May's Photo of the Month

"Marsh Frog Calling" by Dave McCulley

What a busy month it has been, lots of nest building, fledgling heron chicks, and the first few youngsters showing their faces with our red squirrels in the walk through enclosure beginning to make an appearance. So what was most popular with the photographers out there?.. Well, it was a nice mix of animals this month and even some of our "wild" wildlife from around the Wetland Boardwalk kept cropping up, which was lovely to see.

So, what did I choose for our May's photo of the month? A couple of weeks ago we had quite a spell of our marsh frogs blowing out their air sacs, it must have been a good weekend to see this behaviour, and of these this one above taken by Dave McCulley stood out, and is my photograph for May!

Dave has taken a beautiful photograph showing off this fun behaviour. The composition is spot on and the lighting is good. He has managed to get a lovely low angle, and the eyes are stunningly sharp. But what really made this photo stand out, and why I chose this over the others, is how Dave has managed to catch the water droplets bouncing off the air sacs as this frog inflates them... Amazing! I keep saying it, but it is these little difference that make a photograph stand out, and what kept me going back to this one. Well done Dave!

To see more of Dave McCulley's photos, take a look at his flickr photostream linked in his name.

Dave McCulley's photo will be on display in our coffee shop gallery throughout next year, and will be in with a chance to be selected by a professional wildlife photographer to win a photographic day here at the Centre.