Natural History Museum crowns winner Wildlife Photographer of the Year: See photos
An image depicting an "ambling Eurasian badger" took home first prize in Wildlife Photographer of the Year People’s Choice Awards contest on Wednesday, an international photography competition and touring exhibition held by the Museum of Natural History in London.
"No Access," photographed by British photographer Ian Wood, shows the badger glancing up at some rather familiar graffiti in St Leonards-on-Sea, a beach town in East Sussex.
According to an announcement from the Museum of Natural History, the "perfectly timed capture" was one of 25 images selected by the museum and an international panel of judges for the 60th annual competition. Over 76,000 wildlife photography and nature fans from all over the globe voted on their favorite image.
Almost 60,000 images were submitted, but only five images, including Wood's image, made the final lineup.
"Ian’s flawlessly timed image offers a unique glimpse of nature’s interaction with the human world, underscoring the importance of understanding urban wildlife," Douglas Gurr, director of the Natural History Museum said in a statement. "His exceptional photograph serves as a powerful reminder that local nature and wildlife, often just outside our homes, can inspire and captivate us.”
"Badger’s graffiti glance" and four other "highly commended" images will be displayed online and on the interactive voting screens at a flagship exhibition until June 29.
Take a look at the top five nature and wildlife photographs recognized, including the winning image below.
Contest sheds 'light on inspiring and impactful stories'
The Natural Museum of History's award was designed to shine a "light on inspiring and impactful stories from the natural world to create advocates for our planet." It was open to amateur and professional photographers of all ages from around the world.
Images for this year's competition are currently being judged by another international experts. The winners will be announced in October.
Wildlife Photographer of the Year was founded by BBC Wildlife Magazine in 1965, then called Animals. The Natural History Museum came on board in 1984 to create the competition as it is known today, according to the release.
See photos: Impressive nature scenes delight and inspire
'No Access' by Ian Wood
Wood, who shot the photo of the badger, noticed that locals had been leaving food scraps on the pavement for foxes. But it turns out, badgers were also on the hunt for the food scraps. When he saw a badger walking along the pavement late at night, he decided to photograph it.
The outpour of "badger love" since the photo was nominated for the award had been "beautifully overwhelming" and finding out it won was "truly humbling," he said in a statement. His hope, now that he won, is that the image raises "awareness of the damaging effect of the badger cull and help push for change.”
"However, there is a darker side to this image. I live in rural Dorset where I’m on a re-wilding mission to enhance habitats for a huge array of wildlife," Wood said. "The badger cull – which is still ongoing – has decimated their numbers and I fear that unless the cull is stopped, we’ll only see badgers in urban settings in several parts of England."
'Earth and Sky' by Francisco Negroni
'Edge of Night' by Jess Findlay
Voters were also impressed by four other images, which feature an unforgettable capture of a double lenticular cloud illuminated at nightfall by lava emitted from the Villarrica volcano in Chile titled "Earth and Sky," and an action shot showing a ghostly barn owl exiting through the hayloft window of a derelict barn to hunt called the "Edge of Night."
'Whiteout' by Michel d’Oultremont
The other two finalists' images depict a stoat sitting up to observe its territory as it blends perfectly into a snowy landscape in Belgium and an image of a bloodied yet determined honey badger returning to finish off a Cape porcupine, which had tried to defend itself earlier.