A sensational picture of a rice weevil on a single grain of rice has actually won the 2025 Nikon Small World photomicrography contest, yielding important insight into the structure and habits of– and offering a fresh viewpoint on– this widely known farming bug. The image was taken by Zhang You of Yunnan, China. Another of You’s pictures positioned 15th in this year’s contest.

“It pays to dive deep into entomology: comprehending bugs’ habits and mastering lighting,” You said in a statement. “A standout work mixes artistry with clinical rigor, recording the really essence, energy, and spirit of these animals.”

There was a component of luck in developing his winning image, too. “I had observed rice weevils in grains before, but never one with its wings spread,” You stated. “This one was naturally protected on a windowsill, maybe in a last effort to get away. Its small size makes by hand preparing spread-wing specimens incredibly hard, so experiencing it was both serendipitous and motivating.”

Nikon’s yearly contest was established in 1974 “to showcase the beauty and complexity of things seen through the light microscope.” Photomicrography includes connecting an electronic camera to a microscopic lense (either an optical microscopic lense or an electron microscopic lense) so that the user can take photos of items at extremely high resolutions. British physiologist Richard Hill Norris was among the very first to utilize it for his research studies of blood cells in 1850, and the approach has actually progressively been highlighted as art given that the 1970s. There have actually been lots of groundbreaking technological advances in the occurring years, especially with the introduction of digital imaging techniques.