UPY 2025

UPY  Compact - Commended
'Misfire'
Jo Taylor

After being relentlessly pursued by two ‘pumping' male stallions, this large yellow female seahorse anxiously attempts to transfer her eggs to her chosen mate at the height of a copulatory rise as the contender falls away.
Mating is difficult for inexperienced seahorse pairs to accomplish successfully and many of her bright eggs were spilt in the process. I had this rare & exciting opportunity whilst diving in the Lembeh Strait. Owing to the flexibility of compact photography, I was able to capture the heat of the moment!

Judge's comment: A fantastic behaviour capture. In my experience seahorses form long lasting pairs, so it is fascinating to see an example of a second male trying to muscle in on the action and presumably contributing to the spilt eggs. Focusing on such moments can be hard enough with a state of the art mirrorless cameras, so capturing this action with a compact camera is particularly impressive.

Alex Mustard