking shark research, and then I grew to love them! It was the first opportunity that I was given to work in shark research in the Isle of Man, working with Manx Basking Shark Watch, and I just remember the first time I saw one I was like, “Oh my God, what is that?!” and it came right up to the boat, and I remember being shocked by the size of it! Any shark documentaries I’d seen, the only sharks really that were featured years ago were great whites because they’re the most *air quotes* “exciting” shark, but then I saw this basking shark, with the way it swims and what it looks like and I thought “Oh that looks like a great white but it’s massive!”. I think that that really sparked my interest in them.
I learned more about them from being in the field and reading about them, I was trying to figure them out because they didn’t make a lot of sense to me. For example, they feed on zooplankton (so they’re filter feeders) and they’re the second largest shark species capable of undertaking powerful behaviours, but they feed on microscopic prey, all of this got me thinking “How are they doing this?!”. So I got obsessed with how weird they are! Like how are they behaving like they do?! As another example, they aggregate in large numbers, and we don’t really know why!
(Haley scans the water hoping to spot a shark fin. Photo captured by Dr Nicholas Payne).
We think it’s maybe related to mating or for saving energy, as they swim close to each other, but you know seeing that in the wild, for yourself, it really sparks the ideas in the mind and that set me on the path to studying basking sharks over any other shark species. That’s not to say that I’m not interested in other shark species of course, but more that it was just circumstance which led me to basking shark research in the first place, and then I fell in love with how weird they were!
Lucy: Well, that’s a good point you make in that, for research, you don’t always have to follow a particular species or a particular project. If you more follow opportunities, you never know where they’ll lead you to, and it could lead you into something that interests you more than you realised!
Haley: Yeah, that’s it! When I went to the Isle of Man, I learned loads about research and what areas of research there were. So, for instance, we were doing satellite tagging and collecting DNA samples and this is what I actually wanted to go into at the time, I wanted to use DNA to carry out genetic research of shark species and look at the evolution of traits. And so, I originally started off being interested in that question and then when I saw that they were doing this amazing satellite tagging work, with behavioral and social studies, whether that’s on the human side, so looking at the impact of anthropogenic activity on basking sharks, or whether that’s the social side of the fish themselves, studying how they gather in large numbers! So, that’s where I first got introduced into loads of different scientific areas of research which focused on this one species.
“without knowing enough about your study species, you can’t effectively conserve them”
Lucy: So, are basking sharks an endangered species?
Haley: Yes, basking sharks are an endangered species. They’re endangered globally which means that they’re of ‘conservation concern’. The reason that we’re researching them, particularly in the Payne lab at the minute, is because we don’t really know a lot about what makes them tick.
Aerial view of basking shark feeding off the West coast of Ireland. The gills can be seen fanned open as the animal filter feeds (photo captured by Haley Dolton).
We’re trying to learn more about them because without knowing enough about your study species, you can’t effectively conserve them. To give an example, imagine if someone was trying to conserve me and they saw one day – let’s pick a really bad day – where I’ve gone to the pub for hours, then eaten a pizza, and I haven’t really moved a lot. It might make people think, that’s all I do so let’s give her that all the time! Well, I wouldn’t last very long! I’d have a great time, but I wouldn’t be very healthy.
And that’s why we study these animals, to get as much information as possible to really affect conservation policy and change because these are vulnerable species.
There were massive fishing industries for them, including in Irish waters, and although we no longer have those fisheries, they’re still very vulnerable to being accidentally caught in things like pot lines or in other fisheries related equipment. They are a vulnerable species to lots of kinds of anthropogenic activity, making conservation efforts even more important.
Two basking sharks swim underwater, off the West coast of Ireland (photo captured by Haley Dolton).
Lucy: And you said they are filter feeders and very large, so does that make them a difficult species to study?
Haley: Basking sharks are an unusual study species for sharks, in that we can’t fish for them or attract them to the boat, so we can’t research them in the ways we would with other species where you can do that. So, we’re very dependent on where and when they turn up and whether there’s a good weather window for us to get out and study them, which off the Irish coast is quite rare! So, everything needs to come together to allow us to go out and study them and in reality, I only have around six days to get my tags deployed, which just highlights how difficult they are to study.
Lucy: What does your current research on basking sharks focus on?
Haley: My current research really focuses on getting back to basics of what we know about the general biology of these animals. For example, looking at their anatomy, whether that’s the larger structures or microscopic features. I’m looking at how their anatomy can explain their behavior. So, as I said there’s so much we don’t know about basking sharks.
At the minute, off the Irish coasts, we’re getting hundreds of them in the spring and then later on throughout the summer, and they’re displaying this amazing behavior where they all gather and swirl around each other, which we think might lead to mating, but ultimately we don’t really know why they display this behaviour! So, my research is really focused on trying to explain these behaviors by looking at their anatomy and physiology and what we as scientists, the general public, or policymakers, can do to effectively conserve this species in Irish waters.
“it’s a really exciting time to be part of basking shark research in Irish waters”
This is all going on at an exciting time for basking sharks in Irish waters! Recently it was announced that they’ll hopefully gain protection under the Irish Wildlife Act and there’s been incredible public support for this in Ireland so it’s a really exciting time to be part of basking shark research in Irish waters and to hopefully make a positive change within their conservation.
Lucy: And when you’re out in the field, how do you actually study these animals?
Haley: Well, firstly we work closely with other researchers and the general public who very kindly tell us where and when they see the sharks; we’ve had loads of great sightings (and skippering of boats!) from the Irish Whale and Dolphin Group (IWDG) and individuals from different tour operators off the Irish coast like West Cork Charters (Dave Edwards) and Nick Masset (also part of IWDG), whose based near the Blaskets in Dingle, and of course, social media, which tells us where and when sharks have been seen. Then, we’ll scramble to get all our field kit ready and head over to the West Coast!
Normally with shark research we go out to a place where people are already fishing for sharks (for catch and release) or where we’re fishing for them for scientific research and this normally involves attracting them to the boat (with bait) but because we can’t do that with basking sharks, we basically drive the boat up and down the coast slowly, surveying with binoculars to try and spot that characteristic fin sticking out of the water.
The dorsal fin of a basking shark breaking the surface. Three other sharks can be seen finning behind also (photo captured by Haley Dolton).
Lucy: And so, when you do spot a fin, what happens next?
Haley: In basking shark research we actually deploy the biologgers without touching the shark at all (apart from the actual deployment itself). We carefully approach the shark in the boat, deploy the tag, and then we’re off again! This all takes a matter of seconds, so that we’re actually only beside the animal for a couple seconds as we deploy the biologger. Some sharks don’t even react at all, they just carry on swimming or feeding at the surface, which is a good indication they haven’t been disturbed.
I should point out that any research we do on sharks is conducted under license from the HPRA (Health Products Regulatory Authority) ethics board for animal studies, as to not cause stress to the animals.
Haley uses a radio antenna to listen for the radio tag they have attached to a basking shark (photo captured by Scott DeGraw).
Lucy: How is your research going so far? What are your plans going forward for the research?
Haley: The research that is focused on basking shark biology, ecology and behavior has gone really well so far and we’ve found out some really, really interesting things which I’m dying to talk about but I can’t at the moment, but watch this space! There’s lots of cool stuff coming soon!
My research interest has grown from my supervisors, Nick Payne, Andrew Jackson and Jonathan Houghton, supporting my curiosity for this species and a collaboration I made when I first started shark research all those years ago (Jackie and Graham Hall who ran Manx Basking Shark Watch). Now this project is growing and we’ve established new collaborations with some incredible researchers from Oregon State University (Big Fish Lab) and Stanford University, who came over this year for fieldwork. Together, we’re trying to collect and analyse even more data about what the sharks are doing and how they’re behaving. There’s been lots of steep learning curves with doing this research as well, but overall, it’s gone really well and we found out some really cool stuff, which will hopefully come out soon!
“if you do see something, take lots of pictures”
Lucy: That’s great, I can’t wait to see what you’ve found out! Well, for my last question, as a lot of our readers may not necessarily be in the scientific field, is there any way they could get involved in conservation efforts or research to help these threatened sharks?
Haley: Yes! People can get involved by reporting their sightings of any sharks to groups such as the Irish Basking Shark Group and Irish Whale and Dolphin Group and these can feed into scientific research. Also, if you do see something, take lots of pictures because then it’s possible to identify individuals by nicks and cuts on their dorsal fin and this is a great example of a non-invasive way of looking at social behavior or whether sharks are returning year on year to an area, indicating it might be an important area for feeding or breeding or pupping.
You can also get involved with any campaigns that you see going on for the protection of these animals. Support from the public, alongside the work and support from Minister Noonan and TD Jennifer Whitmore is actually what was instrumental in the recent campaign to have the basking shark added to the Irish Wildlife Act; it was a great campaign led by the Irish Basking Shark Group to get basking sharks protection in Irish waters and part of that was a petition that was signed by the general public. It gained incredible support from the public, with I think over 20,000 signatures, which is amazing and hopefully they’ll be protected under Irish law soon.
Haley is a PhD student in Zoology at Trinity College Dublin, and you can find her on Twitter @haleydolton. Haley’s work has been funded by the Irish Research Council, with support from the Fisheries Society of the British Isles. Nick Payne is funded by Science Foundation Ireland.
Today we are celebrating our science using pictures! Here below, you can find a collection of pictures from our PhD student and research staff from Trinity College Dublin who kindly participated in this initiative.
Drumroll please! It’s the moment we’ve all been waiting for! The votes have been cast, they’ve been counted and recounted, and we can finally showcase the entries and reveal the winner of the 4th EcoEvo blog photo competition!
It’s that time of year when we redecorate the blog and change the wallpaper with the help of our contributors and their photography skills. That’s right, it’s the 4th annual EcoEvo Blog Photo Competition!
Many of
Earth’s plant and animal species are at imminent risk of extinction. But with
the resources necessary to conserve them so sorely limited, where should
efforts be focused? The term “ecological triage” has been coined for
such decision-making, after the system invented by French army medics to sort patients by
the urgency of their need. This borrowing of metaphor from the Napoleonic and
World Wars is not accidental: in envisaging the damage done to nature by
humanity, you are to think of cannonballs and scorched earth and mustard gas.
Being on lockdown has me dreaming of our recent field season in New Zealand. The home of “Middle Earth” is a paradise for outdoor enthusiasts and going through the photographs from my own unexpected(/meticulously planned) journey is making my imagination run wild. Unique wildlife, towering mountains, endless waves, campsites with a view…
This past August, I was lucky
enough to visit the Galapagos Islands during my travels through South America.
My visit here was quite possibly the highlight of my trip, with plenty to keep
me thoroughly engrossed.
Set some 1000 km off the coast of South America, the Galapagos Islands were first stumbled upon by Tomas de Berlanga in 1535 when his ship was blown off course during a voyage between Panama and Peru. It was almost three hundred years later before the first human briefly settled on the islands, in 1807. However, this was due more to necessity than desire, as the settler in question was marooned on the islands. The islands were eventually made famous by Charles Darwin, who visited aboard the HMS Beagle in 1835, and used his observations of the island species as the basis for his “Origin of Species”.
An array of some of the commonly sighted species in the Galapagos: a blue-footed booby rests in the foreground with a juvenile marine iguana to its right. Behind it are a Galapagos penguin and a Sally lightfoot crab. Continue reading “The Galapagos Islands: paradise lost?”
Once again, the time has come for the annual Eco Evo photo competition! The third instalment of the competition saw some wonderful submissions from across the School of Natural Sciences, and the top spot was fiercely contested. Due to their desire to participate, the editors stepped away from the judging process and the shortlisting was conducted by an unbiased third-party and the photos were anonymised. Finally, the vote for the winning photo was put to the Trinity School of Natural Science, again the photos were anonymised.
Read on to see the full gallery of submissions and to find out which photo was chosen as the winner.
Photo by Jenny Bortoluzzi.
A Green turtle swims away with its trusty remora after feeding on seagrass in the Bahamas. Remoras and turtles enjoy a symbiotic relationship as the fish removes parasites and keeps the shell clean while receiving benefits in the form of food, transport and protection.
