'Plaice Face' picture from Welsh coast wins national award

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It looks like something from another planet, but this image comes straight from the North Wales coast.

Mark Thomas picked up one of the top prizes in the British Wildlife Photography Awards with this image.

Called Plaice Face, it was taken on Criccieth Beach, a favourite haunt for holidaymakers from the West Midlands.

Mark, from Northwich, Cheshire, picked up the Coast and Marine Wales category in the awards.

Prizes for top pictures were awarded in 14 categories, including ones that focus on the coasts, close-up images of the natural world, the same subject through the seasons, video, and a documentary series of photographs.

Fairytale images of a single bluebell among greenery and Narnia-like woods covered in snow, an action shot of a swift skimming water and portraits of spiders and butterflies are among other winning photos in the contest.

Daniel Trim, from Hitchin, Hertfordshire, won the overall prize of £5,000 for a shot of a grey heron hunting in the cover of a bridge in London.

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