The Mammal Society

The story behind the shot......

Roy wins......

"I caught this Rat in a live trap and kept it in a outdoor set I made, the set up is two meters long and a meter wide made of Perspex,it has a plywood front with holes cut in for my camera and flash guns, I placed two rusty paint cans in the set up and the rat would leap from one can too the other,I had to use flash to freeze the action." Roy Rimmer

"This image quite literally ‘leapt’ out at my when I first saw it. If any shot made the ‘ordinary, extraordinary’, it was this one! Perfectly lit and pin-sharp, this cracking image shows the rat’s agility and character perfectly. Often misunderstood and unfairly depicted, I loved the unique energy in this capture." WildlifeKate

The story behind the shot......

Julie wins.....

"I am very privileged to have a fox den in my garden.From day 1 when the cubs first emerge I observe and photograph their antics.they are not tame but I have a strong bond of trust with 2 females that are particularly inquisitive.They interact with my many pets and myself but are wary of strangers .They have both recently found mates but interestingly they stay in the background.All my photos are taken on my Canon Eos 550d in my garden in Hextable Kent." Julie Milne

"What a great image, capturing a moment perfectly. A super idea for a shot, I love the angle of the head and the nose squashed on the window! Sharing moments like this with wild visitors are very special and I think this shot sums this up…. and it made me smile! " WildlifeKate

The story behind the shot......

Gary wins...

"I noticed several woodmice and a vole were feeding on seeds etc falling from the bird table, so I built a nearby enclosed feeding table at ground level just for the small rodents. By gradually raising it a little way off the ground the Mice/Voles would go up a strategically placed ramp. When they were used to this I replaced the ramp with a blackberry stem which they readily took to. They would often grab an item and run back down the stem carrying it. I placed a few Blackberrys and Hazelnuts on the feeder which were eagerly carried off
The best time to photograph them was very early in the morning using several flashguns which also helped to freeze the movement." Gary Cox

"Wood mice are regular visitors in my garden and this wonderful shot caught my eye straight away. Those delicate feet, carefully positioned between the bramble’s vicious spines and that huge blackberry, I felt this image showed this common mammal in an extraordinary way!" WildlifeKate

The story behind the shot......

Becky wins.....

"This photograph will always remind me of one of my most intimate moments with a beautiful British Mammal. I was staying at Malham Tarn Field Centre and one morning before breakfast set out for a peaceful walk to Tarn Moss, a raised bog habitat noted for it's special assemblage of flora and fauna. This Roe Buck, emerged from the early morning mist and we shared a few moments observing one another before the deer leaped away across the Moss. It was worth getting up early to see this usually shy and beautiful animal in these surroundings. " Becky Cartwright

"This atmospheric shot of the Roe Buck on this special raised bog habitat caught my eye straight away. The muted colours and distant shot perfectly captured a special early morning encounter." WildlifeKate

Alex wins......

The story behind the shot......

"Unfortunately this is becoming a much rarer sight in my area with just a few isolated populations left, mainly caused by the American Mink in this area. For this image I was lying down on the muddy bank in order to try and capture the Water Vole at eye level as it fed on the short grass!" Alex Berryman

"A beautiful low-angle image depicted this endangered mammal perfectly. With droplets of water like spectacles on his nose and a nibbled grass stem, I felt this shot of a water vole was a sensitive portrayal of a mammal that conservationists are working hard to conserve." WildlifeKate

Allessandro wins......

The story behind the shot......

"I knew that there was dolphins in the Firth of Forth and they are used to appear during the tides. So I went here to photograph but there were a lot of photographers that wanted to do the same thing . I didn't seen anything!
I had to go in the water (very cold!!!) to take my photos." Allessandro Oggioni

"To get one leaping dolphin in focus in a shot is an achievement… to get two is amazing! This super shot , with the houses in the background, shows how close these mammals come to shore and what an extraordinary moment it is to see them. " WildlifeKate

"Each year a family of Stoats raise young along the rocky edge of the Conwy estuary, in North Wales. This is part of the RSPB reserve and, the young animals quickly become accustomed to people walking nearby along the estuary path. I was fortunate enough to see them on several occasions, and on this instance was lucky enough to see these two juveniles play fighting amongst the rocks and seaweed for the best part of an hour. "

"I took this photo of a male Fox after he had collected two voles and carried them off. I managed to capture this shot of him just after he picked them up. This shot amazed the mammal expert at BBC Wildlife magazine, who said he had never seen a male Fox carry off voles as it’s normally the Vixen who would pick up voles and them to the cubs."

"This surfing seal was taken at Godrevy on the north coast of Cornwall. It
shows interesting behaviour that I have never seen before. I preempted this was going to happen as it was showing signs of being playful, so I stayed even longer to see if it would do what I was hoping it would do."

"Taken at RSPB Rainham Marshes. I was walking back to the visitor centre when I noticed a group of sparrows picking at the stones on the ground. I stopped a minute to watch them when suddenly this weasel burst out of the grass. My instinct was to drop to the ground to get as low as angle as possible and fire off a couple of shots. Luck must have been with me as this was one of the resulting images."

" I had rented a camera for the weekend to photograph a friend's wedding, and so had planned to get my moneys worth by visiting Richmond Park that Sunday morning long before knowing what the weather conditions were likely to be. I traveled with a friend and luck was on our side. We were treated with tall frozen grass and dense fog that lit up golden as the sun rose in to a cloudless sky. As a herd of red deer made they way into a wooded area this stag and two females hung back for a few minutes. Richmond Park is large enough to compose shots that hide any trace of human presence, however this is my favourite shot of the morning: the stag stood facing into the sun mirrored in the tower blocks on the distant hill, their television antennae mirroring his antlers."

"A huge thank you to all those who took part in this year's competition. The first Mammal Photographer of the Year (2013) competition for amateur photographers, in which were looking for images that told a story, showed rare behaviour, highlighted mammals in a fragile environment, or made the ordinary extraordinary, has been a huge success! The aim was to bring mammals into public focus, raising awareness of the issues they face, and hopefully encouraging us to appreciate the species that are often overlooked but essential to the health of our habitats." The Mammal Society