Every year, the Natural History Museum’s Wildlife Photographer of the Year turns the natural world into a gallery of split-second miracles by highlighting the moments caught that make you appreciate nature’s beauty once again. The 2025 winning images do exactly that, balancing jaw-dropping beauty with the quieter, heavier truth of what wildlife is up against.
This year’s Grand Title winner is “Ghost Town Visitor” by South African photographer Wim van den Heever, a powerful image showcasing the fleeting nature of human creations. But beyond the overall winner, the collection travels across habitats and moods: intimate portraits, strange behavior, dramatic predator-prey encounters, and fragile ecosystems caught at the edge of change. Some photos are loud and thrilling. Others are quiet enough to hurt. But they all share that same spark, a reminder that the wild isn’t a painted wall decoration. It’s alive, complicated, and constantly adapting to the world we’ve reshaped around it.
As the Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2025 exhibition opens at London’s Natural History Museum, these images land like more than just beautiful photographs. They’re evidence. They’re stories. And they’re a pretty powerful reason to look closer and care more about what we still have time to protect.
Scroll down and let us know which are your favorites.
#1 “Orphan Of The Road” By Fernando Faciole
Highly Commended, Photojournalism. Impact Award Winner 2025.
Description: “Fernando wanted to highlight the consequences of road collisions, a leading cause of the decline in giant anteater numbers in Brazil. This pup’s mother was killed by a vehicle, and the hope is that it will be released back into the wild after being encouraged to develop crucial survival skills by its caregiver.
Alongside rehabilitation centers, the Anteaters and Highways project of the Wild Animal Conservation Institute is developing strategies to reduce anteater deaths on Brazil’s roads. These include erecting fences and building underground tunnels to allow the anteaters to cross safely.”
Location: Centro de Triagem de Animais Silvestres (CETAS), Belo Horizonte, Brazil
18points
#2 “Deadly Allure” By Chien Lee
Winner, Plants and Fungi.
Description: “Insects can see ultraviolet (UV) light, but humans can’t, so Chien used a long exposure and a UV torch. Waiting until after sunset, he had just a five-minute window before the ambient light illuminating the backdrop disappeared completely.
Some carnivorous pitcher plants reflect UV light on certain areas as part of their ‘display’. They use color, scent and nectar to lure their prey into pools of digestive juices at the bottom of their leaves.”
Location: Kuching, Sarawak, Borneo, Malaysia
17points
#3 “Ghost Town Visitor” By Wim Van Den Heever
Winner, Urban Wildlife Wildlife. Photographer of the Year 2025.
Description: “With sea fog rolling in from the Atlantic Ocean, Wim chose this spot for his camera trap after noticing hyena tracks nearby. ‘It took me 10 years to finally get this one single image of a brown hyena, in the most perfect frame imaginable.’
The rarest hyena species in the world, brown hyenas are nocturnal and mostly solitary. They are known to pass through Kolmanskop on their way to hunt Cape fur seal pups or scavenge for carrion washed ashore along the Namib Desert coast.”
Location: Kolmanskop, near Lüderitz, Namibia
16points
#4 “The Weaver’s Lair” By Jamie Smart
Winner, 10 Years and Under.
Description: “Jamie first noticed the dew-laden web before realizing its maker was sitting in a nest. With the patience and steadiness needed to manually focus her camera, she kept the spider perfectly lit and symmetrically framed.
This spider’s web is constructed from a scaffold of radial threads, overlaid with a spiral of sticky silk to hold ensnared insects. A strong signal thread transmits vibrations to the spider’s hiding place, triggering it to emerge and collect its prey.”
Location: Mid-Wales, UK
15points
#5 “From Venom To Medicine” By Javier Aznar González De Rueda
Winner, Photojournalist Story Award.
Description: “Javier highlights another side of the story: the importance of snakes to human health. Drops of deadly venom drip into a glass as an eastern diamondback rattlesnake is milked. The venom is used to produce antivenom and has the potential to treat certain medical conditions, such as chronic nerve pain.”
Location: USA
15points
#6 “Seal Serenity” By Luca Lorenz
Winner, Rising Star Award.
Description: “When the heavens opened, Luca was out with his camera. He minimized the lens aperture to ensure the full expanse of the sea was in focus and framed an inquisitive harbor seal enjoying the patter of the rain.”
14points
#7 “Sole Survivor” By Luca Lorenz
Winner, Rising Star Award.
Description: “Luca had been watching a tree hole where this Eurasian pygmy owl and its mate were nesting. When one disappeared, the other continued feeding the chicks. On this day, the remaining bird returned clutching the chicks’ breakfast in its claws, and called for its mate, but there was no reply.”
14points
#8 “Synchronized Fishing” By Qingrong Yang
Winner, Behavior: Birds.
Description: “Qingrong was at Yundang Lake near his home, a place he visits regularly to photograph the feeding frenzies: little egrets patrol the surface, ready to pounce on fish leaping to escape underwater predators.
Once a natural marine harbor, Yundang Lake was sealed off from the sea during 1970s development. Isolated from the tides and currents, it became polluted and stagnant. An engineering project later reconnected it to the sea via a system of gates that regulate water flow.”
Location: Yundang Lake, Fujian Province, China
14points
#9 “Rattled”
Winner, Photojournalist Story Award.
Description: “Despite their fearsome reputation, rattlesnakes don’t seek out humans to attack. This black-tailed rattlesnake was spotted on the road at night outside Fort Davis, Texas. In this instance, its tail is raised and rattling in response to the perceived threat of the snake handler who rescued it from the road.”
Location: USA
13points
#10 “Small But Mighty” By Luca Lorenz
Winner, Rising Star Award.
Description: “This tiny, secretive Eurasian pygmy owl hunts using both sight and sound, striking silently. This unusual black-and-white composition makes the most of the background silhouettes, which Luca felt suited a bird that lives among the shadows.”
12points
#11 “Dawn Watch” By Luca Lorenz
Winner, Rising Star Award.
Description: “Luca was lying flat on the dewy grass for a better perspective of one of the park’s ubiquitous blackbirds when four deer emerged from the mist and stopped to assess the situation. Time stood still and he caught the moment.”
12points
#12 “Frolicking Frogs” By Quentin Martinez
Winner, Behavior: Amphibians and Reptiles.
Description: “In persistent rain, Quentin followed a flooded path to a temporary pool in a forest clearing. He framed this scene with a wide-angle lens and used a diffused flash, which didn’t disturb the frogs, to highlight their metallic sheen.
To attract mates, lesser tree frogs produce short, shrill calls. Huge numbers gather, and the spectacular breeding event – triggered by heavy rains – lasts for just a few hours.”
Location: Kaw Mountain, French Guiana
12points
#13 “Survival Purse” By Ralph Pace
Winner, Underwater.
Description: “Faced with strong currents pushing him from side to side, Ralph struggled to keep steady to photograph this egg case, or ‘mermaid’s purse’. He lit the case from behind to reveal the swell shark embryo within, its gill slits and yolk sac clearly visible among the dark kelp forest.
Researchers estimate that kelp forests in Monterey Bay have declined by more than 95 per cent over the past 34 years. Swell sharks depend on kelp to lay their leathery eggs, making them especially vulnerable to such losses.”
Location: Monterey Bay, California, USA
12points
#14 “After The Destruction” By Andrea Dominizi
Winner, 15 – 17 Years.
Young Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2025.
Young Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2025.
“Andrea noticed this longhorn beetle while walking in the Lepini Mountains of central Italy, in an area once logged for old beech trees. Using a wide-angle lens and off-camera flash, he framed the beetle against abandoned machinery.
Andrea’s photograph tells a poignant story of habitat loss. As longhorn beetles tunnel into dead wood, fungi make their way inside, helping to break it down and recycle nutrients. If the beetles’ habitat is disturbed or destroyed, the effects ripple across the entire ecosystem.”
Location: Lepini Mountains, Lazio, Italy
11points
#15 “How To Save A Species” By Jon A Juárez
Winner, Photojournalism.
Description: “Jon spent years documenting the work of the BioRescue Project, and says that witnessing a milestone in saving a species ‘was something I will never forget’.
This southern white rhino fetus, which did not survive due to an infection, was the result of the first successful rhino embryo transfer into a surrogate mother through IVF. This breakthrough paves the way for saving the rare northern white rhino from extinction, as scientists can take the next crucial steps towards transferring the first northern white rhino embryo into a southern white rhino surrogate.”
Location: Ol Pejeta, Nanyuki, Laikipia County, Ken
11points
#16 “Alpine Dawn” By Lubin Godin
Winner, 11–14 Years.
Description: “Lubin spotted the Alpine ibex resting above a sea of clouds during an early morning ascent. As the mist rose and the sun broke over the crags, he retraced his steps to capture this ethereal moment before fog thickened and the light faded. Native to Europe, the species was hunted close to extinction in the early 1800s. Thanks to protection and reintroduction efforts, ibex now roam large areas of the Alps. However, a rapidly changing climate causing shifts in food availability during breeding seasons may hinder their survival.”
Location: Col de la Colombière, Haute-Savoie, France
10points
#17 “Piece Of Sky” By Alexey Kharitonov
Winner, Portfolio Award.
Description: “In the grey November twilight, Alexey flew his drone one last time over Bolshoe Znamenskoe Swamp before heading home. His reward was a sudden break in the clouds: a fragment of blue reflected in a small lake, surrounded by trees, and a grassy knoll posing as the sun.”
9points
#18 “Mad Hatterpillar” By Georgina Steytler
Winner, Behavior: Invertebrates.
Description: “Georgina had been looking out for this caterpillar for years when she noticed eucalyptus trees bearing skeletonized leaves, telltale signs that the animal had been grazing. She took this image backlit by the setting sun, using a fill-in flash to illuminate the living head at the base of the stack.
This caterpillar’s unusual headgear is made up of old head capsules, each retained with every molt. The resulting tower is believed to help deflect attacks by predators.”
Location: Torndirrup National Park, Western Australia, Australia
9points
#19 “The Feast” By Audun Rikardsen
Winner, Oceans: The Bigger Picture.
Description: “Audun managed to photograph this chaotic scene of gulls attempting to catch fish trapped by nets. The gulls have learnt to follow the sound of the boats to find a herring feast. Through his work, Audun aims to draw attention to the ongoing conflict between seabirds and the fishing industry.
Unfortunately, many birds drown in or around these purse seine nets each year. Various fisheries and researchers are trialling solutions, including sinking the nets more quickly to make them less accessible to the birds.”
Location: Kvænangen Fjord, Skjervøy, Norway
8points
#20 “Like An Eel Out Of Water” By Shane Gross
Winner, Animals in their Environment.
Description: “It took Shane numerous attempts over several weeks to document this rarely photographed behavior. At first the eels were elusive, but once Shane realized that they were scavenging for dead fish, he waited. His patience was soon rewarded when these three eels appeared.
Peppered moray eels are well adapted to the intertidal zone. They can hunt both above and below the water’s surface using their keen senses of smell and sight, sometimes staying out of water for more than 30 seconds.”
Location: D’Arros Island, Amirante, Seychelles
8points