Red. Finalist, Insects. From the photographer: "When I first lay down in the leaves of the rainforest, it did not occur to me that I would spend so many hours there. The ants were tirelessly gathering different plant parts, and by using a flashlight I managed to highlight the variety of different forms and colors." Location: Boca Tapada, Costa Rica #

Small Wonders. 1st Place, Young. Naval: "In the wall of some houses in Calamocha—the village in Spain where I live—it's possible to find pyrolusites. These magnesium minerals create stunning formations, which look just like petrified trees, but they are so small that they're tricky to spot. One day, I was lucky enough to find a Moorish gecko very close to the pyrolusite's wall, so I tried to make the most of the encounter." #

Dicyrtomina Ornata. 3rd Place, Young. From the photographer: "While on a walk in the forest in winter I came across a fallen log covered in moss, and upon looking closer noticed a bunch of globular springtails in the moss. Most of them were quite active which made photographing difficult, but after looking around for a while I spotted this individual staying still." Location: Brandenburg, Germany #

Wood Ants Firing Acid Secretion. 1st Place, Insects. Krekels: "I had been studying the lifestyle of wood ants in the Netherlands for work when I noticed the defending ants of a very large ant's nest seemed eager to scare me off by spraying acid towards me. Luckily it wasn't that destructive, and it provided me with a great opportunity to photograph them defending the nest." #

Heart of the Sea. 2nd Place, Underwater. From the photographer: "This photograph was taken during a blackwater dive in Romblon, Philippines. When the tide and moon phase are right, creatures from the deep migrate to shallower waters. This vertical migration is one of the most remarkable natural phenomena. During the dive, I saw something shining under my searchlight at 28 meters deep. As I swam closer to investigate, I found a larval moray eel curled into a heart shape." #

Beach Grass. 1st Place, Micro. Vlcek: "This microscopic image shows a 30μm cross-section of beach grass (Ammophila arenaria) stained with Auramine O and Safranin and viewed under fluorescence blue excitation. The grass came from a friend's garden in Vienna." #

Ice Fossiel. 2nd Place, Intimate Landscape. Haaksma: "In winter, many of the flooded wetlands in the Netherlands can be skated upon. The ice is often damaged, with pieces being chipped off. On one such occasion, I discovered a small chunk of ice stuck to a frozen twig that made me think of a prehistoric find." #

King of Camouflage. Finalist, Insects. From the photographer: "This tiny and beautiful ground beetle (Elaphrus riparius) is locally common in the lowlands of Belgium along the shores of lakes, ponds and rivers. Despite the striking pattern and flashy colors of green and blue, this beetle is often extremely well-camouflaged. For three consecutive days, I spent a few hours lying in the wet mud in the hope of obtaining a few good images. Eventually an individual sat quietly enough for about a minute, which allowed me to capture the image I had in mind." #

Gimme Shelter. Finalist, Underwater. A juvenile fish takes shelter in the open ocean beneath a blue-button hydroid. Location: Offshore, Eastern Pacific Ocean. #

Vintage Beauty. Finalist, Butterflies & Dragonflies. A male banded demoiselle damselfly begins to dry its dew-covered wings in front of a cobweb in Renkum, Netherlands. #

Undertow. 1st Place, Intimate Landscape. Daróczi: "In the first days of May, I always return to a small canal near Izsák, Hungary, where the water violet (Hottonia palustris) blooms in huge numbers. Unfortunately, flowering was delayed this year and only the leaves were still underwater. I was about to go home when I saw a tree had fallen over the canal and under its reflection the plants were clearly visible." #

At the Pool. Finalist, Insects. Destefano: "Last summer, I spent a few days on the island of Corfu. One afternoon while at the B&B, I spotted this mantis sunbathing at the pool." #

Spider in the Frame. Finalist, Animals. Minghui: "In summer, the leaves of the giant water lily (Victoria regia) in the pond of Xishuangbanna Botanical Garden have been cleaned up by garden workers. On the shore, I found a water wolf spider on the back of one of the giant leaves." #

Don't Lose Your Head. Finalist, Insects. Dzula: "I found this weevil head stuck in an acorn in the late summer of 2022 as I checked my favorite oak tree for weevils." #