Miami University Project Dragonfly graduate students in the Advanced Inquiry Program (AIP), the Global Field Program (GFP), Earth Expeditions (EE) courses, and faculty and staff are invited to submit photos for the annual photo contest. Winners are announced each fall. Check out the winning 2023 photos here! Congratulations to the winners, and thanks to everyone who submitted photos!

In the U.S.

“Sun, sea, and AIP. What more do you need?” says AIP graduate student Viviana Moreno of Largo, Florida. Moreno photographed this mangrove forest in Biscayne National Park, the Everglades, as part of her Global Biomes course. She is earning Miami University’s online AIP master’s degree with experiential learning through Jacksonville Zoo and Gardens.

A juvenile southern population bog turtle showing its signature orange neck markings. Miami University AIP graduate student Sarah Jackson took this photo in North Carolina of the species, currently under consideration for listing under the federal endangered species act. Jackson is earning Miami University’s online AIP master’s degree with experiential learning through Cleveland Metroparks Zoo.

Horseshoe crab in Oak Island, North Carolina. Miami University AIP graduate student Shelby Guthrie of Mechanicsburg, Ohio, photographed the crab while gathering information for a research project. Guthrie is earning Miami’s online AIP master’s degree with experiential learning through Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical.

International

Miami University GFP graduate student G. Alejandro Gomez took this photo of a school of pickhandle barracuda while diving the Great Barrier Reef on an Earth Expeditions (EE) course in Australia. With his EE peers, Gomez studied the terrestrial and marine ecosystems that support the reef.

Miami University GFP graduate student Allison Patton of Long Beach, California, after climbing to the top of a rock mountain in Mongolia. Patton and her Earth Expeditions peers investigated the great Mongolian steppe and the conservation story of two key steppe species: the Pallas’ cat and Przewalski’s horse, the only true wild horse left in the world, reintroduced successfully to Mongolia.

Sunrise at Playa Isabela Island, Galapagos. “Beautiful colors blended with lingering stars from the night,” said Miami University GFP graduate student and Portland, Oregon, resident Yu (Luke) Liu. Together with his Earth Expeditions peers, Liu investigated evolutionary, geologic and human-influenced change in the Galapagos islands.