Breathtaking Wildlife Photos That Won Nature’s 2025 Photography Contest
Nature’s Best Photography Award bestows wildlife photographers around the world with the much-deserved honor and praise every year. But mind you, the competition is fierce, and only a few among thousands of submissions take the prize. From Madagascar to Brazil, this year's winners are selected from all over the world. These photographs capture something more than mundane, conveying a secret message that viewers immediately start to decode. And this year, 6 winners of the 'Wildlife' category have managed to capture the essence behind the pictures of the wild animals. The winner of the Best Photography award in the 'Wildlife' category is Hira Punjabi's capture of 'Male Jaguars' sitting within the dense forest of Pantanal, Brazil.
“I spent six full days boating through the Pantanal on safari, tracking these jaguars. After several failed hunting attempts, they finally paused to rest—giving me a rare moment to compose them together in a single frame," the Thane, India, resident revealed. Although only one winner was credited in this category, many others deservedly received honorary mentions. One of them is the African elephant & calf captured by Torie Hilley of Ventura, California, USA. The stunning silhouettes of the mother and her calf were captured in Amboseli National Park, Kenya. But what enhanced the picture's beauty was the picturesque backdrop of an orange sunset. Despite having a giant physique, these creatures are believed to be socially complex and remain in close-knit circles for the majority of their lives, as per Forbes.
Next up on the list is the mesmerizing picture of a desert kit fox pup with feathers in its mouth. The stunning snap didn't simply capture an animal but also the pup's mischief and playfulness. Beaumon Day of Highland, Utah, took this immersive picture in West Desert, Utah. According to research published in Physiological Zoology notes, the kit foxes are masters at surviving the desert as they burrow themselves to escape the high temperatures during the day. Another honorable mention of the photography contest is Bence Máté of Pusztaszer, Hungary, for his aesthetic capture of ring-tailed lemurs. The picture captured a mother lemur leaping into the air as her three pups clung to her back. The shot was clicked the moment the mother lemur was halfway in the air while her feet were on the ground. The baby lemurs at the back seem to be bracing themselves for the impact of the landing, while each of them stared in a different direction.
The photo somehow managed to capture the family dynamics and the personalities of the lemurs. The mother was determined and ready for the jump while the youngest lemur clung close to her back. Next up is Donglin Zhou's capture of a group of lemurs at the Tsingy de Bemaraha Strict Nature Reserve, Madagascar. The moment clicked by the Hangzhou, China native, seems nothing less than an oil painting. Last but not least is the stunning close-up shot of a hippopotamus taken at Maasai Mara National Reserve, Kenya, by Samir Kamat of Atlanta, Georgia, USA. An angle that only captures a quarter of the glorious animal, yet manages to leave an impact. The shot was clicked of a submerging hippo after it was mostly submerged in water with its mouth pointing at the sky.
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