Below are all our finalists in the “Animal” section of our Photo Contest. Please look through them one last time before voting for your favorite. We know it is possible to game these polls. Please act like adults and don’t vote more than once. If we believe that the results are invalid, the contest will be canceled. The photos and poll are below the fold.
Iguana iguana by Geoffrey C. Locke — Green or common iguana, a local feral/invasive species in south Florida
Tympanocryptis cephalus by Paul Blake — blotch-tailed earless dragon. Northwest Queensland (Australia) between Mount Isa and Camooweal
Regulus satrapa by Dave Rintoul — golden-crowned kinglet, male, captured at a winter bird-banding site near Ft. Smith, Arkansas. These tiny (6 g) birds have been in North America for eons; fossil remains of kinglets, dated to 400 ka ago, have been found in tar pit deposits in California.
Brachynemurus abdominalis by Gregory Zolnerowich — adult ant lion, whose larvae dig pits in sandy soil and prey on ants or small arthropods that tumble down the pit
Hemisquilla californiensis by Mike Bok — magnified view of a uropod, or tail feather, of mantis shrimp. Bright colors for intraspecific communication are abundant on these animals, and their visual system is uniquely specialized for advanced color and polarization discrimination.
Archilochus colubris by Darren Garrison — ruby-throated hummingbird killing
yellowjacket (Vespula squamosa). Hummingbird is territorial and attacks yellowjacket invading bird feeder. South Carolina.
