Скачать или смотреть ** Fritz Pölking Prize 2024 ** | Hector Cordero – Invisible killers

Winner of the Fritz Pölking Prize 2024

INVISIBLE KILLERS
THE IMPACT OF LIGHT AND GLASS ON MIGRATORY BIRDS

This portfolio showcases the dangers faced by birds each year during spring and fall migration. In the United States alone, around 624 million birds die each year from collisions with building glass. One of the epicentres of such collisions is New York City, where scientific studies report that up to 230,000 birds loose their lives annually on the asphalt of the city that never sleeps.
The causes of this high mortality are purely anthropogenic: on the one hand, artificial lighting attracts and disorients birds on their mostly nocturnal migration. On the other hand, reflective glass surfaces mirror the sky and surrounding vegetation, making buildings invisible to birds and leading to fatal collisions.
While volunteering with Project Safe Flight to rescue injured birds in New York City between six and eight every morning during migration for the past four years, I have been able to take many photographs. Furthermore, I have documented the work of the Wild Bird Fund wildlife rehabilitation and education centre in Manhattan where injured birds are rehabilitated and later released back into the wild. And finally, I have documented the implementation of surfaces with special glass and films, which, according to the latest research by the Audubon Society, can reduce collisions by up to 85%.
Collisions are the second most common cause of bird mortality worldwide. I hope my portfolio will raise awareness of this global issue - a problem that can be mitigated by reducing artificial light in buildings and using bird-friendly materials to make our buildings less deadly.

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Hector Cordero was born in Cilleros (Spain) in 1988. From an early age, he developed a love and passion for nature and spent countless hours observing the behaviour of animals on his family's farm. As an adult, Hector decided to study biology. He taught himself photography and bought his first camera from his undergraduate research grant in order to be able to record animal and plant species during excursions. In subsequent decades, Hector has never stopped learning about photography and mastering various genres including landscape, macro and, especially, wildlife photography.
Initially, Hector's wildlife photography focussed on documenting animal species and capturing their beauty. With time, however, he grew aware of the challenges and threats facing our planet's species and his photography became more conservation-oriented. Now Hector documents problems in a forthright manner and tells stories that are sometimes difficult to digest.
In recent years in New York, Hector Cordero has focused on the effects of light and glass on bird migration, the importance of rehabilitation centres for injured animals, the restoration of sensitive habitats such as marshes and coastal areas, and breeding programmes for endangered species. Hector currently combines his roles as a scientist and communicator with his work as a nature guide and conservation photographer. He has been on the juries of several international nature and conservation photography competitions and is a member of the Spanish Association of Nature Photographers (AEFONA).
In 2023, Hector published his first book about the birds of New York City, entitled Central Park: Four Seasons of Birdlife. Hector's award-winning photographs visually complement a compelling text about the diverse birds that can be seen in New York City and the threats faced by these animals in the urban environment.

http://www.corderonature.com

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See the whole portfolio of winning images here:
https://www.gdtfoto.de/seiten/fritz-p...