 |
| © Javier Aznar González de Rueda/Courtesy Wildlife Photographer of the Year |
Golden couple
 |
| © Marsel van Oosten/Courtesy Wildlife Photographer of the Year |
Who, me?
 |
| © Arshdeep Singh/Courtesy Wildlife Photographer of the Year |
Would you believe this stunning photo was taken by a child? Arshdeep Singh was driving with his father when he told his dad to stop—he’d just spotted an owl dive into a pipe. Ashdeep borrowed his father’s camera and telephoto lens and kept the window half-open so he could rest his camera at the right height. Eventually, the curious spotted owls poked their heads out and stared unblinkingly at the camera, giving Ashdeep the shot that won him the 10 Years and Under category of the NHM competition.
Seal’s eye view
 |
| © Cristobal Serrano/Courtesy Wildlife Photographer of the Year |
A drone helped get this birds-eye shot of crabeater seals resting on an ice floe near the tip of the Antarctic Peninsula, which won the Animals in Their Environment category of the NHM competition. An uptick in melting sea ice could mean the seals have fewer options when seeking sanctuary from their predators like killer whales, as well as a loss in their main food source, krill, which use ice for shelter and their own meals of algae.
Busy as a wasp
 |
| © Georgina Steytler/Courtesy Wildlife Photographer of the Year |
The waterhole in Australia’s Walyormouring Nature Reserve is literally buzzing in the summer. Mud daubers roll mud into balls to build their nests, and this shot of female wasps gathering their building materials won the Behaviour: Invertebrates category from NHM.
No trespassing
 |
| © Alejandro Prieto/Courtesy Wildlife Photographer of the Year |
Jaguars scratch their 'signature tree' to signal to other animals that this branch is taken. Photographer Alejandro Prieto set up a camera in Mexico’s Sierra de Vallejo for months, checking in every now and then to change the batteries. After eight months, he finally caught the jaguar returning to his claimed spot, winning Wildlife Photojournalist Award: Story for the NHM competition.
Dueling deer
 |
| © Michel d'Oultremont/Courtesy Wildlife Photographer of the Year |
Mating season is the only time of year when the herds that are normally segregated between males and females meet together. In the Ardennes forest in Belgium, two red deer stags locked antlers in tough competition over potential mates. This moody photo won photographer Michel d’Oultremont the Rising Star Portfolio Award for NHM.
Helicopter mom
 |
| © Javier Aznar González de Rueda/Courtesy Wildlife Photographer of the Year |
Most treehoppers rely on other insect species like ants to protect their babies—but in the genus Alchisme, the mother takes on the sole responsibility of protecting her nymphs, sometimes with the help of fellow treehoppers. If an attacker comes, the mamas like this one in Ecuador, which won the Wildlife Photographer Portfolio Award for the NHM competition, will flash the spines on her back.
Small wonder
 |
| © Saulius Gugis/Courtesy Nikon Small World Photomicrography Competition |
This spittlebug nymph earned bronze in the 2018 Nikon Small World Photomicrography Competition. As adults, spittlebugs look like grasshoppers, but when they’re young, they have a curious habit: covering themselves with foamy 'spittle' that keeps them from drying out and wards off predators.
Sharp sting
 |
| © Pierre Anquet/Courtesy Nikon Small World Photomicrography Competition |
This runner-up from the Small World contest features a close-up look at an Asian hornet’s stinger, with a drop of venom on the tip. The stings aren’t deadly to humans, barring any allergies, but Vespa velutina is a threat to honeybees in France and Britain, where it’s an invasive species.
