The annual Wildlife Photographer of the Year competition, presented by London’s Natural History Museum and BBC, has just recently announced its 50 finalists, chosen from over 41,000 entries. Here are some of the most breathtaking images taken over the last year.
Apex Predators by Justin Black
Australian Sea Lion Pups by Michael Patrick O’Neill
Bad Hair Day by Gordon Illg
Barracuda Swirl by Alexander Mustard
Bat Festival by João Paulo Krajewski
Beechnuts Rhythm by Sandra Bartocha
Big Mouth by Adriana Basques
Caiman Night by Luciano Candisani
Dantes Inferno by Karen Lunney
Dawn Lift-Off by Jack Dykinga
Diamonds by Malgorzata Ksiazkiewicz
Facebook Update by Marsel van Oosten
Feel Safe by Juan Carlos Mimó Perez
Flirting Bearded Seal by Audun Rikardsen
Great Peacock Moth Caterpillar by Leela Channer
Heavy Rain by Pierluigi Rizzato
Helical by Frederic Brioris
Hide Away by Brittany Fried
Innocents Betrayed by Hilary O’Leary
King Penguins and Fur Seals by Denise Ippolito
Kings into the Dark by Stanley Leroux
Ladybird Spider by Carsten Braun
Las Fauces de la Noche by Juan Jesus Gonzalez Ahumada
Leaping Gentoo Penguin by Paul Souders
Moonlight Climber by Alexander Badyaev
Move! by Gerry Pearce
Old Cloths by Claudio Contreras Koob
One Eye On You by Mohammad Khorshed
Piraputangus by Adriana Basques
Pure Magic by Raviprakash S S
Red Deer and Cranes by Marek Kosinski
Red Kangaroos at Waterhole by Theo Allofs
Sea Lions Dreams by Christian Vizl
Sentry Duty by Neil Aldridge
Shoaling Reef Squid by Tobias Bernhard
Shoulder Check by Henrik Nilsson
Startled by Stargazer by Jennifer Jo Stock
Stretching by Stephan Tuengler
Too Big But So Tasty by Alain Ghignone
View of Tokyo by Olivier Puccia
Whats This by Peter Mather
Winter Hares by David Tipling
Yellow-Necked Mouse by Carsten Braun
