Overview of the 2025 Mangrove Photography Awards
The Mangrove Photography Awards, launched in 2015 by the Mangrove Action Project (MAP), has announced the winners and finalists for its 2025 edition. The competition travels the globe to spotlight mangrove ecosystems in 125 countries, underscoring their pivotal role in climate regulation, coastal protection, and biodiversity. The winning and shortlisted images not only celebrate visual beauty but also convey urgent conservation messages to policymakers and the public.
Grand Prize: An Aerial Portrait of a Vulnerable Paradise
British biologist and photographer Mark Ian Cook, based in Florida, took the Grand Prize with a breathtaking aerial image that captures roseate spoonbills gliding above a lemon shark pursuing mullet in shallow, mangrove-fringed waters. The shot merges drama with ecological insight, placing the viewer above a coast where predator and prey navigate a habitat shaped by tidal cycles and dense roots.
Cook’s photograph speaks to the fragility of spoonbill nesting sites and the dependence of coastal species on clean, fish-rich waters. In a warming world and with rising seas, the very wetlands that nurture these birds face threats that can silence these delicate concerts of life.
What makes this image stand out
Beyond composition, the image functions as a wake-up call: mangroves are not mere scenery but living laboratories where climate resilience is tested and proven. The juxtaposition of aerial perspective and the intimate life beneath the surface invites viewers to consider how climate change disrupts habitat connectivity and food webs.
Mangroves: Carbon Powerhouses and Coastal Shields
In addition to supporting wildlife, mangroves are among the planet’s most effective carbon sinks. Studies indicate they store five times more carbon per hectare than inland tropical forests, making them critical allies in the fight against climate change. They also act as natural barriers during storms, dampening surges and reducing flooding for millions of coastal residents—estimates place the number at more than 15 million people protected by healthy mangrove ecosystems.
Yet the pendulum is swinging toward loss. If current trends continue, up to half of the world’s mangroves could disappear by 2050 due to urban expansion, aquaculture development, and the relentless rise of sea level. The consequences ripple through fisheries, storm protection, and coastal cultures that depend on these trees for their livelihoods.
Photography as a Catalyst for Action
The Mangrove Photography Awards demonstrates how visual storytelling can translate scientific facts into human-scale narratives. Winners and finalists from this edition come from diverse regions and remind us that mangroves are a global commons requiring collaborative care—from community restoration projects to policy frameworks that reduce habitat loss and promote sustainable use of coastal zones.
What You Can Do
Engage with mangrove conservation: support restoration programs, advocate for policies that curb coastal development, and choose products and practices that minimize coastal habitat destruction. Small, informed actions accumulate into meaningful change for mangrove forests and the communities that rely on them.
Also read: More than half of mangroves could disappear by 2050.
