The Bird Photographer of the Year award has been announced, with Canadian photographer Patricia Homonylo scooping the top prize for her thought-provoking image titled When Worlds Collide.
The picture was taken in Toronto and beat more than 23,000 entries to claim the prize.
The photograph shows more than 4,000 birds that died colliding with windows and other reflective surfaces in the city.
“Each year more than one billion birds die in North America alone due to collisions with windows,” says Homonylo.
“I am a conservation photojournalist and have been working with the Fatal Light Awareness Program, where we save window-collision survivors in Toronto.
“Sadly, most of the birds we find are already dead.
“They are collected and at the end of the year we create this impactful display to honour the lives lost and increase public awareness.”
Homonylo’s entry was also among the winners selected for the Conservation (Single Image) category.
The Young Bird Photographer of the Year 2024 was awarded to 14-year-old Spanish photographer Andrés Luis Domínguez Blanco for his creative angle on a nuthatch scrambling down an oak tree.
Photographers competed in a eight of different categories in the adult competition, including a Conservation Award, Portfolio Award, and Video Award.
Here is a selection of the pictures that were awarded a gold, silver or bronze, with descriptions by the photographers.
Playful Fledgling, Southern California, United States by Jack Zhi
“This Peregrine Falcon fledgling had been flying for over a week and his skills had improved by the day.
“While he still took food from parents, he had started to practise his hunting skills.
“He was not good enough to catch live birds in the air yet, so he took baby steps by chasing a fluttering butterfly.
“I have been photographing peregrines for years, and this was the first time I have seen fledglings play with butterflies.”
Black Grouse, Kuusamo, Finland by Markus Varesvuo
“For several weeks each year, Black Grouse gather at [the] leks on spring mornings for courtship and display.
“The males come down, each claiming their patch, and spend a couple of hours sizing each other up, charging at each other, engaging in mostly mock battles.
“Sometimes, however, the encounters escalate to real fights.
“The heated breath of a solitary fighter is steaming in the cold air, which I captured while sitting inside a small photography hide, revelling in the sounds and sights of this ancient play.”
Heavenly Elegant Flight, France by Nicolas Groffal
“In the dead of winter, I marvel at the aerial ballet of the garden birds that come to visit my trees and to take advantage of the seeds that I put out for them.
“Discreetly hidden, I tried to immortalise their flight and its delicate trail using a flash and camera in ‘rear curtain’ mode.
“Hundreds of shots were required before I captured the perfect moment, which portrayed the fleeting magic of nature in winter.”
Immersion, Shetland, UK by Kat Zhou
“Here we see a trio of northern gannets diving into the ocean on a sunny day in Shetland. .
“The species is Scotland’s largest seabird, and they are remarkably adept in the water, with the ability to dive to depths as far as 22 metres.
“I took this photo while scuba diving from a boat near Noss, which is home to the UK’s seventh largest colony of northern gannets.
“In the past the population has been estimated at around 25,000 birds, though their numbers were unfortunately severely reduced by the avian flu outbreak.
“It is unclear when, or if, their population will be able to recover. Dead herring from a local herring fishery were used to attract the birds to the boat.”
“I took the image from a raised platform high above the wetland.
“With a little bit of imagination, the combination of bird and ripples look like the head of a hippo.”