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NPOTY People's Choice Award - 2022
Name: Anton Sorokin
Picture title: Sticky Situation
Category: People’s Choice Award
Nationality: I was born in Russia, and reside in the United States of America
Occupation: I am a biologist and freelance writer and photographer. I started photography over 10 years ago to document the species I encountered while working.
Technical information
Camera: Nikon D810
Lens: Nikkor 105mm
EXIF: 1/160sec, F18, ISO 500
Accessories: 1 external flash
PEOPLE’S CHOICE AWARD
Anton Sorokin | Sticky Situation
Name: Anton Sorokin
Picture title: Sticky Situation
Category: People’s Choice Award
Nationality: I was born in Russia, and reside in the United States of America
Occupation: I am a biologist and freelance writer and photographer. I started photography over 10 years ago to document the species I encountered while working.
Technical information
Camera: Nikon D810
Lens: Nikkor 105mm
EXIF: 1/160sec, F18, ISO 500
Accessories: 1 external flash
Anton says:
A dramatic moment on the Amazonian forest floor as this stick insect has wandered into a precarious position in front of the cane toad (Rhinella marina). Voracious predators these toads are known for eating any smaller animals that fit into their mouths.
As I hiked through the Amazonian forest at night I saw the toad from a distance, leaning forward and slightly angled at the forest floor – its body language told me something had caught its interest. I very slowly approached so as not to disturb the toad, and as I got closer I could make out a stick insect that had wandered into a very dangerous situation on the forest floor in front of the amphibian.
The insect realizing the danger holds completely still hoping its camouflage will save it. The toad knows its prey is nearby but is unsure of where and watches for any sign of movement to betray the location.
I lay down on the forest floor to get an intimate perspective of the scene – I waited for a long time but of the 3 participants my patience was the first to run out as I was being bitten by sandflies and mosquitoes. As a result, I was not able to see the resolution of this life -or- death game of patience and do not know how it ended.
Anton Sorokin
Russia/USA
Anton Sorokin is a wildlife biologist and freelance photographer. From scaling the cloud forest canopy to measure marble-sized parakeet eggs to searching for the world’s highest frogs in the frigid shadow of tropical glaciers atop the Andes mountains, his work has taken him far and wide. He always has his camera close so he can document our planet’s fragile biodiversity, especially that of reptiles, amphibians, and other often-overlooked taxa.