Congratulations to Samantha DeMarco & Kalel Attonito for their first-place photos in the 2023 Birdathon Photo Contest
Samantha DeMarco took her winning photo at the Derby Greenway. “This is a beautiful habitat photo with superb framing that draws me right into the creek.”
June 8, 2023 – The Connecticut Audubon Society congratulates Samantha DeMarco of Milford and Kalel Attonito of Darien, the winners of the 2023 Migration Madness Birdathon photo contest.
Samantha’s winning photograph featured a Great Blue Heron and a Black-crowned Night Heron along the Derby Greenway.
In the Young Birder category, 10-year-old Kalel Attonito won first place for a photo of a Ruddy Turnstone at the shore.
The annual Migration Madness Birdathon photo contest celebrates the beauty and diversity of Connecticut’s birdlife, while encouraging photographers to showcase their talent and passion for conservation.
The winning photos were picked by this year’s photo contest judge, Heather Wolf, photographer and author of Find More Birds and Birding at the Bridge.
“This is a beautiful habitat photo with superb framing that draws me right into the creek,” Heather said of Samantha’s winning photo. “The action of the Great Blue Heron taking a step above the flowing water combined with the stillness of the perched Black-crowned Night-Heron makes for an idyllic scene and illustrates a thriving wetland habitat.”
Samantha graduated from Southern Connecticut State University in 2019 with a degree in photography and has since discovered that wildlife photography is her passion.
Samantha DeMarco of Milford.
“One of my go-to birding locations is the Derby Greenway,” she said. “From songbirds and birds of prey to waterfowl and wading birds, I always find a variety of avian subjects to photograph there. During this year’s Birdathon, it was my first time sighting a Black-crowned Night Heron at this location!
“As I was photographing it, a Great Blue Heron suddenly entered the scene and stole the spotlight. I shifted my focus to the GBH and framed my shot so that the Black-crowned Night Heron would remain in the background. I wanted to capture both species of herons in one photo to exhibit a bit of the variety that the habitat provides.”
Samantha will receive a beautiful 1993 First Connecticut Duck Stamp, matted and framed, featuring two American Black Ducks.
Kalel Attonito took his photo of a Ruddy Turnstone at the Milford Point Coastal Center.
“I like taking photos of birds because if I don’t know the species, I can look at it later and identify the bird,” he said. “This time of year there are a lot of birds coming from far away because it’s migration time, so I get a chance to see birds I don’t normally see.”
Heather Wolf said, “I love this ‘sea of stones setting for the Ruddy Turnstone! It’s an excellent eye-level capture of the bird in its habitat where the rounded stones mimic the shape of its head and belly.”
Last year, Kalel’s older sister, Pavana, won first place in the Young Birders category.
Kalel Attonito took this photo of a Ruddy Turnstone at the Milford Point Coastal Center.
Kalel’s prize is a $25 gift card fro REI and a Connecticut Audubon Society baseball cap.
The Connecticut Audubon Society would like to thank all participants for their exceptional submissions, which made the 2023 Birdathon photo contest a resounding success.
We also thank Heather Wolf for serving as an exceptional judge!
For more information about the Connecticut Audubon Society and its upcoming events, please visit their website at www.ctaudubon.org.
