Punk Rocker" Baby Egrets Win Smithsonian Photo Contest

Three baby egrets with wild, mohawk-like feathers pecking at each other in a New Jersey nest have captured the internet's heart and Smithsonian Magazine's grand prize.

Jacqueline Burke, a 64-year-old veterinarian from Pennsylvania, snapped the winning shot at Ocean City's welcome center rookery last May. She playfully titled it "The Punk Rockers" because the tiny chicks, each no bigger than a golf ball, looked like rebellious bandmates with their unruly spiked plumage.

"They were squabbling nonstop," Burke says. "One would peck. The other would peck back." The image perfectly captures the birds' attitude and energy while their parent's imposing legs and gnarly feet loom large in the background.

Burke traded her birdwatching binoculars for a camera in 2014, turning her lifelong love of animals into a new passion. That decision paid off when her entry beat more than 17,000 submissions from photographers in 108 countries.

The contest drew 2,815 photographers, both amateur and professional, competing across six categories. Other winners included a barefoot devotee stepping among oil lamps during India's Shivaratri festival, a 14-year-old Navajo girl during her traditional coming-of-age ceremony, and emotional portraits from Sicily's intense Easter processions.

Why This Inspires

Burke's journey from veterinarian to award-winning wildlife photographer proves it's never too late to discover a new calling. She estimates 50 to 70 nests filled the rookery that day, a thriving bird sanctuary where New Jersey's Audubon Society regularly hosts events.

Her motivation goes beyond capturing beautiful images. "We need to save species like this and save moments like this," Burke says, using her photography to celebrate the wildlife worth protecting.

The three egret chicks, caught in their everyday squabble under a New Jersey ramp, remind us that nature's most magical moments often happen in the most ordinary places.

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