Guardian of the Mangroves – Overall Winner. Tanya Houppermans, Cuba. A curious American crocodile (Crocodylus acutus) swims right up to Tanya, at Gardens of the Queen (Jardines De La Reina), an archipelago off the coast of Cuba. It has been strictly protected since 1996, and is one of the most untouched marine ecosystems in the world. ‍ “The healthy population of American crocodiles is down to the pristine condition of the mangroves and I wanted to capture close ups of this gentle giant in its natural habitat. I hope this image can illustrate that protecting areas like this is so critical”. (Photo by Tanya Griffin Houppermans/Mangrove Photographer of the Year)

A child enjoys yellow gingko leaves outside the Diaoyutai State Guesthouse on November 8, 2022 in Beijing, China. (Photo by Zhao Jun/China News Service via Getty Images)

People applaud as a delivery robot departs from the Nihonbashi Post Office to deliver traditional New Year's Day cards, during a ceremony in Tokyo on January 1, 2023. (Photo by JIJI Press/AFP Photo)

School girls hold hands while looking out at the Indian Ocean at Galle Face beach in Colombo on December 9, 2022. (Photo by Ishara S. Kodikara/AFP Photo)

A cow grazes in a field in front of the Nahr Bin Omar oil field and facility near Iraq's southern port city of Basra, on April 4, 2023. (Photo by Hussein Faleh/AFP Photo)

A swimmer swims by a swan in The Serpentine in Hyde Park, following the outbreak of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), London, Britain, May 26, 2020. (Photo by John Sibley/Reuters)

The Predator’s Fins: Atho Ullah, Indonesia. 3rd place, Portfolio category. A freshly caught shark is taken ashore. Efforts to regulate shark fishing in Indonesia are not effective enough. Lack of awareness of the role sharks play in the ocean’s ecosystem poses a major threat to marine life. (Photo by Atho Ullah/2020 Hamdan International Photography Award)

Health workers screen residents for COVID-19 symptoms at Dharavi, one of Asia's biggest slums, in Mumbai, India, Monday, August 3, 2020. India is the third hardest-hit country by the pandemic in the world after the United States and Brazil. (Photo by Rafiq Maqbool/AP Photo)