Italian photographer Federico Veronesi has won the prestigious Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2026 competition for an emotional black-and-white image titled The Aftermath. The powerful photograph captures a female elephant carrying a deceased calf in Namibia’s Huab River Valley, offering a stark and moving window into complex animal behavior and mourning.
Veronesi tracked drag marks across a dry riverbed in the Huab River Valley before coming across the family group. He watched as the female elephant emerged carrying the dead calf, with its leg positioned firmly between her tusk and trunk. The striking capture emerged from a record-breaking pool of 65,403 entries submitted from 121 countries and territories.
Announced during a ceremony hosted at the Natural History Museum in London by naturalists and television presenters Chris Packham and Megan McCubbin, the overall winner and key category awards showcased the enduring power of monochrome photography. In a historic first for the 62-year competition, both the adult and young overall winners were recognized for black-and-white entries.
The Emotional Impact and Scientific Significance
Kathy Moran, chair of the Wildlife Photographer of the Year jury, praised the winning frame for its profound psychological depth. “This photograph works on so many levels,” Moran said. “Emotionally it’s a gut punch, heartbreakingly poignant. Intellectually it’s proof that animals have cognition. This photograph says it all!”
For Veronesi, who has spent two decades documenting wildlife, the encounter remains the most significant moment of his career. “Of all the 20 years I’ve done photographing animals, this is the most heart-wrecking and fascinating and dramatic,” Veronesi remarked. He noted that subsequent discussions with elephant researchers, who revealed the female had previously handled dead calves from other elephants, transformed his perspective on animal bonds. “It’s a small window that opens just a crack into the complexity of their world.”
Category Winners and Young Photographer Honorees
Alongside Veronesi’s grand-title win, the competition recognized young British photographer Oscar Whitfield, residing in Zimbabwe, as the Young Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2026. Whitfield secured the title for his dynamic image Labour of Love, which captures a dung beetle pushing its heavy ball at eye level under intense desert heat.
Key Category Winners Include:
- Behaviour: Mammals: Federico Veronesi (Italy) – The Aftermath
- 11 – 14 Years & Young Overall Winner: Oscar Whitfield (Zimbabwe/UK) – Labour of Love
- 10 Years and Under: Amelie Davis (UK) – Flight of the Bumblebee
- 15 – 17 Years: Konrad Gräeter (Germany) – Birdsong Painted in Light
- Animals in their Environment: James Lewin (UK) – The Meeting Place
- Animal Portraits: Aaron Sanders (UK) – A Watchful Eye
- Behaviour: Birds: Isak Pretorius (South Africa) – Scenes from the Swamp
- Behaviour: Amphibians and Reptiles: Anton Sorokin (USA) – Protective Pose
- Behaviour: Invertebrates: Sitaram Raul (India) – Shifting Sand
- Oceans: The Bigger Picture: Alex Lindbloom (USA) – Night-Time Catch
- Plants and Fungi: Agorastos Papatsanis (Greece) – Shedding Light
- Natural Artistry: Michał Michalski (Poland) – Escape Artistry
- Underwater: Tony Wu (USA/Japan) – Making Morays
- Urban Wildlife: Seth Forestson (UK) – Urban Jungle
- Wetlands: The Bigger Picture: Alex Visbal (Colombia) – The Great Divide
- Photojournalism: Francisco Negroni (Chile) – Warning Sign
Exhibition and Public Access
Dr. Doug Gurr, Director of the Natural History Museum, emphasized the critical importance of the annual showcase. “This year’s winning photographs demonstrate the extraordinary power of wildlife photography to help us see nature differently,” Gurr stated. “Together they remind us that every species plays a role in the complex web of life, and why understanding and protecting the natural world has never been more important.”
The winning photographs and a selection of 100 shortlisted entries will form an extensive exhibition opening to the public at the Natural History Museum in London on Friday, October 16, 2026. The display will run through Sunday, July 11, 2027, before embarking on a nationwide and international tour.
