The people have spoken! Here's the winner of the Wildlife Photographer of the Year People’s Choice Award 2024

A honey badger with porcupine spikes in its face

Spiked. "A bloodied yet determined honey badger returns to finish off a Cape porcupine, which earlier had tried to defend itself. Found throughout Botswana, honey badgers are famously ferocious. They often chase animals many times their own size." (Image credit: David Northall / Wildlife-Photographer of the Year)

Wildlife and nature photography fans from around the have had the unique chance to cast their vote for their favorite image to win the Wildlife Photographer of the Year People’s Choice Award 2024.

Wildlife Photographer of the Year is developed and produced by the Natural History Museum, London, and from an unfortunate honey badger, to dancing decorator crabs, 25 stunning images entered the ring to be judged by the public.

A badger looking at a graffiti image of a badger — *No Access*. The winner of the Wildlife Photographer of the Year People’s Choice Award 2024. "An ambling Eurasian badger appears to glance up at badger graffiti on a quiet road in St Leonards-on-Sea, England, UK." (Image credit: Ian Wood / Wildlife Photographer of the Year)

The shortlisted photographs were chosen from 59,228 entries from 117 countries and territories, in addition to the 100 winning images announced earlier this year, by the Natural History Museum, London, and an international judging panel.

Butterflies on the ground — *Fallen from the Sky.* "A collage of dead butterflies and moths trapped by the surface tension of the water floats in a stream in Italy." (Image credit: Carlo D’Aurizio / Wildlife Photographer of the Year)

Among this year’s selection is the moment a European roller bird defended its territory from a bemused-looking little owl by Bence Máté. Arvind Ramamurthy’s memorable image of an Indian wolf pack pausing briefly as they played amongst some fields and Jose Fragozo’s heart-breaking image of a young cheetah cub waiting to be sold in Ethiopia are also in the running.

A bird among bushes — *Forest of Dreams*. "A northern giant petrel sits on its nest at the edge of a rātā tree forest on Enderby Island, New Zealand." (Image credit: Samuel Bloch / Wildlife Photographer of the Year)

‘No Access’, is the winner of People's Choice Award taken by Ian Wood, from the UK.

“An ambling Eurasian badger appears to glance up at badger graffiti on a quiet road in St Leonards-on-Sea, England, UK. Residents had been leaving food scraps on the pavement for foxes. But Ian noticed that badgers from a nearby sett were also coming to forage.

A cheetah with a rope around his neck — *Unsold*. "A young cheetah cub hisses while waiting to be sold in Ethiopia." (Image credit: Jose Fragozo / Wildlife Photographer of the Year)

“After seeing a badger walking along the pavement by this wall late one night, he decided to photograph it. He set up a small hide on the edge of the road to take his picture. Only the light from a lamppost illuminated the creature as it ambled along, seemingly glancing up at the badger graffiti just in front of it.”

The silhouette of a bird — *Evening Song*. "A singing Eurasian songbird is silhouetted against a backdrop of colourful fairground lights in Münster." (Image credit: Christian Brinkmann / Wildlife Photographer of the Year)

Dr Douglas Gurr, Director of the Natural History Museum says, “The People’s Choice Award allows members of the public from across the globe to join the jury and vote for their winning image, inspiring everyone to connect with the natural world. As always, this year's selection of images for the competition’s sixtieth anniversary is truly exceptional, and we can't wait to see which one will be chosen as the public's favourite!”

A sengi on the forest floor — *Snuffling Sengi*. "A rarely seen four-toed sengi forages for food among the leaf litter in Mozambique." (Image credit: Piotr Naskrecki / Wildlife Photographer of the Year)

The top five People’s Choice Award images will also be showcased on the voting screens at the Wildlife Photographer of the Year exhibition in South Kensington until the exhibition closes on Sunday 29 June 2025.

A person mimicking a bird — *Meeting in the Marsh*. "A disguised biologist approaches an endangered whooping crane in Louisiana, USA." (Image credit: Michael Forsberg / Wildlife Photographer of the Year)

A desert landscape — *The Arrival*. "Floodwaters that have travelled for months surge towards an enormous salt lake in South Australia." (Image credit: Brad Leue / Wildlife Photographer of the Year)

Wolves in tall grass — *Wolf Pack*. "Members of an Indian wolf pack pause briefly as they play in fields in Bhigwan, India." (Image credit: Arvind Ramamurthy / Wildlife Photographer of the Year)

A beaver flipping its tale in the water — *Slap Shot*. "A beaver cocks its tail before slapping it down on the water to alert its family to a newcomer." (Image credit: Savannah Rose / Wildlife Photographer of the Year)

Two monkey's on a branch — *Togetherness.* "A striking pair of red-shanked douc langurs are seen mating in the forests of the Sơn Trà peninsula in Vietnam." (Image credit: Ivan Ivanek / Wildlife Photographer of the Year)

A mountain lion on a mountain — *Scanning*. "A puma stands on a windswept outcrop in the rugged mountain terrain of Torres del Paine National Park, Chile." (Image credit: Aaron Baggenstos / Wildlife Photographer of the Year)

A frog in the water — *Concert in the Forest*. "A Surinam golden-eyed tree frog puffs out its cheeks as it prepares to call for a mate." (Image credit: Vincent Premel / Wildlife Photographer of the Year)

A barn owl flying out of barn — *Edge of the Night*. "A ghostly barn owl exits the hayloft window of a derelict barn to hunt in fields outside Vancouver, Canada. Jess quietly watched the owl for several nights to understand its habits." (Image credit: Jess Findlay / Wildlife Photographer of the Year)

A chimpanzee in the trees — *Curious Connection. "*A chimpanzee pauses and looks down as its family moves across the forest floor of Loango National Park, Gabon. On a trek through the forest, Nora’s guide signalled for the group to stop near the bank of a swamp." (Image credit: Noam Kortler / Wildlife Photographer of the Year)

A bird swooping over owl — *Annoying Neighbour*. "A European roller defends its territory from a bemused-looking little owl in Kiskunság National Park, Hungary. The little owl and the European roller are very different birds, but their nests and feeding requirements are similar. This means they sometimes breed near each other." (Image credit: Bence Máté / Wildlife Photographer of the Year)

A tiny crab — *Drifting Dinner*. "A decorator crab perches on top of a sea squirt to comb the water for drifting plankton. Noam took this photograph during a night dive off Komodo island, Indonesia." (Image credit: Noam Kortler / Wildlife Photographer of the Year)

Wolves walking across a snowy landscape — *Aspen Shadows*. "Four grey wolves cross a minimalist landscape of naked aspens and snow in Yellowstone National Park, USA. It was early spring in the Lamar Valley, and this pack was in search of its next meal." (Image credit: Devon Pradhuman / Wildlife Photographer of the Year)

A seal lounging on the ice — *Icy Repose*. "A dramatic blue-grey sky highlights the soft greys of a Weddell seal as it rests on an ice floe. Sue watched this Weddell seal from aboard a rigid inflatable boat in Neko Harbour of the Antarctic Peninsula." (Image credit: Sue Flood / Wildlife Photographer of the Year)

A gecko jumping at a bird of prey — *A Brave Gecko*. "A giant ground gecko stands fast against a pale chanting goshawk in Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park, South Africa. One hunting strategy of the southern pale chanting goshawk is to walk or run on the ground in pursuit of prey." (Image credit: Willie Burger van Schalkwyk / Wildlife Photographer of the Year)

Polar bear in the water with a bird — *Sneak Attack. "*A polar bear cub attempts an underwater surprise attack on a northern fulmar. In the Norwegian archipelago of Svalbard, a walrus carcass had attracted a female polar bear and her two cubs." (Image credit: Erlend Haarberg / Wildlife Photographer of the Year)

A beluga whale above the surface of the water — *A Good Scratch*. "A beluga whale rubs its underside on a shallow river bottom to exfoliate its skin. Mark took this image in a remote inlet along the Northwest Passage in the Canadian Arctic." (Image credit: Mark Williams / Wildlife Photographer of the Year)

The night sky above a mountain — *Earth and Sky*. "A double lenticular cloud is illuminated at nightfall by the lava emitted from the Villarrica volcano, Chile. Villarica is in the town of Pucón in the south of Chile. It’s one of the country’s most active volcanoes and last erupted in 2015." (Image credit: Francisco Negroni / Wildlife Photographer of the Year)

Inspired? Take a look at our guides to the best cameras for wildlife photography, the best lenses for bird photography, and the best telephoto lenses, and the best budget telephoto lenses.

After graduating from Cardiff University with an Master's Degree in Journalism, Media and Communications Leonie developed a love of photography after taking a year out to travel around the world.

While visiting countries such as Mongolia, Kazakhstan, Bangladesh and Ukraine with her trusty Nikon, Leonie learned how to capture the beauty of these inspiring places, and her photography has accompanied her various freelance travel features.

As well as travel photography Leonie also has a passion for wildlife photography both in the UK and abroad.

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