Tom Gilks

Pictures editor, BBC Wildlife Magazine

Recent articles by Tom Gilks

Lowepro Truckee BP 250 LX

Photograph Wildlife

Lowepro Truckee BP 250 LX

Lowepro bag review

Review: Lowepro Whistler II camera bag

Category: Birds, Overall Winner: The florist ©Thomas Hempelmann/GDT 2022

Winner announced: GDT Nature Photographer of the Year 2022

Category: Mammals, Highly commended: Arctic fox in a swarm of mosquitoes ©Arnfinn Johansen/GDT 2021

European Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2021

Melting ice sheet with massive waterfalls running off the Austfonna glacier, eastern Svalbard, Norway.
Austfonna glacier on Nordaustlandet in the Svalbard archipelago is Europe’s third-largest glacier by area and volume and with a glacier wall of around 200 kilometres, it is an impressive sight. During the last decades, every month has brought new record high temperatures in the Arctic, and the ice cap on Nordaustlandet is melting at high speed. The meltwater starts as small streams but eventually gathers in larger, almost river-like systems, that finally pour off the steep wall. Meltwater also finds its way down under the ice cap and makes the foundation weak. This results in a collapse which pushes the ice out into the Arctic Ocean. This so-called surge has already been happening over several years. The current situation in Svalbard is that the average glacier retracts by 80 meters a year, with some of them by up to 300 meters. Climate change has an enormous impact on the Arctic and it is happening now.

Mandatory credit: © Roy Mangersnes / naturepl.com

COP26 Earth Project photography competition

A long exposure camera trap photograph of a Leopard (Panthera pardus). The Camtraptions camera trap was set up to expose stars but the moon came up and resulted in this ghostly impression which captures the essence of these elusive cats.

MontPhoto 2021