Biodiversity photo competition:
our winners

You helped us showcase the breadth of
biodiversity in the UK

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Published 24 June 2021, updated 5 July 2021

Published 24 June 2021, updated 5 July 2021

Are the Government’s current plans on biodiversity enough? We wanted to find out, so we launched an inquiry into biodiversity and ecosystems in July 2020.

We invited members of the public to help us highlight the breadth of biodiversity in the UK by participating in a photo competition. The winners will be featured on the cover and in the report itself.

From frogs to red squirrels to violets, each entry we received serves as a visual reminder of why protecting biodiversity is so important. Thank you for your contributions.

Blue Damselflies taken by Michael Swailes, submitted on his behalf by Elaine Swailes, is featured on the front cover of our report and others appear inside.

The competition was judged by Committee Chairman Rt Hon Philip Dunne MP, with help from committee staff.

"I would like to thank each and every person that sent in their photographs of UK wildlife. As expected, the entries varied significantly: from shrubs and trees, to mammals and amphibians, and even insects of all shapes and sizes. They were captured in numerous locations: from fields to moors, back gardens and underwater."
Rt Hon Philip Dunne, Committee Chairman

Read on for our favourites, which you can also see in our report.

Two bright blue damselflies in the shape of a heart against a green background

Our front-cover winner: Blue Damselflies, taken outside Exeter on the river Exe. Photo by Michael Swailes, submitted on his behalf by Eileen Swailes.

Two bright blue damselflies in the shape of a heart against a green background

Our winner. Photo by Michael Swailes, submitted on his behalf by Elaine Swailes

Our front-cover winner: Blue Damselflies, taken outside Exeter on the river Exe. Photo by Michael Swailes, submitted on his behalf by Eileen Swailes.

Eleven other incredible images are featured in the pages of our report. Scroll on to see them in full. In no particular order:

common shield beetle on lavender in front of a purple background

Common Shield Beetle at Somerset Lavender Farm. Photo by Dr. Akif Ali Khan @psychodiagnose.

A Northern Gannet bird diving underwater in black and white, except for its head in blue and yellow

A Northern Gannet, taken near Noss in Shetland. Photo by Philip Hayman, @ty_nant on Instagram.

a yellow canary-shouldered thorn moth up close on a green leaf

Canary-shouldered thorn moth, pictured on Dartmoor. Photo by Charlie Elder, @charlieelderTH on Twitter.

common shield beetle on lavender in front of a purple background

Photo by Akif Ali Khan @psychodiagnose

A Northern Gannet bird diving underwater in black and white, except for its head in blue and yellow

Photo by Philip Hayman, @ty_nant on Instagram

Canary-shouldered thorn moth, pictured on Dartmoor. Photo by Charlie Elder, @charlieelderTH on Twitter.

Common Shield Beetle at Somerset Lavender Farm. Photo by Dr. Akif Ali Khan @psychodiagnose.

A Northern Gannet, taken near Noss in Shetland. Photo by Philip Hayman, @ty_nant on Instagram.

Canary-shouldered thorn moth, pictured on Dartmoor. Photo by Charlie Elder, @charlieelderTH on Twitter.

Green and pink anemones underwater

Jewel anemones in Hand Deeps near Eddystone Lighthouse. Photo by Jon Copley @expeditionlog.

Jewel anemones in Hand Deeps near Eddystone Lighthouse. Photo by Jon Copley @expeditionlog.

Squirrel at the base of a tree, eating

Squirrel in Cairngorms National Park. Photo by Michael Cuff.

Frog poking out of the spout of a watering can.

Frog in watering can, Tiptree. Photo by Tony Bond.

Purple heather in bloom against a rolling green background

Heather, Ashdown Forrest, East Sussex. Photo by Eloise Cuff.

Squirrel at the base of a tree, eating

Squirrel in Cairngorms National Park. Photo by Michael Cuff.

Frog poking out of the spout of a watering can.

Frog in watering can, Tiptree. Photo by Tony Bond.

Purple heather in bloom against a rolling green background

Heather, Ashdown Forrest, East Sussex. Photo by Eloise Cuff.

Squirrel in Cairngorms National Park. Photo by Michael Cuff.

Frog in watering can, Tiptree. Photo by Tony Bond.

Heather, Ashdown Forrest, East Sussex. Photo by Eloise Cuff.

Close-up photo of a dragonfly covered in water droplets.

Black Darter Dragonfly, Scotland. Photo by Tina Beck.

Black Darter Dragonfly, Scotland. Photo by Tina Beck.

Owl in flight at dusk

Owl in flight. Photo by John Stembidge @stembidge.

bee covered in pollen on a pink dahlia

European honeybee on a garden dahlia in Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire. Photo by Phill Dixon @PhillDixon1.

Sunset filtering through a forest

Pine Trees on Ockham Common, Surrey. Photo by Andrea Bayley.

Owl in flight at dusk

Owl in flight. Photo by John Stembidge @stembidge.

bee covered in pollen on a pink dahlia

European honeybee on a garden dahlia in Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire. Photo by Phill Dixon @PhillDixon1.

Sunset filtering through a forest

Pine Trees on Ockham Common, Surrey. Photo by Andrea Bayley.

Owl in flight. Photo by John Stembidge @stembidge.

European honeybee on a garden dahlia in Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire. Photo by Phill Dixon @PhillDixon1.

Pine Trees on Ockham Common, Surrey. Photo by Andrea Bayley.

Our report, Biodiversity in the UK: Bloom or Bust? was published on 30 June 2021. Detailed information about our inquiry can be found on our website.

Environmental Audit Committee Membership - link goes to Committee membership - link goes to page on committees.parliament.uk website

If you’re interested in our work, you can find our more on the House of Commons Environmental Audit Committee website. You can also follow our work on Twitter.

The Environmental Audit Committee is a House of Commons Select Committee. We monitor the policies and programmes of government departments and non-departmental public bodies, ensuring they contribute to environmental protection and sustainable development. We also audit their performance against sustainable development and environmental protection targets.

Header image: Djan Macalister via Unsplash