Shane Gross/Wildlife Photographer of the Year
The overall winning image by Shane Gross shows western toad (Anaxyrus boreas) tadpoles in a lake in Vancouver Island, Canada.
Ingo Arndt/Wildlife Photographer of the Year
"The Demolition Squad" by Ingo Arndt shows red wood ants dismembering a blue ground beetle in Hessen, Germany.
John Marriott/Wildlife Photographer of the Year
"On Watch" by John E. Marriott is a portrait of a lynx resting, with its young sheltering behind.
Sage Ono/Wildlife Photographer of the Year
A clutch of tubesnout (Aulorhynchus flavidus) eggs are shown nestled in giant kelp fronds in Monterey Bay, US, in this image by Sage Ono.
Parham Pourahmad/Wildlife Photographer of the Year
Parham Pourahmad captured this image of a Cooper's hawk eating a squirrel in California.
Britta Jaschinski/Wildlife Photographer of the Year
Britta Jaschinski shot a forensic expert trying to get fingerprints from a piece of ivory seized at Heathrow Airport in London.
Jack Zhi/Wildlife Photographer of the Year
This photograph by Jack Zhi shows a young falcon practising its hunting skills on a butterfly in Los Angeles, California.
Karine Aigner/Wildlife Photographer of the Year
A yellow anaconda coils around the snout of a yacaré caiman in this image by Karine Aigner, taken in Mato Grosso, Brazil.
Jiří Hřebíček/Wildlife Photographer of the Year
Jiří Hřebíček captured this image of a perching carrion crow in Basel, Switzerland.
Thomas Peschak/Wildlife Photographer of the Year
Thomas Peschak captured this image of an Amazon river dolphin on a trip in Brazil and Colombia.
Hikkaduwa Liyanage Prasantha Vinod/Wildlife Photographer of the Year
Hikkaduwa Liyanage Prasantha Vinod watched this baby toque macaque almost fall asleep as it suckled milk from its mother in Wilpattu National Park, Sri Lanka.
Fortunato Gatto/Wildlife Photographer of the Year
A gnarled old birch tree with "old man's beard" lichen strung around its branches, as photographed by Fortunato Gatto in Glen Affric, Scotland.
Igor Metelskiy/Wildlife Photographer of the Year
Igor Metelskiy took this photograph of a stretching lynx in Lazovsky District, Primorsky Krai, Russia.
Alexis Tinker-Tsavalas/Wildlife Photographer of the Year
A springtail and a piece of slime mold are captured in this image by Alexis Tinker-Tsavalas in Berlin, Germany.
Robin Darius/Wildlife Photographer of the Year
Robin Darius Conz took this photograph of a tiger on a hill in Nilgiris, Tamil Nadu, India.
Matthew Smith/Wildlife Photographer of the Year.
A leopard seal photographed by Matthew Smith in Paradise Harbour, Antarctica.
Justin Gilligan/Wildlife Photographer of the Year.
This image shows a mosaic made from 403 pieces of plastic found inside a dead flesh-footed shearwater on Lord Howe Island, Australia, photographed by Justin Gilligan.
Alberto Román Gómez Hombre/Wildlife Photographer of the Year
Alberto Román Gómez contrasts a delicate stonechat bird with the chunky chain in this image taken in Cádiz, Spain.

Editor’s Note: Call to Earth is a CNN editorial series committed to reporting on the environmental challenges facing our planet, together with the solutions. Rolex’s Perpetual Planet Initiative has partnered with CNN to drive awareness and education around key sustainability issues and to inspire positive action.

London CNN  — 

A magical underwater image of western toad tadpoles has won the 2024 Wildlife Photographer of the Year competition.

The winning image, “The Swarm of Life” by Canadian photojournalist Shane Gross, was chosen from a record-breaking 59,228 entries, according to a statement from the organizers, published Tuesday.

“Shane captured the image whilst snorkelling for several hours through carpets of lily pads in Cedar Lake on Vancouver Island, British Columbia, making sure not to disturb the fine layers of silt and algae covering the bottom of the lake,” the organizers said.

“A near threatened species due to habitat destruction and predators, these tadpoles start their transition into toads between four and twelve weeks after hatching, but an estimated 99% of them will not survive to adulthood.”

Jury chair Kathy Moran, former deputy director of photography at National Geographic magazine, said the judges were “captivated by the mix of light, energy and connectivity between the environment and the tadpoles.”

Patricia Homonylo/Bird Photographer of the Year

Surfing penguins and hunting falcons among bird photography prize winners

The Young Wildlife Photographer of the Year award went to Alexis Tinker-Tsavalas for “Life Under Dead Wood,” a close-up composite image of 36 photographs of slime mold and a springtail, a kind of tiny arthropod.

“A photographer attempting to capture this moment not only brings great skill, but incredible attention to detail, patience and perseverance,” Moran said in the statement. “To see a macro image of two species photographed on the forest floor, with such skill, is exceptional.”

These two grand title winners were chosen from the 18 category winners, which included photographs of a hawk eating a squirrel, a lynx stretching in the sun and a falcon hunting a butterfly.

“We are delighted to feature such inspiring images in this year’s portfolio – these are photographs that not only encourage further wildlife conservation efforts, but that spark the creation of real advocates for our planet on a global scale,” Doug Gurr, director of London’s Natural History Museum, which organizes the competition, said in the statement.

An exhibition of 100 awarded images will open at the museum on Friday.