Recognizing the value pollinators provide to humans and our ecosystem, Penguin Court, a preserve of the Brandywine Conservancy, and the Westmoreland Pollinator Partners, a consortium of over two dozen gardens in Westmoreland County, are pleased to host the fourth annual Pennsylvania Pollinator Photo Challenge.

Open to the public, this contest has categories for adults 18 and over and youth 17 or younger. Images must include a pollinator found and photographed in Pennsylvania, such as bees, beetles, butterflies, flies, hummingbirds, moths, or wasps in any of their life stages. Photos of people hand-pollinating plants will be considered, too; however, the person must provide written consent if they are identifiable in the image. Please do not include photographs of pollinators taken in conservatories, butterfly houses, and the like. The contest looks to promote native pollinators.

New this year will be a contest category dedicated to moths in any of their life stages. Entrants must have captured these photographs in Pennsylvania, too.    

A maximum of three entries per person can be submitted, and all photo entries must be submitted electronically by August 3, 2024. First, second, and third place winners in both the adult and youth categories, as well as honorable mentions, will be announced at the “Monarchs, Milkweed, and More” event on Sunday, August 25, 2024, at the Southern Alleghenies Museum of Art in Ligonier, PA. Additionally, first-place winners in the adult and youth categories will receive a prize in the moth class.

The winning photographs will be framed and on display at the Southern Alleghenies Museum of Art (SAMA) in Ligonier, PA from August 25 to September 6, 2024. Additional rules and regulations, judging criteria, prizes, and more can be found here.