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Photographers from all over the world entered more than 24,000 images into the world’s largest bird photography competition, with an image of a northern gannet bursting through the ocean’s surface taking the grand prize
Overall winner: Sunball Rocket by Henley Spiers.All photographs courtesy of Bird Photographer of the Year
Tue 22 Sep 2026 06.00 BST
Best portrait – gold: Radiant by Thomas Deliberto from the US
A male greater sage-grouse during its courtship display in Utah, US. As the sun was rising over the shadowed sagebrush hill behind him, it illuminated the bird’s tail feathers such that they appeared to radiate lightPhotograph: Thomas Deliberto
Best portrait – silver: Sunset Puffin by Volker Widmann from Germany
Atlantic puffin on Skomer Island, UK.I spent several days on Skomer to photograph the puffins in the early morning and late evening, when the day tourists had left the island and you had the birds almost to yourselfPhotograph: Volker Widmann
Best portrait – bronze: Tiny Dancer by David Stowe from Australia
A male western parotia dances in the rainforest of West Papua, Indonesia, in a dazzling attempt to attract a femalePhotograph: David Stowe
Birds in flight – gold: Eye-to-Eye with a Short-Eared Owl by Ivan Sjögren from Sweden
A short-eared owl courses over the salt marshes of British Columbia’s Fraser River delta. This was a magical evening, with five owls feeding around me as dusk fellPhotograph: Ivan Sjögren
Birds in flight – silver: Patterns by Alex Pansier from the Netherlands
A mesmerising swarm of guillemots in flight in Hornøya, Norway. What first appears as an Escher-like illusion is nature’s own design, organised chaos in motionPhotograph: Alex Pansier
Birds in flight – bronze: Lord of the Reedbeds by Patryk Kurc from Poland
A bittern flying from reedbed to reedbed in Dąbrowa Górnicza, Poland, captured from a floating hide against the light of the rising sunPhotograph: Patryk Kurc
Black and white – gold: An Ostrich Horizon by Rahul Sachdev from India
An ostrich makes its way towards the dry lake bed of Amboseli in Kenya. In black and white, the stark landscape emphasises the bird’s solitary journey across the dust and heatPhotograph: Rahul Sachdev
Black and white – silver: Grass Tree by Raoul Slater from Australia
At our neighbour’s gate in Pomona, Queensland, is a grass tree, also known as a xanthorrhoea. These slow-growing succulents are native to Australia, and there are 30 species. They produce spectacular flower spikes that drip with nectar, attracting creatures like this little wattlebird, butterflies and native beesPhotograph: Raoul Slater
Black and white – bronze: Promenade Preening by Julian Terreros-Martin from Spain
A little penguin walks this Tasmanian promenade during the night to reach its burrow tucked safely away in the nearby shrubsPhotograph: Julian Terreros-Martin
Bird behaviour – gold: I’m Keeping Everyone Dry by Donald Chin from Australia
Rain threads through the forest in Perth, Australia. Camouflaged against bark and shadow, a fledgling tawny frogmouth stretches its wings and appears to be covering its siblings from the water dropletsPhotograph: Donald Chin
Bird behaviour – silver: Spread Eagle by Mark Carwardine from the UK
The Great Bear Rainforest on the west coast of Canada, as its name suggests, is a wet place, and on this particular day, it had been raining nonstop. I was on a Zodiac slowly meandering along an inlet in the forest when I spotted this magnificent juvenile bald eagle with its wings spread openPhotograph: Mark Carwardine
Bird behaviour – bronze: Kleptoparasitism by Bernhard Schubert from Austria
At the beach in Tulum on Mexico’s Yucatán peninsula, I positioned myself parallel to a fisherman whose unwanted catch repeatedly triggered aerial skirmishes overhead. The magnificent frigatebirds cruised just metres above him, and whenever a fish was tossed upward, the airspace eruptedPhotograph: Bernhard Schubert
Conservation (single image) - gold: Not a Good Day Fishing by Kent Stuart from the US
This image of a great blue heron was taken at a local pond that I frequent in Warren County, New Jersey. It has limited access, so I hike in from a cornfield on the back side. I was wearing chest waders and worked my way out to a mud flatPhotograph: Kent Stuart
Conservation (single image) - silver: Birds in the Red by Yann Bigant from France
Yellow bitterns and other waterbirds for sale in downtown Phnom Penh, Cambodia. An investigation into bird hunting and trade, during which this photo was taken, found wild birds sold illegally throughout the countryPhotograph: Yann Bigant
Conservation (single image) – bronze: Discarded Evidence by Luca Eberle from Italy
An Egyptian vulture in Malta. Although hunting of migratory species is regulated by national law, violations remain widespread, with dozens – sometimes hundreds – of protected and rare birds illegally killed each season, including many raptorsPhotograph: Luca Eberle
Creative perspectives – gold: Sundance by Åsmund Keilen from Norway
On a blazing summer day in Oslo, a common swift slices through the air, captured in an in-camera multiple exposure reflected in the glossy roof of our blue carPhotograph: Åsmund Keilen
Creative perspectives – silver: Turbulence by Henley Spiers from the UK
Northern gannet in Shetland, Scotland. The dark water was repeatedly shattered by the dives of dozens of gannets, plunging after their prey. Visibility vanished as the birds hit the surface with astonishing precision, streaking underwater in cascades of bubblesPhotograph: Henley Spiers
Creative perspectives – bronze: Grebe Impression by Julian Łoziński from Poland
I took the photo of a great crested grebe from a kayak at Brodnica Lake district in Poland. I must admit that combining the aforementioned technique with kayaking was a bit of a challengePhotograph: Julian Łoziński
Urban birds – gold: Alter Ego by Gianluca Damiani from Italy
In Rome, tall buildings function for yellow-legged gulls much like coastal cliffs, offering nesting, roosts and perches to survive in the city. This individual was photographed on a rooftop where a small colony had settledPhotograph: Gianluca Damiani
Urban birds – silver: Deception’s Hope by Romain Barats from France
Home of a fur seal trade leading to an almost extinction of seals, a whaling station, and then many volcanic eruptions leading to the destruction of scientific stations, Deception Island in Antarctica looks like it is cursed. But since then, nature has taken back its rights, like these gentoo penguins posing in front of a rusty whale blubber warehouse like guardsPhotograph: Romain Barats
Urban birds – bronze: The Window of Dreams by Julian Fernandez Quilez from Spain
Blue rock thrush in Hellín, Spain. From inside an abandoned house, photographed remotely during the bird’s visits in and out, the evening light pours through the window and casts warm shadows across the aged woodPhotograph: Julian Fernandez Quilez
Overall winner of young bird photographer of the year and gold in 15-17 years category: Moonlit Night by Parham Pourahmad from the US
I found a pair of great horned owls nesting in a park next to my house in Los Gatos, California. I headed out at dusk, hoping to capture a strong portrait of the owls. However, my aim shifted when I saw the full moon rising on the horizon. One of the owls flew down to a pine tree, and I quickly moved into position to frame it against the moon. The full winners gallery can be viewed onlinePhotograph: Parham Pourahmad
Overall winner of bird photographer of the year 2026 and gold in the birds in the environment category: Sunball Rocket by Henley Spiers from UK
A northern gannet seems to burst through the sun as it pierces down through the water in Shetland, Scotland. The handsome gannets lead a dualistic existence. In the nest, their newborn is carefully nurtured, and a couple’s bond is reinforced by pointing sharp beaks to the sky as they tenderly stroke their white necks togetherPhotograph: Henley Spiers
Birds in the environment – silver: Majesty by Åsmund Keilen from Norway
A majestic golden eagle drifts in dark silhouette across the face of the moon, its outstretched wings cutting a powerful shape through silver lightPhotograph: Åsmund Keilen
Birds in the environment – bronze: Back to Fishing by Romain Barats from France
I was snorkelling in the magnificent Port Charcot Bay in Antarctica when a raft of gentoo penguins suddenly showed up, en route to fish and feed on krillPhotograph: Romain BaratsExplore more on these topics
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