Some photographs make you stop scrolling. Others stay with you long after you’ve looked away. The winning images from the Mangrove Photography Awards 2026 do exactly that. They’re beautiful, sure, but they’re also powerful reminders that some of the planet’s most important ecosystems are quietly fighting for survival every single day.
This year’s overall winner, captured by Indian photographer Gaurav Patil, is impossible to forget. His haunting image shows a discarded ghost fishing net glowing beneath ultraviolet light, tangled among mangrove roots on the shoreline of Nandgaon village in Maharashtra. Created using a 13-second UV exposure, the photograph transforms hidden pollution into something impossible to ignore. It’s stunning to look at, yet it tells a sobering story about the growing impact of marine waste on these fragile coastal forests.
The 12th edition of the competition attracted an incredible 5,258 entries from 87 countries, proving that photographers everywhere are using their cameras as tools for conservation. Winning images span categories including Wildlife, Landscape, Underwater, Threats, People, and Conservation Stories, alongside special honors like the Young Mangrove Photographer of the Year, UNESCO Award, Emirates Award, and Arabian Gulf Award.
Organized by the Mangrove Action Project, these awards go far beyond celebrating technical excellence. Every image opens a window into remarkable ecosystems many people may never visit, revealing sleeping silky anteaters, thriving marine life, resilient local communities, and landscapes worth protecting. Together, these 29 winning photographs remind us that photography isn’t just about documenting nature; it’s about inspiring people to care enough to protect it.
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#1. Overall Winner: Tangled glow: When life meets the ruins by Gaurav Patil, India
"A ghost net glowing under ultraviolet light, tangled in a mangrove on the tide-swept shore of Nandgaon village, Maharashtra, south of Mumbai, has won this year’s Mangrove Photography Awards. Captured on a 13-second UV exposure, the image reveals a quieter conservation crisis: discarded fishing nets carried in by currents and trapped in mangroves, turning these vital coastal barriers into hidden garbage hotspots."
“I came across this particular mangrove patch where discarded fishing nets were getting trapped during high tide. These nets, after getting discarded or lost from the fishing vessels, meet the oceanic currents which bring them to the coast. I have been watching ghost nets getting trapped in mangroves for the last several years, and I wanted to document it in an artistic manner to grab the attention of the viewers,” said photographer Gaurav Patil.
#2. Wildlife, Birds – Winner: March of the Flamingos by Mark Ian Cook, United States
"A small group of American Flamingos peer at a juvenile Lemon Shark while searching for suitable foraging habitat in the mangrove-lined shallow backwaters of Florida Bay, Florida."
#3. Wildlife, Birds – Runner Up: Indian White-eye by Erfan Samanfar, Iran
"An Indian white-eye comes in to land among the branches of a mangrove tree on Iran’s coast. The species is closely tied to mangrove habitat, foraging and nesting among the leaves and branches."
#4. Wildlife, Mammals – Winner: Where the Mangroves Begin by Kallol Mukherjee, India
"Two jungle cat kittens stand at the edge of a dense mangrove forest in the Sundarban Tiger Reserve. Surrounded by tangled roots, shifting mud, and tidal waters, they represent resilience in one of the world’s most challenging ecosystems. Their alert gaze offers a rare glimpse into a secretive life shaped by survival, caution, and adaptation."
#5. Wildlife, Mammals – Runner Up: Fast Asleep by Kerron Noel, Trinidad & Tobago
"A Silky anteater (Cyclopes didactylus) asleep on a red mangrove tree at the Caroni Bird Sanctuary, Caroni Swamp. Though the silky anteater is classified globally as "least concern" by the International Union for Conservation of Nature, they still face significant risks in Trinidad due to habitat destruction, forest fires, and illegal hunting. Silky anteaters are the smallest species of anteater in the world."
#6. Wildlife, Other Species – Winner: Seeking Refuge in the Mangroves by Evan Cooper, Bahamas
"A juvenile green turtle is seen seeking refuge in a mangrove forest, where it is protected."
#7. Wildlife, Other Species – Runner Up: Blending into the bark by Dmitry Ivanov, Vietnam
"At night, the mangrove forest becomes a vertical space. At low tide, roots emerge from the water, branches hang over the mud, and crabs move easily upward through this tangled structure."
#8. Landscape, Black & White – Winner: Footprint of the Earth by Abijith Soman, India
"An island shaped like a footprint emerges from Kerala’s backwaters, its mangroves tracing the toes and sole of the print. Many of these islands were once mangrove forest before being cleared for coconut plantations — on some, the mangroves are now reclaiming that ground. A quiet mark of where nature stepped away, and where it’s stepping back in."
#9. Landscape, Black & White – Runner Up: Root of the solution by Vladimir Borzykin, Thailand
"Photographed close to the mangrove floor, this image removes horizon, scale, and distance to focus entirely on the exposed roots."
#10. Landscape, From the Air – Winner: MangueBeat by Lucas Gonçalves Garcias, Brazil
"Aerial photo of the Tejipió River separating shrimp farms from a section of the mangrove forest occupied by the Navy."
#11. Landscape, From the Air – Runner Up: Journey to the Pulse of Mangroves by Mohammed Aljulandi, United Arab Emirates
"An aerial photo of mangroves in Abu Dhabi captured after a long journey highlighting the beauty of winding waterways and the UAE’s commitment to preserving this unique ecosystem."
#12. Landscape, On the Ground – Winner: Beneath Ancient Light by Ryuhei Suguri, Indonesia
"A stunning view of the Under the Milky Way, a solitary mangrove stands surrounded by shallow tidal waters. Ancient starlight meets one of Earth’s most important coastal ecosystems in a moment of profound stillness."
#13. Landscape, On the Ground – Runner Up: Canopy Illusion by Zeke Cordeiro, Tanzania
"A top-down view of young mangrove saplings engulfed within the dense canopy of a lush Red Mangrove forest in Jozani National Park."
#14. Underwater – Winner: Feeding grounds under the canopy by Ewan Tregarot, Netherlands Antilles
"Grey snappers on the hunt in Lac Bay, Bonaire."
#15. Underwater – Runner Up: The silent hunter by Valentina Cucchiara, Mexico
"Anhinga anhinga captured at the beginning of its underwater hunt in a mangrove lagoon."
#16. Threats – Winner: Red mangrove harvest by Zafer Kizilkaya, Bangladesh
"Illegal red mangrove harvest in Sunderbans Bangladesh."
#17. Threats – Runner Up: Eyes that ask why by Tosan Dudun, Nigeria
"Two Mona monkeys, born in captivity, peer through the wire mesh of their enclosure at Lufasi Nature Park — a mangrove sanctuary in Lagos rehabilitating rescued wildlife. Their stares turn the moment around: for once, we’re the ones being studied."
#18. People, Livelihoods – Winner: String of Crabs by Roosevelt Cassio, Brazil
"A fisherman shows off the crabs he caught today."
#19. People, Livelihoods – Runner Up: Hope by Wendy Mitchell, Indonesia
"Millions of people rely on the health and balance of intricate ecosystems for survival."
#20. People, Conservation & Restoration – Winner: Seeds of hope from a coastal village by Garry Lotulung, Indonesia
"The story of Indonesia’s sinking on Java’s northern coast. Pasijah is a 56-year-old resident of Rejosari Senik, a sinking coastal hamlet in the Demak Regency of Central Java, who has become a prominent local figure in combating the climate crisis. Facing severe coastal abrasion and rising tides, she has dedicated years to planting and nurturing mangrove trees to protect her submerged village from the encroaching sea."
#21. People, Conservation & Restoration – Runner Up: Plastic Gatherer by Somenath Mukhopadhyay, India
"A villager is collecting wastes from the riverside after a huge cyclonic storm has brought tons of plastic wastes down the coast."
#22. Portfolio, Conservation Stories – Winner: Pillars in the Sea by Nicolò Brugnara, India
"Presented as a symbol of "modernisation", Mumbai’s new coastal road is entering its most controversial phase. Fresh environmental approvals. The green light to fell 45,000 trees. Growing local protests. This €1.4 billion highway — built primarily for private cars — has become one of India’s most emblematic clashes between urban development and the climate crisis. It advances through land reclamation, mangrove destruction, and the displacement of the Koli — Mumbai’s indigenous coastal community — in a city where most people still depend on public transport."
#23. Portfolio, Conservation Stories – Runner Up: Mangroves of the Enchanted Islands by Pelayo Salinas de León, Ecuador
"The Galapagos Islands, 1000km off the coast of Ecuador, represent a window back in time to the ocean of the past, where pristine marine ecosystems and marine megafauna are the norm and not the exception. Fully protected from industrial fishing and other destructive human activities since the Galapagos Marine Reserve was created in 1998, Mangrove forests represent oasis of life across the dominant black lava coastlines, providing a myriad of ecosystem services to the local population and to the >300,000 tourist that visit the Enchanted Islands every year."
#24. Young Mangrove Photographer of the Year – Winner: Adaptation by Katanyou Wuttichaitanakorn, Thailand
"By nature, mosquitoes mainly feed on the blood of warm blood animals. In some mangrove forests, however, where such animals are limited, certain mosquitoes have adapted to feed on cold-blooded species like mudskippers."
#25. Young Mangrove Photographer of the Year – Runner Up: Unblinking Watcher by Marcus Kuan, Singapore
"Coiled within the buttress roots of its coastal home, the Mangrove Pit Viper (Trimeresurus purpureomaculatus) remains a stoic witness to a disappearing landscape. This apex predator of the intertidal zone symbolizes the intricate balance of the mangrove ecosystem. As development and pollution encroach upon these vital carbon sinks, the viper’s survival hangs in the balance. Protecting these wetlands ensures that the "shadows of the swamp" continue to thrive in their natural sanctuary."
#26. Emirates Award – Winner: Where Life Converges by Shyjith Onden Cheriyath, United Arab Emirates
"A network of tidal channels winds through the mangrove forests of Ras Al Khaimah, connecting sea, land, and life. Framed by the Hajar Mountains and the city’s skyline, the image reflects the delicate balance between nature and development. It is a tribute to the resilience of mangroves and their vital role in protecting the UAE’s coastal ecosystems."
#27. Emirates Award – Runner Up: The Urban Shield: Abu Dhabi’s Blueprint for Coastal Coexistence by Ranjith PG, United Arab Emirates
"This intimate, split-second image captures a rare behavioral moment: the fawn nursing from its mother under the protective canopy of the coastal brush of Saadiyat Island."
#28. Arabian Gulf Award – Winner: Where the Mangroves Breathe by Abdullah Alsheikh, Saudi Arabia
"This aerial photograph captures the vast mangrove ecosystem stretching along the coastline of Saudi Arabia during low tide. From above, the scene reveals an extraordinary meeting point between dense green mangrove forests and the flowing tidal textures carved across the shoreline by the sea. The image highlights the resilience and importance of mangroves as one of the region’s most valuable natural ecosystems."
#29. Arabian Gulf Award – Runner Up: he White Wings in the Safe Haven by Fatimah Ahmad Alsayegh, Saudi Arabia
"A great Egret finds sanctuary amidst mangrove forests the natural treasure of Tarout island in the Arabian Gulf . after journeying from afar ,the migratory bird settles into a sustainable ecosystem that offers both safety and life. this scene captures the vital role of mangroves as a cornerstone of wildlife conservation and environmental harmony."
Frequently Asked Questions:
What are the Mangrove Photography Awards?
The Mangrove Photography Awards is an international photography competition organized by the Mangrove Action Project. It celebrates exceptional images highlighting mangrove ecosystems, wildlife, conservation efforts, and the people connected to these vital coastal environments while raising awareness about their protection.
Who won the Mangrove Photography Awards 2026?
Indian photographer Gaurav Patil won the overall award with a striking ultraviolet image of a ghost fishing net trapped within mangrove roots in Maharashtra, India. The photograph powerfully highlights the hidden environmental threat of discarded fishing gear polluting coastal ecosystems.
Why are mangrove forests important?
Mangrove forests protect coastlines from storms, reduce erosion, store significant amounts of carbon, support rich biodiversity, and provide habitats for countless marine and terrestrial species. They also sustain local communities by supporting fisheries, livelihoods, and healthy coastal ecosystems.
What categories are featured in the 2026 competition?
The 2026 awards include Wildlife, Landscape, Underwater, Threats, People, and Conservation Stories, along with special honors such as the Young Mangrove Photographer of the Year, UNESCO Award, Emirates Award, and Arabian Gulf Award, showcasing diverse perspectives on mangrove conservation.
How does photography help conservation efforts?
Photography creates emotional connections between people and nature by revealing beauty, environmental challenges, and untold stories. Powerful images inspire public awareness, encourage conservation action, influence policy discussions, and motivate individuals to protect vulnerable ecosystems like mangrove forests for future generations.
