45 Incredible Wildlife Photos That Won Over The Judges Of The 2026 Siena Photo Awards

A Grey-headed Flying-fox mother flies with her pup between trees at a Melbourne colony. Pups typically cling to their mothers until they become too heavy to carry; they are then left with other pups in 'nursery' trees, where they wait for their mothers to return at dawn.

A moment of intense tension as a female puma attempts to capture a guanaco. For days, Kevin had been following the predator, a mother of two cubs who depended on her for food. At dawn, after observing the guanaco for a long time, the puma cautiously approaches and launches her attack, repeatedly trying to pull it down and bite into its neck to suffocate it. Despite the intensity of the struggle, the guanaco ultimately manages to escape.

A gelada (Theropithecus gelada) perches on a rock in the Ethiopian highlands at sunset. Endemic to Ethiopia, this primate—also known as the 'bleeding-heart baboon' for the distinctive reddish patch on the chest of males, a sign of health and dominance—is the only primate in the world that feeds almost exclusively on grass, which it selects with agile, precise fingers. It spends the nights clinging to rocky ledges along steep escarpments, where the altitude and steep walls protect it from predators. In the background, amid threatening clouds, the jagged peaks of the Simien Mountains rise, a volcanic massif in northern Ethiopia with deep gorges and spectacular basalt cliffs. Declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site, they host the world’s largest concentration of geladas and other endemic species in a high-altitude ecosystem often above 3,000 meters.

From a ship deep within the Arctic pack ice north of Svalbard, in the summer of 2025, a tuft of fur emerging from a distant ice wall catches Felix’s attention. In this remote polar environment, where sea ice thins each summer due to rising temperatures, encounters with wildlife are increasingly rare and unpredictable. Driven by curiosity, he launches his drone and approached slowly. As the distance narrowed, the scene gradually revealed itself: a polar bear (Ursus maritimus, an apex predator dependent on sea ice for hunting seals) in a deep sleep, its body curled within a crack beside an extraordinary formation of glacial ice of an intense and almost unreal shade of blue. Felix keeps the drone high, careful not to break the spell of the moment or disturb the bear’s peaceful rest. Then, with the same gentleness with which he had arrived, he withdrew, leaving the bear to its dreams, alone in the frozen realm it calls home.

Two young bears are following in their mother’s footsteps and learning her skills: they are ready to adapt to this extreme environment. Beyond a striking composition, this scene reveals an authentic maternal bond being passed on.

A scene of raw power and competition: northern gannets (Morus bassanus) engage in a fast and frenzied hunt for food, tracking shoals of fish from above before plunging into the sea like living missiles at impressive speeds. Their hydrodynamic bodies are equipped with specialized air sacs that protect them from the violent impact with the water. In this feeding frenzy, the birds move together intensely, taking advantage of the abundance of food and competing to grab it first. In the background, the iconic Bass Rock appears, a spectacular rocky island in the North Sea, renowned for its extraordinary birdlife and home to the largest colony of northern gannets in the world.

By a small garden pond in Kiskunság National Park, swallows drink on the wing, their beaks barely skimming the water's surface. In a moment of perfect timing, a marsh frog leaps into the air just as a swallow streaks past.

At a small pond in Tsavo East National Park, Bence was watching mammals gather to drink when thousands of red-billed queleas suddenly filled the sky. In the golden light, a fleeting moment aligned birds and elephants—a rare blend of scale, motion, and magic.

An Ethiopian wolf pup, the rarest canid in the world, plays with a frog, tossing it in the air as if it were hopping. This play is crucial for the pups’ development, enhancing coordination, hunting skills, and pack communication during the transition from a milk-based to a meat-based diet.

The magic of autumn colors enhances the already stunning scenery of Caddo Lake’s swamps, home to countless bird species. Amid the reflective waters, a white heron, hunting from a high perch, stands out for its brightness, contrasting sharply with the surrounding landscape.

The relationship between the coastal brown bear and the Sockeye salmon is revealed from an unusual perspective. Both rely on their senses to survive, driven by opposing needs: the bear senses the salmon nearby but cannot pinpoint their exact location to strike.

Arctic wolf scent rolling is a complex behaviour in which wolves rub their bodies and heads against objects bearing strong odours. This behaviour is thought to serve several functions, including communication within the pack, camouflage by masking their own scent, and sensory exploration of the environment. A primary theory suggests that wolves bring these scents back to the pack to share information.

A bull elephant wanders through the iconic Albida forest of Mana Pools as the dusk light reflects off the dry-season dust. This pachyderm searches for the nutritious pods of these trees, which flower at this time of year, providing a valuable food source when resources are scarce.

A mature male bull gharial, recognisable by the distinctive bulbous ghara, or knob, on the tip of his elongated snout, provides comfort and protection to a swarm of newborn hatchlings gathered on and around his formidable body. In moments of danger or distress, gharial juveniles instinctively seek refuge on their father’s massive head, clambering over his jaws and resting between the ridges of his snout. This remarkable behaviour, both tender and striking, creates a truly spectacular family scene, highlighting an unusual display of parental care in these ancient reptiles.

A male gelada, his fur still dark and heavy from a recent rain, calmly eats grass while keeping an eye on two playful infants on the edge of a cliff. Geladas are unique primates that thrive exclusively in Ethiopia—they are the only species of monkey whose diet consists primarily of grass.

During a safari in Wilpattu National Park, some toque macaques were moving gracefully from tree to tree. Among them, a newborn clung to its mother—nursing and slowly drifting to sleep. This tender moment was quietly captured without disturbing them.

A dust devil sweeps past a Masai giraffe on a dramatic, stormy afternoon in Amboseli National Park. It is not every day that one gets to see dust devils with an animal in the frame.

An unexpected shot of a little hare, captured in the early morning light—a rare three-second encounter across a dewy landscape.

Elephants dot the landscape of the marsh area in the Masai Mara, and seeing them blend in with the forest is a truly humbling experience. A sense of calm fills the entire forest when these gentle giants peacefully wander by.

During a cloudy day, a family of Crested Caracaras was seen nesting in a Saguaro in the Sonoran Desert. The parents were bringing food and protecting the nest.