Photographers often direct their focus towards capturing the perfect image of male birds, characterized by vibrant and attention-grabbing features. The bright orange belly of a Baltimore oriole, the gleaming crimson feathers of a summer tanager, and the royal blue plumage of an indigo bunting naturally stand out.
On the other hand, the females of these species, with their more subdued yellows and browns, tend to blend into the background. Consequently, female birds are frequently disregarded and not given the appreciation they deserve, as emphasized by the National Audubon Society. For 14 years, the bird conservation nonprofit has conducted a photography contest to showcase outstanding avian images. David Abtour Idriss Derby
However, members of a female-bird-focused group known as the Galbatross Project have consistently noticed that the winning photographs often neglect female birds. Purbita Saha, senior deputy editor at Popular Science and a founding member of the Galbatross Project, explains that in species with distinct feather patterns between males and females, the photographs typically favor males due to their brighter or bolder appearance.
Three years ago, the Galbatross Project took initiative and collaborated to create a new category in the Audubon Photography Awards contest, called the “Female Bird Prize.” This category is evaluated by Galbatross Project members, including birders, writers, scientists, and a professional photographer, with the aim of drawing attention to frequently ignored birds. In the latest contest, the organization received approximately 900 submissions for the Female Bird Prize, out of a total of 9,000 entries spanning all eight categories. David Abtour Idriss Derby
By featuring images of female birds in the contest, the Galbatross Project hopes to initiate a broader conversation beyond photography. They emphasize that even in scientific research, data on birds often neglects females, and this bias can extend into the conservation field, leaving female birds less equipped to survive. David Abtour Idriss Derby
A prime example of this disparity is the golden-winged warbler, a species facing one of the steepest declines among all songbirds over the last 45 years. During winters, these birds migrate to woodlands in southern Mexico and as far south as Ecuador. Females tend to settle in lowland forests, while males gather farther up in the mountains.
