Northamptonshire woman wins photography award with impressive snap of Galapagos wildlife

A woman from Little Addington has scooped a prestigious prize for a photo she took during a trip to the Galapagos Islands.

Claire Waring’s image, which shows two birds mid-fight, claimed first prize in the Galapagos Conservation Trust’s annual photography competition.

She said: “We were on the last day of our wonderful expedition around the Galapagos Islands and had landed on North Seymour for a few hours before catching our plane home.

“A movement caught my eye and I saw this juvenile great frigatebird attacking a swallow-tailed gull, presumably with a view to taking the chick for a tasty meal.

"It all happened too quickly for me to photograph it but, fortunately for me (but not the gull), the frigatebird came round for another go and I was able to capture this shot.”

Claire’s interest in photography started in her childhood, and since then she has collected handful of impressive accolades to her name.

In 2005, she won the gold medal for beekeeping photography at Apimondia, followed by the silver medal in 2009.

Claire has also been successful in other competitions including the Wanderlust Travel Photo of the Year, the National Geographic Traveller Photography Competition and the North American Nature Photography Association Showcase.

The Galapagos Conservation Trust, which hosted the competition, is near to Claire’s heart, having supported it for 20 years since her first visit.

She added: "The work of the trust is essential to maintaining the environment against threats such as overfishing and plastics pollution.

“It carries out vital work including clearing islands of invasive species to allow the endemic populations to recover."