'Bushfire' wins Natural History Museum's prestigious People's Choice award

Drone shot reveals the devastating impact of forest fires on natural habitats in Australia

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  A fire leaves a trail of destruction through woodland near the border of the Steve Irwin Wildlife Reserve in Cape York, Queensland, Australia, illustrating the threat posed to natural habitats. Natural History Museum.

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  HIGHLY COMMENDED: Drey Dreaming by Neil Anderson. As the weather grew colder, two Eurasian red squirrels found comfort and warmth in a box Neil had put up in one of the pine trees near his home in the Scottish Highlands. In the colder months, it’s common for the squirrels, even when unrelated, to share dreys. Courtesy Natural History Museum

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  HIGHLY COMMENDED: Close Encounter by Guillermo Esteves. The worried looking expression on this dog’s face speaks volumes and is a reminder that moose are large, unpredictable, wild animals. Guillermo was photographing moose on the side of the road at Antelope Flats in Grand Teton National Park, Wyoming, USA, when this large bull took an interest in the furry visitor. Courtesy Natural History Museum

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  HIGHLY COMMENDED: Hare Ball by Andy Parkinson. Andy spent five weeks watching the mountain hares near Tomatin in the Scottish Highlands to capture this image. As he watched, frozen and prostrate, with 50 to 60 mph winds surging relentlessly around him, relief came as this little female moved her body into a perfect spherical shape. Courtesy Natural History Museum

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  HIGHLY COMMENDED: The Last Goodbye by Ami Vitale. Joseph Wachira comforts Sudan, the last male northern white rhino left on the planet, moments before he passed away at Ol Pejeta Wildlife Conservancy in northern Kenya. Suffering from age-related complications, he died surrounded by the people who had cared for him. Courtesy Natural History Museum

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  Turtle Time Machine by Thomas Peschak. At locations like Little Farmer’s Cay in the Bahamas, green turtles can be observed with ease. An ecotourism project run by fishermen uses shellfish scraps to attract the turtles to the dock. Without a time machine it is impossible to see the pristine turtle population, but Thomas hopes that this image provides just a glimpse of the bounty our seas once held. Courtesy Natural History Museum

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  Lion King by Wim van den Heever. As Wim watched this huge male lion lying on top of a large granite rock, a cold wind picked up and blew across the vast open plains of the Serengeti, Tanzania. A storm was approaching and, as the last rays of sun broke through the cloud, the lion lifted its head and glanced in Wim’s direction, giving him the perfect portrait of a perfect moment. Courtesy Natural History Museum

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  Shut The Front Door by Sam Sloss. This coconut octopus was spotted walking around the black sand of the Lembeh Strait, Sulawesi carrying its house made of shells. Remarkably, this small octopus constructs its own protective shelter using clam shells, coconuts, and even glass bottles. Courtesy Natural History Museum

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  Life Saver by Sergio Marijuán Campuzano. As urban areas grow, like Jaen in Spain, threats to wildlife increase, and Iberian lynx have become a casualty of traffic accidents. In 2019, over 34 lynx were run over, and three days before Sergio took this photo a two-year-old female lost her life not far from this spot. To combat mortality on the roads, improvements in the fencing and the construction of under-road tunnels are two proven solutions. Courtesy Natural History Museum

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  A Window To Life by Sergio Marijuán Campuzano. Two Iberian lynx kittens, Quijote and Queen, play in the abandoned hayloft where they were born. The reintroduction of the species to eastern Sierra Morena, Spain, has seen them, in more recent years, take advantage of some human environments. Courtesy Natural History Museum

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  White Danger by Petri Pietiläinen. While on a photography trip to the Norwegian archipelago, Svalbard, Petri had hoped to spot polar bears. When one was sighted in the distance on a glacier, he switched from the main ship to a smaller rubber boat to get a closer look. The bear was making its way towards a steep cliff and the birds that were nesting there. Panic ensued as the adults and some of the chicks jumped off the cliff, leaving the bear to feed on what remained. Courtesy Natural History Museum

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  Coexistence by Pallavi Prasad Laveti. A cheeky Asian palm civet kitten peeps from a bag in a small remote village in India. This baby was orphaned and has lived its short life in the village backyard – comfortable in the company of locals, who have adopted the philosophy of ‘live and let live’. Courtesy Natural History Museum

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  A Special Moment by Oliver Richter. Oliver has observed the European beavers near his home in Grimma, Saxony, Germany, for many years, watching as they redesign the landscape to create valuable habitats for many species of wildlife including kingfishers and dragonflies. This family portrait is at the beavers’ favourite feeding place and, for Oliver, the image reflects the care and love the adult beavers show towards their young. Courtesy Natural History Museum

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  The Alpha by Mogens Trolle. Of all the different primate species Mogens has photographed, the mandrill has proved the most difficult to reach. This made the experience of sitting next to this impressive alpha, as he observed his troop above, even more special. Mogens used a flash to enhance the vivid colours and textures against the dark forest background. Courtesy Natural History Museum

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  Drawn And Quartered by Laurent Ballesta. Scraps of grouper flesh fall from the jaws of two grey reef sharks as they tear the fish apart. The sharks of Fakarava Atoll, French Polynesia, hunt in packs, but do not share their prey. Courtesy Natural History Museum

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  The Real Garden Gnomes by Karine Aigner. Located a short ride from the Florida Everglades, USA, Marco Island is the largest and only developed land in Florida's Ten Thousand Barrier Islands. This Gulf Coast retreat offers luxury resorts, beautiful beaches, multimillion-dollar neighbourhoods and, surprisingly, a thriving community of Florida burrowing owls. Courtesy Natural History Museum

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  Resting Dragon by Gary Meredith. The Great Sandy Desert in Western Australia is home to a wide variety of wildlife, which exists alongside man-made mining operations. When the opportunity arises, the long-nosed dragon makes use of human structures. This individual positioned itself on a piece of wire mesh outside a workshop, waiting for the sun’s rays. Courtesy Natural History Museum

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  Baby On The Rocks by Frédéric Larrey. When this six-month-old snow leopard cub wasn’t following its mother and copying her movements, it sought protection among the rocks. This was the second family of snow leopards that Frédéric photographed on the Tibetan plateau in autumn 2017. Courtesy Natural History Museum

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  Eye To Eye by Andrey Shpatak. This Japanese warbonnet was photographed in the north of the Gulf of Oprichnik in the Sea of Japan. These unusual fish lead a territorial lifestyle among the stones and rocks of shallow coastal waters. They were once thought to be timid and almost impossible to observe, but curiosity has taken over and they will now often swim right up to divers, who are usually startled by their extraordinary appearance. Courtesy Natural History Museum

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  Licence To Kill by Britta Jaschinski. Britta’s photographs of items seized at airports and borders across the globe are a quest to understand why some individuals continue to demand wildlife products, even if this causes suffering and, in some cases, pushes species to the brink of extinction. This zebra head was confiscated at a border point in the USA. Courtesy Natural History Museum

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  Bat Woman by Douglas Gimesy. Wildlife rescuer and carer Julie Malherbe takes a call to assist the next animal rescue while looking after three recently orphaned grey-headed flying-foxes. Sadly, the species is listed as vulnerable to extinction because of the destruction of foraging and roosting habitats and, more frequently, mass die-offs caused by heat-stress events. Courtesy Natural History Museum

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  Spirit of Bhutan by Emmanuel Rondeau. Emmanuel’s brief was to photograph the elusive wildlife of the Bhutanese mountains. He installed a camera trap, hoping that the large mammals he was there for would use the very narrow forest path nearby. Returning many weeks later, Emmanuel was amazed to find a head-on picture of a takin, with the colours of blue sky, pink flowers and mustard yellow coat of the beast perfectly complementing one another. Courtesy Natural History Museum

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  Family Portrait by Andrew Lee. Capturing a family portrait of mum, dad and their eight chicks proved tricky for Andrew – they never got together to pose as a perfect 10. Burrowing owls of Ontario, California often have large families so he knew it wouldn’t be easy. After many days of waiting, mum and her brood suddenly turned wide-eyed to glance in his direction – the first time he had seen them all together. Courtesy Natural History Museum

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  Border Refuge by Joseph Dominic Anthony. Joseph formed the idea for this photograph in 2016 on a visit to Mai Po Nature Reserve in Hong Kong. Joseph wanted to convey the story and mood of Mai Po in China in a single balanced photograph, combining individuals and the behaviour of multiple species in the context of their wider environment, particularly to juxtapose the proximity of the ever encroaching urban development. Courtesy Natural History Museum

A dramatic aerial picture of a fire tearing through a northern Australian nature reserve has won the Natural History Museum's People's Choice Award.

The startling image, titled Bushfire, was taken by Robert Irwin, the 17-year-old son of the famed nature presenter Steve Irwin.

Robert, who is also a television presenter, sprang into action after seeing smoke billowing on the horizon and sent his radio-controlled drone to the location, just as it was about to run out of battery.

The image shows the devastating effect of forest fires on wildlife habitats in almost perfect symmetry.

It was taken at the Steve Irwin Wildlife Reserve in Cape York, in Queensland, Australia, which is home to many endangered species.

Director of the Natural History Museum, Dr Doug Gurr, said: "Robert's image is both stirring and symbolic. Last year the world stood aghast at the devastating wildfires that struck much of Australia, and this photograph depicts just one example of a staggering biodiversity loss caused by the detrimental impacts of climate change, habitat loss and pollution."

The People's Choice Award winner is publicly selected from a shortlist of 25 images, chosen by the Natural History Museum from more than 49,000 images that were submitted for their annual wildlife competition.

Also in the top five was this image of a grey hare curled into a sphere as she protected herself from heavy snowfall in the Scottish Highlands.

The photographer, Andy Parkinson, endured 96.5-kph winds to take the picture, titled Hare Ball. He said he enjoyed the physical challenge and time alone in nature needed to take such an intimate portrait.

Also highly commended was this devastating picture of the last moments of Sudan, the world’s last male northern white rhino.

Captured by Ami Vitale, the image shows Sudan as he draws his last breaths while being comforted by keeper Joseph Wachira at the Ol Peteja Wildlife Conservancy in northern Kenya.

Other commended images include an innovative remote capture of two squirrels in Drey dreaming from Neil Anderson, and a Close encounter between a worried looking Labrador in a car and an enormous moose, taken by Guillermo Esteves.

The five images will be displayed in the Wildlife Photographer of the Year exhibition at the Natural History Museum in London when it reopens.