The prestigious Wildlife Photographer of the Year competition has announced its top honor for 2026, awarding Italian photographer Federico Veronesi the grand title for a deeply moving and emotionally resonant black-and-white portrait. Veronesi’s winning image, titled "The Aftermath," captures a female elephant carrying her deceased calf, offering a rare and haunting insight into complex animal behaviors that scientists and researchers are still working to fully comprehend.
The powerful photograph emerged as the unanimous choice among a record-breaking field of submissions for the competition’s 62nd year. With 65,403 entries submitted by photographers hailing from 121 countries across the globe, the competition saw its largest turnout in history. The wide-ranging international contest features categories spanning photojournalism, wetlands, plants and fungi, animal behavior, portfolios, and dedicated youth divisions, highlighting the vast diversity of both the natural world and the artistic approaches used to document it.
Veronesi’s journey to capturing the award-winning frame required immense patience, persistence, and deep fieldcraft. While tracking elephants in the remote Huab River Valley of Namibia, the photographer stumbled upon unusual drag marks etched into the earth. Sensing a significant moment, he followed the trail until he finally caught up with the elephant family. As he observed the group, an adult female emerged from the brush with the lifeless leg of her calf securely wedged between her trunk and tusk.
The image immediately struck a chord with the competition’s judging panel for its raw emotional weight. Behaviors centering around death have occasionally been documented in both Asian and African elephants. These complex responses include vocalizations, vigilant guarding of the deceased, the careful inspection and handling of bones, and the physical carrying of the dead. While the exact cognitive and emotional drivers behind these actions remain a subject of ongoing study, some researchers suggest these behaviors could indicate an elephant’s gradual journey toward understanding mortality, while others interpret the actions as profound displays of grief.
Dr. Doug Gurr, Director of the Natural History Museum, which hosts and organizes the annual exhibition, reflected on the broader impact of the winning images. "This year’s winning photographs demonstrate the extraordinary power of wildlife photography to help us see nature differently," Dr. Gurr said. "Together they remind us that every species plays a role in the complex web of life, and why understanding and protecting the natural world has never been more important."
Alongside Veronesi’s grand-title win, the competition recognized a multitude of other exceptional photographers across its diverse categories, each capturing unique facets of earth’s ecosystems. Kutub Uddin earned acclaim for a mesmerizing capture of elegant slime molds from the "Secret Worlds" portfolio, highlighting the intricate, microscopic beauty often overlooked in natural environments. Loren Elliott was honored with the Photojournalist Story Award for a compelling portfolio titled "Wily Coyotes of San Francisco," which documents the resilient urban wildlife adapting to the edges of the bustling California metropolis. Meanwhile, in the youth divisions, young photographer Amelie Davis captured a delicate and precise portrait of a bee coming in for a landing on a flower in Surrey, England, securing the top prize in the 10 and Under category.
Other category winners further underscored the breadth and urgency of contemporary wildlife and environmental photography. Francisco Negroni of Chile claimed the top spot in the Photojournalism category with "Warning Sign," a striking image showcasing a dead puma resting amid the rugged, windswept landscapes of Argentine Patagonia. James Lewin of the United Kingdom won the Animals in their Environment category with "The Meeting Place," a black-and-white composition capturing a young bull elephant spraying a group of zebra as they congregate near a watering hole in the Kenyan Chyulu Hills.
In the Plants and Fungi category, Agorastos Papatsanis of Greece triumphed with "Shedding Light," utilizing ultraviolet light to reveal the striking, glowing yellow stems of bonnet mushrooms sprouting from a decaying log. Anton Sorokin of the United States secured the win in the Behaviour: Amphibians and Reptiles category with "Protective Pose," documenting a California newt carefully laying its eggs while clasping vegetation that already held another newt’s egg clutch.
Environmental themes also took center stage in specialized categories. Alex Visbal of Colombia won the Wetlands: The Bigger Picture category with "The Great Divide," presenting an aerial perspective of a single engineered line cutting through and reshaping an entire wetland ecosystem. In the rising star recognition, Alexis Tinker-Tsavalas of Germany earned the Rising Star Award for "Afternoon Snack" from the "Hidden Depths" portfolio, an extreme close-up showing a robber fly impaling a flesh fly with its needlelike mouthparts.
The top 100 images from this year’s competition, representing the pinnacle of global nature photography, are scheduled to go on public display. The exhibition opens at the Natural History Museum in London, giving visitors an opportunity to experience the full collection of winning and commended photographs through July 11, 2027.
