2023 Nature inFocus photography awards winners – in pictures

Wildscape & Animals in Their Habitat winner: The Things You Do for Love by Amit Eshel

It may look like the set for the next Mission Impossible but, for Nubian ibexes, the high-altitude rocky terrains are home. The vulnerable ibex species is known for its large semi-circular horns, the ability to scale mountains with ease and the territorial fights between males during the rutting season. Displays of dominance begin with showing off their impressive horns. If that doesn’t do the trick, it’s time to escalate by pushing and shoving the opponent and literally locking horns with them. Ibexes also stand on their hind legs as they get ready to strike

Photograph: Amit Eshel/2023 Nature inFocus Photography Awards

Wildscape & Animals in Their Habitat winner: Worlds Apart by Dileep SS

Think Dubai and the first thing that comes to mind is architectural marvels that make the sky seem at arm’s reach. The tall buildings may be Dubai’s trademark visuals but another world coexists alongside the dazzle, where wildlife thrives in the desert. The image juxtaposes these two worlds: the towering skyscrapers and the endless sands, and are a gentle reminder to look beyond the concrete

Photograph: Dileep SS/2023 Nature inFocus Photography Awards

Wildscape & Animals in Their Habitat special mention: The Land of Stripes by Amit Vyas

If the essence of Ranthambore could be captured in one frame, this would be it. Only once in a blue moon does the landscape become this misty at Ranthambore. And when a tiger chooses the opportune moment to show itself, it almost feels too good to be true. The historical architecture of the landscape, its species and the cerulean backdrop create an image that has magic written all over it

Photograph: Amit Vyas/2023 Nature inFocus Photography Awards

Wildscape & Animals in Their Habitat special mention: The Rarest of Them All by Sergey Gorshkov

One of the rarest cats in the world, the Amur leopard certainly makes you earn your sighting. The critically endangered felid faces several threats, including poaching for its fur. While suitable habitats are present across Russia and China, these leopards are threatened by the scarcity of prey animals

Photograph: Sergey Gorshkov/2023 Nature inFocus Photography Awards

Animal Portraits winner: The Bonobo and His Pet by Christian Ziegler

The bonobo is the last great ape species to be identified and is one of our closest living relatives. Here, a wild bonobo who caught a mongoose pup is looking after it like a pet. He later released the animal unharmed. This behaviour has only been recorded once before by Prof Barbara Fruth at this site

Photograph: Christian Ziegler/2023 Nature inFocus Photography Awards

Animal Portraits winner: Inspector Booby by Suliman Alatiqi

Brown boobys spend a significant portion of their lives in the open ocean. Their clumsy nature on land earned them their namesake, derived from the Spanish word bobo, which means stupid or daft. They are excellent foragers of the sea and plunge-dive to feed on anything from anchovies and sardines to squid and shrimp. The photographer watched this individual dipping its head underwater at short intervals and got in position to capture a close-up portrait of the bird from the perspective of its fated prey

Photograph: Suliman Alatiqi/2023 Nature inFocus Photography Awards

Animal Portraits special mention:A Face in the Crowd by Tom Shlesinger

Atlantic goliath groupers are massive fish that can live for dozens of years. They can grow up to 2.5 metres long and weigh up to 360kg. During one of his dives, the photographer found the groupers surrounded by silvery schools of bigeye scads, which were being ignored in favour of larger prey. Like when Gulliver arrived at Lilliput and was careful not to step on the tiny Lilliputians, the groupers swam through the swirling tunnel of smaller fish, creating this unique portrait

Photograph: Tom Shlesinger/2023 Nature inFocus Photography Awards

Animal Portraits special mention: Easy Like a Sunday by Bharath Kumar V

Live life king-size, they say. So if you are the king of the jungle, what do you do after a hearty meal but roll over and relax? Never mind the flies all around, trying to break your siesta

Photograph: Bharath Kumar V/2023 Nature inFocus Photography Awards

Animal Behaviour special mention: A Love Like No Other by Afroj Sheikh

Caught in the crosshairs of a hungry leopard, the vulnerable mother and baby langur had little chance of survival. The hunt and the chase had led the predator and prey up a tree before the mother succumbed to the suffocating hold of the large cat. But in embracing death, the mother was able to save her offspring

Photograph: Afroj Sheikh/2023 Nature inFocus Photography Awards

Animal Behaviour winner: Shell I Eat You? by Sankhesh Dedhia

This stunning action shot captures a rarely seen natural history moment, where the legendary arrowhead of Ranthambhore fishes out an Indian softshell turtle from the lake for lunch. A tiger’s diet in the wild can be very varied as the felid can prey on pretty much everything on its turf, even a turtle, hence proved!

Photograph: Sankhesh Dedhia/2023 Nature inFocus Photography Awards

Animal Behaviour winner: A Sappy Alliance by Avinash PC

Symbiotic relationships are plentiful in the natural world. But none as sappy and sugary as the mutualistic relationship between ants and aphids. Aphids are tiny, sap-sucking insects that are serious plant pests. They secrete a sugar-rich liquid called honeydew, a favourite food of ants. So much so that the ants protect these insects from other predators and even shepherd them to the healthiest parts of the plant to maintain a steady stream of sweet honeydew

Photograph: Avinash PC/2023 Nature inFocus Photography Awards

Animal Behaviour special mention: Lights Will Guide You Home by Merche Llobera

A pod of spinner dolphins dives back into the beautifully lit waters of the Pacific Ocean, creating this stunning scene of a cetacean avalanche. One of the dolphins can be seen gazing into the camera lens, adding a touch of curiosity and connection to the frame

Photograph: Merche Llobera/2023 Nature inFocus Photography Awards

Animal Behaviour special mention: It’s a Cat-eat-cat World by Karthik Mohan Iyer

It takes a moment before you go, ‘Woah!’. Though tigers and leopards share the same prey base, they tend to be non-confrontational and mostly stay away from one another. But when threatened by competition, tigers can eliminate other predators in their territory, such as leopards

Photograph: Karthik Mohan Iyer/2023 Nature inFocus Photography Awards

Conservation Focus winner: Cry Me a River by Hiren Pagi

Every once in a while, news sites report that a dead crocodile was found in the Vishwamitri River, a fleeting acknowledgement of the water body’s 270 mugger crocodiles. The image shows the conditions in which these reptiles coexist with humans. The river has become a dumping yard for the nearby establishments and in various places drainage water also makes its way into the mix. The mugger crocodiles of the river face many threats, including habitat loss and water pollution

Photograph: Hiren Pagi/2023 Nature inFocus Photography Awards

Conservation Focus special mention: The Anatomy of a Conflict by Madhusudhana SR

Amid a sea of onlookers, a kumki elephant played mediator between the forest officials and the wild elephant that had made its way into the village. We can only try to imagine the stress these animals undergo in such volatile conflict scenarios

Photograph: Madhusudhana SR/2023 Nature inFocus Photography Awards

Conservation Focus special mention: Luck by Chance by Joshua Barton

An olive ridley sea turtle attempts to swim away from its confines, the remnants of a ghost net. The photographer who came across this individual successfully managed to set it free

Photograph: Joshua Barton/2023 Nature inFocus Photography Awards

Conservation Focus special mention: Taking on the Grey Ghost by Liton Paul

After a successful hunt, the snow leopard was feasting on its catch when a pack of feral dogs tried to steal its meal. The image captures the moment when the felid stepped forward towards one of the dogs during a standoff. Feral dogs have become a common sight in the Spiti Valley, where they often attack animals like blue sheep, Himalayan ibex and red fox. Feral dogs reduce the prey base for snow leopards and can spread fatal diseases such as canine distemper among wild animals

Photograph: Liton Paul/2023 Nature inFocus Photography Awards

Creative Nature Photography winner: Symmetry in Mimicry by Arkaprava Ghosh

Mimicry is the highest form of flattery, they say. But in the animal world, it is among the best defence mechanisms. Here, line-forest skimmers position themselves aptly on the perennial Phanera vahlii creeper to resemble an inflorescence. Notice how the dragonflies have raised their abdomens in unison? Fooling a predator never looked this intricate

Photograph: Arkaprava Ghosh/2023 Nature inFocus Photography Awards

Creative Nature Photography winner: All That Glitters Are Spores by Anirban Dutta

The bristles are the brightly coloured protective hairs of the slug moth larvae. The glitter-like effect is because of mushrooms releasing spores. When the photographer found the larvae positioned right next to the sporing mushrooms, he did not want to miss the opportunity to capture the dramatic frame, and dramatic it is!

Photograph: Anirban Dutta/2023 Nature inFocus Photography Awards

Creative Nature Photography winner: Chiaroscuro by Kai Kolodziej

Here is a gentle reminder that photographing the natural world is not just about documenting the megafauna but also zooming in on the speck on a blade of grass to reveal the chiaroscuro of a mayfly

Photograph: Kai Kolodziej/2023 Nature inFocus Photography Awards

Creative Nature Photography special mention: Skimmer Love by Padmanava Santra

The atmospheric blue brushstrokes, the warm sunset glow on the orange bills of the Indian skimmers and the bokeh on the water body; what’s not to love about this image?

Photograph: Padmanava Santra/2023 Nature inFocus Photography Awards

Young Photographer winner: Raiders of Hives by Pranav Mahendru

In the dense forests of Satpura, a pair of oriental honey buzzards raid a beehive. These raptors hunt for food in beehives and wasp nests but, unlike what their name suggests, they prefer bee and wasp larvae over actual honey

Photograph: Pranav Mahendru/2023 Nature inFocus Photography Awards

Young Photographer winner: Slender in the Night by Arnav Deshpande

Like the spiders they are commonly confused with, opiliones too have eight legs – mostly long and thin in contrast to their bodies. They are living fossils, the original ‘Daddy Longlegs’, having remained unchanged for millions of years. On a rainy night, the young photographer spotted this opilione sheltering in a crevice, raindrops glistening on its limbs

Photograph: Arnav Deshpande/2023 Nature inFocus Photography Awards

Young Photographer special mention: The Sky Keeps Score by Jomtup Charoenlapnumchai

Asian openbill storks migrate between south Asia and south-east Asia, and are often found in flocks, taking to the skies during the warmer part of the day and soaring on the thermals. In this beautifully composed image, the young photographer captures the elegance of these birds as they swirl around and fill the sky

Photograph: Jomtup Charoenlapnumchai/2023 Nature inFocus Photography Awards

Young Photographer special mention: Gecko’s Garage by Vidyun Hebbar

The Andaman day gecko or the green emerald gecko is a bright-coloured gecko endemic to the Andaman Islands. The young photographer was on vacation when he spotted this shy creature lurking inside a light shade

Photograph: Vidyun Hebbar/2023 Nature inFocus Photography Awards