Fifteen photos that showcase the beauty of Malta and Gozo are to participate in the international edition of Wiki Loves Earth.
The 15 entries, which feature a variety of landscape, flora and fauna shots taken in Malta or Gozo, were ranked the best among 515 entries submitted to the Wiki Loves Earth in Malta competition.
Top picks were selected by Wikimedia Community Malta in collaboration with Friends of the Earth (Malta). A total of 38 contestants took part in the event.
Winners range from a stunning aerial shot of Zelijka Cliffs in the north of Malta to an impressive nighttime image of the Milky Way over Fungus Rock in Gozo, a closeup shot of a hummingbird hawk-moth feeding and an underwater photo of an aggressive cuttlefish.
The landscape photographer winner: Zeljka cliffs near Għajn Tuffieħa. Photo: JeffreyvE, CC BY-SA 4.0 Scroll right to see other finalists.
Latmija Cave. Photo: Joseph Amodio CC BY-SA 4.0
Id-Dragunara, also known as Coral Lagoon. Photo: Marika Caruana CC-BY SA 4.0
Milky Way over Fungus Rock in Gozo. Phoot: Victor Micallef CC-BY SA 4.0
Clay cliffs over Karraba Bay. Photo: Ylenia Di Pietra CC-BY SA 4.0
This is the second year that photos have been divided into two categories: one focused on landscapes and the other on details of local flora and fauna.
The top five landscape shots and top 10 flora/fauna shots will now be submitted to the global Wiki Loves Earth photo contest, where they will compete with similar images shortlisted across 56 countries from a total of 79,765 entries.
The flora/fauna section winner. A hummingbird hawk-moth feeding on Lantana. Photo: Terry Caselli CC-BY SA 4.0 Scroll right to see more finalists.
Cuttlefish in aggressive stance. Photo: Victor Micallef CC-BY SA 4.0
Kingfisher at Simar Nature Reserve. Photo: Aron Tanti CC-BY SA 4.0
East African Crested Crane. Photo: Kikku33 CC-BY SA 4.0
Fried Egg Jellyfish at Marsascala. Photo: Stefar70 CC-BY SA 4.0
Papaver rhoeas. Photo: Christian Formosa CC-BY SA 4.0
All the finalists are viewable on Wikimedia Commons, where they may be used freely under a Creative Commons license, with attribution to the photographers.
Throughout September, Wikimedia Community Malta is hosting another local edition of the world’s largest photo contest, Wiki Loves Monument. Details about that are available at http://www.wikimalta.org/WLM
Pachygrapsus marmoratus at the beach. Photo: Antonella Vella CC-BY SA 4.0 Scroll right to see more photos.
Flamingos in Malta. Photo: Status Post CC-BY 4.0
Slender-billed Gull at Salina Nature Reserve. Photo: Aron Tanti CC-BY SA 4.0
Podarcis filfolensis peeping out from a dry Arundo donax. photo: Simongozo CC-BY SA 4.0