Ben Burton, Neon Rice (ANIMALS 2026)

Maratus Speciosus, the Coastal Peacock Spider, no bigger than a grain of rice yet adorned with intricate colours that they use to try and dazzle their female counter parts with the hopes of mating. Seeking out these tiny little spiders is a feat in itself, photographing them is a whole other story, shooting the maximum magnification of my macro lens in some truly interesting positions. I was fortunate enough to have such an opportunity in the coastal dunes of Perth, Western Australia where I witnessed several specimens going about their daily life.

Images have been resized for web display, which may cause some loss of image quality. Note: Original high-resolution images are used for judging.