Geographical

Official magazine of the Royal Geographical Society (with IBG)

British Wildlife Photography Awards 2023 winners

4 minutes

Sleeping with Dandelions, Lewis Newman; Animal Portraits, winner.
Sleeping with Dandelions, Lewis Newman; Animal Portraits, winner. ‘After spending a lot of time with this particular vixen, she began to learn I wasn’t a threat. As the dandelions began to open, there were a couple of days when she would wake up covered in them.’

Murmurations, carnivorous plants and honey bee flight trails are some of the exciting winners from this year’s British Wildlife Photography Awards

Founded in 2009 by Maggie Gowan, who at that time was the manager and adviser of photography at Highgrove Garden, the home of HRH Prince Charles, the annual British Wildlife Photography Awards are aimed at highlighting the great wealth and diversity of Britain’s natural history. More than 13,000 images were submitted to this year’s competition, a selection of the winners from which are showcased here. 

Further details about entering the competition can be found at www.bwpawards.org

Mystical Forest, Philip Selby; Wild Woods, winner
Mystical Forest, Philip Selby; Wild Woods, winner. ‘On the remains of an Iron Age hill fort on Badbury Hill in Oxfordshire, Badbury Clump is an area of wonderful beech woodland, carpeted in bluebells each spring.’ 
Hitching a Lift, James Roddie; Animal Behaviour, winner.
Hitching a Lift, James Roddie; Animal Behaviour, winner. ‘The common toad’s migration to its spawning grounds can be a spectacular event to watch. As the large females make their way to the water, the smaller males approach them to try to “hitch a lift”. It can result in some amusing behaviour, as multiple males will often try to mount the same female.’
Welcome to the Zoo(plankton), Henley Spiers; Coast & Marine, winner
Welcome to the Zoo(plankton), Henley Spiers; Coast & Marine, winner. ‘One night in Shetland, I came face to face with plankton on a scale unlike anything I had experienced before, snorkelling amid a plankton bloom so thick that, at times, I was unable to see through it. To the naked eye, it looks like a million peach-coloured spheres, as if the contents of a bean bag had spilt over the sea, but my macro lens reveals a mass of tiny organisms.’
Great Mell Fell, Matthew Turner. Black & White, winner
Great Mell Fell, Matthew Turner. Black & White, winner. ‘I spent a good few hours on this foggy morning exploring the wooded eastern contours of Great Mell Fell in the Lake District. I clambered through the jumble of fallen trees and eventually stumbled upon this decaying specimen, which looked to me like a claw reaching out from the pile of decomposing tree carcasses beneath.’ 
Honey Bee Flight Trail, John Waters; Hidden Britain, winner.
Honey Bee Flight Trail, John Waters; Hidden Britain, winner. ‘This shot was taken in a small wildlife-friendly garden in Bristol. I used a slow shutter speed and second-curtain flash to “freeze” the bees.’
A Poet’s Lunch, Matt Doogue; Botanical Britain, winner
A Poet’s Lunch, Matt Doogue; Botanical Britain, winner. ‘A 4.30am alarm to get to Devilla Forest for some early morning butterflies resulted in me finding my first ever sundew.’ 
Stag by the Loch Side, Neil McIntyre; Habitat, winner.
Stag by the Loch Side, Neil McIntyre; Habitat, winner. ‘This stunning location [in the western Highlands, Scotland] is one I visit frequently with the hope that I might get opportunities just like this. I moved into position and waited until the stag made his way along the ridge; sure enough, he walked right through the light patch.’
Forest Dawn, Graham Niven; Wild Woods, runner-up
Forest Dawn, Graham Niven; Wild Woods, runner-up. ‘The Abernethy Forest in Cairngorm National Park is a very special place that I am fortunate to call home. It’s a wonderful place for photography and I am always trying to capture its splendour and translate some of the magic and value it holds.’
Pike Courtship, Robert Cuss; Animal Behaviour, runner-up.
Pike Courtship, Robert Cuss; Animal Behaviour, runner-up. ‘This photo was taken on a dive aimed at finding breeding pike in a quarry. During courtship, the males are oblivious of divers, so it was possible to get close to them and take a series of pictures, even with a fisheye lens.’
Helter Skelter, Matthew Cattell; Urban Wildlife, runner-up.
Helter Skelter, Matthew Cattell; Urban Wildlife, runner-up. ‘Every night during winter, Brighton plays host to a spectacular murmuration of starlings. As they arrived to roost, they swept across the sea, producing graceful, elegant curves across my viewfinder.’