CHICAGO (WBBM NEWSRADIO) — A picture of a weasel has won top honors in a photo contest by the Forest Preserve District of Will County.
Romeoville resident Darek Konopka captured the image of a weasel peeking at him from behind a tree in the Rock Run Preserve.
Konopka, who has never seen weasels in the wild, said he was walking on a trail and had his camera ready when the encounter occurred.
He said the weasel looked at him, turned his head a couple times and vanished.
Konopka is an amateur photographer, which makes him eligible for the “Preserve the Moment" contest.
“It’s not only a beautiful photo, it’s a very rare sight to see a weasel in broad daylight,” said Cindy Cain with the Forest Preserve District. “For him to capture such a rare sight of such an elusive and fast-moving creature, we were very impressed with the photo.”
Another interesting shot that won honorable mention was Taken by Matt Zook, of Plainfield at Laughton Preserve, showing bats huddled together in a the corner of a shelter.
The contest runs through December.
Konopka’s picture was among 80 entries.
A winner is chosen each month and they’ll compete for the top spot at the end of the year and a $500 prize.