Powerful Photo Competition Focuses on Nature’s Death and Decay

Left to right: Gael Modrak, Willem Kruger, and Ken Bluma

Nature’s not all baby elephants and clumsy ducklings — it can be raw, intense, and gruesome. Step forward the winners of the annual themed challenge from Close-up Photographer of the Year (CUPOTY). This year’s theme? “Death and Decay.”

Warning: Some readers may find these photos disturbing.

Willem Kruger from South Africa has won this year’s challenge for his grisly image of a hyena carrying the severed head of a zebra in Kruger National Park. The competition calls it a “visceral reminder that in nature, almost nothing goes to waste.”

A spotted hyena carries the head of a zebra through Kruger National Park, South Africa. Winner of the Death and Decay CUPOTY challenge. © Willem Kruger / CUPOTY

“Early one morning during a game drive in Kruger National Park, my wife and I came across three spotted hyenas walking along the road. One was carrying the head of a zebra, presumably from a nearby lion kill, and was heading straight towards us,” says winner Willem Kruger. “In nature, almost nothing goes to waste — even hyenas have a family to feed, and they do it with remarkable commitment.”

The CUPOTY challenge runs alongside the main annual Close-up Photographer of the Year competition, which opens in May. It runs throughout November and the theme is chosen by the CUPOTY community. As the winner, Willem Kruger receives £300 ($400) and will be featured in the CUPOTY ebook of 2026.

A common toad embraces a dead female in a pool in the Sierra Blanca natural area, southern Spain. Runner-up in the Death and Decay CUPOTY challenge. © Juan Jesus Gonzalez Ahumada / CUPOTY

A dead waterfowl chick lying underwater in a pond in Viry-Chatillon, near Paris, France. Third place in the Death and Decay CUPOTY challenge. © Gael Modrak / CUPOTY

A fishing spider feeding on a freshly caught froglet on Nosy Komba island, Madagascar. Finalist in the Death and Decay CUPOTY challenge. © Emanuele Biggi / CUPOTY

An American kestrel plucking a sparrow on top of a gravestone in a cemetery in Massachusetts, USA. Finalist in the Death and Decay CUPOTY challenge. © Jason Gilbody / CUPOTY

Dead trees on the edge of the Zahara de la Sierra reservoir, southern Spain, photographed at night using a dual focal-length long-exposure technique. Finalist in the Death and Decay CUPOTY challenge. © Juan Jesus Gonzalez Ahumada / CUPOTY

The hollowed-out exoskeleton of an acorn weevil suspended on a strand of silk in Spring Grove, Illinois, USA. Finalist in the Death and Decay CUPOTY challenge. © Ken Bluma / CUPOTY

A dead mallard drake frozen into the ice of a small lake in Follo, Norway. Finalist in the Death and Decay CUPOTY challenge. © Pal Hermansen / CUPOTY

A flower crab spider (Thomisus onustus) feeding on a bee on a flower in Crete, Greece. Finalist in the Death and Decay CUPOTY challenge. © Pete Burford / CUPOTY

A cranefly captured by a carnivorous sundew plant in a garden in Staffordshire, England. Finalist in the Death and Decay CUPOTY challenge. © Ed Phillips / CUPOTY

The fruiting body of an entomopathogenic fungus emerging from the dead body of a moth in humid woodland near Licenza, central Italy. Finalist in the Death and Decay CUPOTY challenge. © Emanuele Biggi / CUPOTY

A pygmy owl carrying prey to its nest, photographed from below in Follo, Norway. Finalist in the Death and Decay CUPOTY challenge. © Pal Hermansen / CUPOTY

A chocolate slime mould on a decaying log in Freeport Community Park, Pennsylvania, USA. Finalist in the Death and Decay CUPOTY challenge. © Nelson Milano / CUPOTY

An aphid gives birth while suspended from a single strand of spider’s web in a garden in Dalfsen, the Netherlands. Finalist in the Death and Decay CUPOTY challenge. © Sophie Mijnhout / CUPOTY

Butterflies drawing sap and nutrients from a road-killed snake in Cherrapunji, Meghalaya, India. Finalist in the Death and Decay CUPOTY challenge. © Indranil Basu Mallick / CUPOTY

The full gallery of winning and finalist images can be viewed online here.