Life

The inside of a rat’s eye won the 2023 Nikon Small World photo contest

The annual competition unveils nature’s splendor in miniature

An image of the back of a rat's eye seen at 20 times magnification with immune cells seen in yellow and blood vessels seen in red.

This image of the back of a rat’s eye, shown at 20 times magnification, showcases immune cells (yellow) and blood vessels (red) that populate the retina.

Hassanain Qambari and Jayden Dickson

By Erin Garcia de Jesús

An eye full of cellular stars is a stunning example of the beauty that exists in nature’s smallest sizes.

A glimpse of the back of a rat’s eye, and the immune cells that keep it healthy, won first place in the 2023 Nikon Small World photomicrography competition.