The 21 Fantastic Winners of the British Wildlife Photography Awards 2026

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left, a fox walks at night near a chain-link fence in colored light; center, a silhouette of a person swimming reflected in rippled water with tree branches; right, a pine marten stands upright on a mossy rock in daylight.

The British Wildlife Photography Awards (BWPA) winners have been revealed, showcasing Britain’s very best nature and wildlife images. Photographers entered more than 12,000 photos of Britain’s wonderful wildlife, and competed across 11 different categories.

British Wildlife Photographer of the Year

Photographer Paul Hobson earned top honors, winning the competition’s grand prize and being named the British Wildlife Photographer of the Year. Hobson’s mesmerizing photo below, which also won the competition’s Black and White category, was captured from a pond-floor perspective in Sheffield, England, and shows a toad swimming across the water’s surface.

A person’s silhouette is reflected in water, surrounded by bare tree branches. Ripples distort the reflection, creating a surreal, almost dreamlike effect in black and white.

“I am lucky to have a pond close to my house that has relatively clear water,” Hobson says. “Toads use this pond to breed in, and I decided I wanted to try to capture an image looking up from the bottom of the pond.”

Hobson built a homemade glass box and placed it at the bottom of the pond, controlling its shutter with an adapted long cable release.

“I had to wait quite a long time until a toad swam across the surface — most of them would usually swim below it and rest on the glass,” Hobson explains. As the spectacular shot above shows, Hobson eventually nailed it.

Young British Wildlife Photographer of the Year

The competition also named photographer Ben Lucas its Young British Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2026. Lucas’ close-up portrait of a young, sleeping mute swan cygnet napping on its sibling’s back is a pleasant reminder of the calm, peaceful moments nature so rarely provides. Lucas also won the 15-17 Years category with his shot.

“Nature can often be so cruel, but tender moments like this warm my heart!” the young photographer remarks.

A close-up of a fluffy gray cygnet sleeping with its eyes closed and head resting on its soft body, set against a dark, blurred background.

Category Winners

Adult photographers competed across 11 categories, ranging from Animal Behavior to Wild Woods. There are three age groups in the youth competition: 11 and Under, 12-14 Years, and 15-17 Years. All the category winners and runners-up are featured below.

“This year’s winners celebrate the wonder, diversity and character of British wildlife in truly exceptional ways,” says Will Nicholls, Director of British Wildlife Photography Awards. “From familiar species to rarely seen moments, the portfolio showcases the skill and passion of the photographers behind the lens. Together, they offer a joyful celebration of Britain’s natural world, while also reminding us why these places and species are so deserving of our care and protection.”

A hawk pins a smaller bird to the grass with its talons, wings spread wide. The smaller bird lies on its back, beak open in distress, while the green grass and some small white flowers surround them.

Two brown hares stand upright facing each other, appearing to box with their front paws raised. The background is softly blurred, highlighting their detailed fur and expressive faces.

A pine marten stands upright on its hind legs on a mossy rock, surrounded by soft-focus green vegetation and natural light. Its brown fur and creamy-yellow throat patch are clearly visible.

A red fox sits alertly on green grass, surrounded by a soft, blurred frame of purple flowers, with a dark green background.

Close-up of three tiny fungus-like structures on a twig; one is blue and textured, and the other two are brown with a clear water droplet between them, against a soft blurred yellow-orange background.

A network of green, web-like neural cells with round centers interconnected by thin strands, set against a dark blue background, resembling a complex biological or neural network.

A silhouette of a fox walking on a tiled surface at night, illuminated by a spotlight from behind, casting long, dramatic shadows on the ground.

A brightly colored, neon green crab with striped patterns crawls on a dark, algae-covered underwater surface, illuminated by dramatic, colorful lighting.

A silhouette of a bird, possibly a swan, is surrounded by bright, circular light reflections, creating an abstract, dreamy effect in black and white.

A small bird with a white chest and brown body stands on a mossy rock in the middle of a flowing stream, surrounded by blurred, rushing water and green trees in the background.

A white hare camouflaged against a snowy landscape with patches of brown grass, blending in almost perfectly with the surroundings.

A close-up view of a small, brown salamander larva inside a translucent, round egg sac, surrounded by several blurred green egg sacs in the background.

A close-up of a spider wrapping its prey, an insect, in silk. The spider’s legs and eyes are visible as it encases the insect, which is mostly covered in webbing, against a dark background.

A fox is curled up and sleeping on the seat of an orange construction vehicle, next to a can of spray. Metal fence bars and a blurred building are visible in the background.

A fox walks along a dimly lit urban street at night, illuminated by red and green lights near a brick building with a metal gate and a discarded bag on the ground.

Golden sunlight streams dramatically through the branches of a leafless tree in a forest, creating a radiant, starburst effect and illuminating the misty air with a warm, glowing light.

A large tree with twisting branches covered in moss stands among bright yellow autumn leaves, with heather and other plants at its base.

A close-up of a bee peering out from the entrance of its nest in a hole in the ground, showing detailed eyes, antennae, and fuzzy head surrounded by brown soil.

A falcon with outstretched wings hovers in the air against a clear blue sky, grasping its raised talons as if about to catch something or land.

More From the British Wildlife Photography Awards

All awarded photos from this year’s British Wildlife Photography Awards are featured in a hardcover coffee-table book, published by Graffeg Books. Actor, writer, and director Mackenzie Crook did the book’s foreword. The photo book is available to preorder now from the BWPA’s website for £35. It includes over 250 winning and shortlisted photos from the 2026 competition.

Entries are already open now for the 2027 British Wildlife Photography Awards.

Image credits: British Wildlife Photography Awards. All photographers are credited in the individual captions.

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